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Visual Neuroscience

Visual Neuroscience news articles cover science research into visual cortex, vision, visual disorders, blindness, brain processing of visual cues, facial recognition and research related to how eyes and brains function.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·April 23, 2025·9 min read

Human Eyes See New Color “Olo” for the First Time

Scientists have created a technology called Oz that stimulates individual photoreceptor cells in the human eye to create an entirely new, ultra-saturated color never seen in nature—dubbed olo. Using microdoses of laser light, Oz activates specific combinations of cone cells to generate this vivid blue-green hue, which vanishes the moment the precision targeting is disrupted.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 23, 2025·3 min read

Brain’s Visual Symphony: How We See the World in Real Time

Our brain doesn't passively receive visual input—it actively orchestrates a symphony of neural oscillations to process the complex, dynamic scenes we see in everyday life. A new study reveals that features like brightness and contrast in different parts of the visual field trigger distinct oscillations across specific neural circuits.

This shows a person surrounded by swirls.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·April 22, 2025·4 min read

Psychedelics Linked to Visual Echoes

As psychedelics gain traction in mental health treatment, questions remain about their long-term effects. A new study followed individuals self-administering psychedelics and found that while some experienced lingering visual aftereffects, most were not distressed by them.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·April 22, 2025·4 min read

Eye Clues to Schizophrenia Risk Found in Retinal Thickness

The retina, as part of the central nervous system, may reflect early signs of brain disorders like schizophrenia. A large-scale genetic study found that people with higher genetic risk for schizophrenia tend to have thinner retinas, even in the absence of symptoms.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 22, 2025·4 min read

Rewiring Retinal Messages to Slow Vision Loss in AMD

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of adult blindness, affects nearly half of Oklahomans over age 80. New research is uncovering how retinal cells communicate using microRNA and extracellular vesicles (EVs), with the goal of slowing AMD progression.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 17, 2025·6 min read

Gold Nanoparticles Restore Vision in Macular Degeneration

A new study shows that gold nanoparticles injected into the retina can restore vision in mice with retinal degeneration, offering a less invasive alternative to current retinal prostheses. When activated by patterned infrared light, these nanoparticles stimulate retinal cells, bypassing damaged photoreceptors.

This shows people surrounded by screens.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 15, 2025·4 min read

Brain Learns to Tune Out Distractions with Repeated Exposure

Our brains can adapt to filter out repeated distractions, according to a new EEG study. Participants learned to ignore frequent visual distractions, such as a red shape in the same location, while searching for a target.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 13, 2025·6 min read

Breathing Syncs with Pupil Size, Revealing a New Mind-Body Link

A groundbreaking study has revealed that our pupils change size in sync with our breathing—a response now dubbed the "pupillary respiratory phase response." Researchers confirmed that pupils are smallest around the start of inhalation and largest during exhalation, regardless of lighting, focus, or cognitive effort.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·April 11, 2025·4 min read

Vivid Visual Memory May Raise PTSD Risk

A new study shows that having a vivid imagination—especially for visual details—may increase a person’s risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after trauma. In contrast, strong spatial memory skills, such as understanding where objects are located in space, may protect against PTSD symptoms, particularly in men.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·April 9, 2025·5 min read

Eye Clues May Reveal Early Dementia Risk

A new study has found that blood vessels in the retina may hold early clues about a person’s risk of developing dementia. Researchers observed that narrower arterioles, wider venules, and thinner retinal nerve fiber layers were linked to higher dementia risk around midlife.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·February 21, 2025·4 min read

Every Breath You Take Alters Your Visual Perception

Researchers have discovered that breathing affects pupil size, with the pupil being smallest during inhalation and largest during exhalation. This newly identified mechanism is independent of external stimuli and could influence vision by alternating between detail enhancement and object detection.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·January 27, 2025·5 min read

How the Brain Processes Space and Time

New research highlights a functional hierarchy in the brain's processing of space and time. In posterior areas, like the occipital cortex, space and time are tightly linked and processed by the same neurons. In anterior regions, such as the frontal cortex, space and time are processed independently, with distinct neural populations forming "time maps" for specific durations.