Cortical Specification of a Fast Fourier Transform Supports a Convolution Model of Visual Perception

Abstract

Currently, the full extent of the role Fourier analysis plays in biological vision is unclear. Although we have examples of sensory organs that perform Fourier transforms, e.g. the lens of the eye and the cochlear, to date there is no direct empirical evidence for its implementation in cortical architecture. However, there does exist intriguing theoretical evidence that suggests a role for the Fourier transform in a primate’s primary visual cortex (area V1) which emerges from recent developments in our knowledge of contextual modulation. This paper proposes a new Fourier transform and a specification of how this transform has a natural implementation in cortical architecture. The significance of this new Fourier transform and its specification in neural circuitry is that it provides a plausible explanation for previously unexplained observable properties of the primate vision system.