The evidence is mounting that the primate brain has separate, independent attentional/working memory capacities in the right and left visual hemifields. In this study, Matushima and Tanaka trained monkeys to track single or multiple objects across both visual hemifields. Neural activity to a given object was only degraded when another object was in the same hemifield, not when another object was in the opposite hemifield. This could not be explained by distance between objects; there was no difference between upper and lower visual fields, for example. This suggests that the anatomical separation of the right and left visual hemifields into the left vs right cerebral hemispheres results in separate cognitive capacities for the right vs left sides of vision. Buschman et al (2011) found similar effects for object identity.
For further reading:
Buschman,T.J., Siegel, M., Roy, J.E. and Miller, E.K. (2011) Neural substrates of cognitive capacity limitations. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 108(27):11252-5. View PDF »
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Miller Lab
The Miller Lab uses experimental and theoretical approaches to study the neural basis of the high-level cognitive functions that underlie complex goal-directed behavior. ekmillerlab.mit.edu