GoKawiilBerkeley study finds monkey brains encode unseen images via rapid neural switching
Neuroscientist Doris Tsao and colleagues at the University of California, Berkeley posted a preprint on bioRxiv describing an experiment in which macaque brain activity was used to reconstruct both images the animals consciously perceived and images in their visual field that never reached awareness. The team found that neural patterns linked to conscious versus unconscious processing alternated several times per second, a stronger and more rapid signal than prior research had detected.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The findings, not yet peer reviewed, could offer a data point in the long-running effort to pin down the neural basis of consciousness, according to the authors. Some independent experts say the result is rigorous but caution that the viral social-media reaction may overstate how novel the discovery is, since weaker versions of unconscious neural signals had already been reported.
- Tsao's team reconstructed both seen and unseen images from macaque neural activity alone.
- Brain activity switched between conscious and unconscious processing patterns multiple times per second.
- The preprint has drawn over two million views online but has not yet undergone peer review.
Source: nature.com — Lenharo, 2026-10-27
Published there as: “Mysterious flickering brain signals could help to unlock secrets of consciousnes”
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