The Visual Brain in Action

Although the mechanics of how the eye works are well understood, debate still exists as to how the complex machinery of the brain interprets neural impulses supplied by the eye. In an attempt to understand the evolutionary origins and functions of the visual system, the authors pose the question "What is the function of vision?" Topics covered include: visual processing in the primate, disorders of visual recognition, spatial perception and the visual control of action, dissociations between perception and action, attention, consciousness, and the coordination of behavior. The issues raised will be of interest to psychologists, vision scientists, neuroscientists, and ophthalmologists.

Professor Milner gained his first degree in Psychology, Philosophy and Physiology, at the University of Oxford in 1965, and went on to obtain a Postgraduate Diploma in Psychology (Abnormal) from the University of London in 1966. He was awarded a PhD in Experimental Psychology from the University of London in 1971. He worked as a MRC Research Assistant with the late Dr George Ettlinger at the Institute of Psychiatry, London, between 1966 and 1970 before moving to the University of St Andrews. Here he held a number of positions, including Professor of Neuropsychology and Dean of the Faculty of Science, until he left in 2000 to take up his current position as Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Durham. Professor Milner has given numerous invited lectures, and has published 6 books and over 130 book chapters and refereed journal articles. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1992. Professor Goodale has published more than 150 chapters and research articles, and is a frequent invited speaker at international meetings. In addition to his research activities, he has been active in developing the graduate program in Neuroscience at Western, for which he was awarded the prestigious E.G. Pleva Award for Contributions to Teaching in 1994. Professor Goodale serves on the editorial board of a number of journals including Experimental Brain Research, Neuropsychologia, Debates in Neuroscience, and Advances in Cognitive Psychology. He is the past-President of the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness. In 1999, Professor Goodale was awarded the D.O Hebb Award by the Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour, and Cognitive Science in recognition of his distinguished scientific achievements. In 2001, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. In 2006, Professor Goodale was award tthe Hellmuth Prize for Achievement in Research.