Research Colloquium Neural Basis of Learning

24.04.2026

The Feature Filtering Function from Consciousness to Working Memory

Abstract:
Can we remember everything we consciously experienced? If not, what do we remember and forget? In this study, we displayed only one suprathreshold seven-attribute stimulus on the screen for 500 ms and probed the memory of the task-irrelevant Attributes surprisingly. The results of 42 pre-registered experimental conditions revealed three feature filtering functions from consciousness to working memory: spatial resolution function, semantic advantage function, and color asymmetry. All task- irrelevant attributes were consciously perceived, since we found that even the most forgotten attribute is preserved in Memory within 300 ms after stimulus offset. These filtering functions are not driven by residual feature-based attention, as we replicated the patterns in Experiment 1 in an pre-registered all-attribute- equally-task-relevant design. Our results challenge the classic distinction of iconic memory and working memory stages and proposed instead a two-stream model of short-term memory of task-irrelevant information.

Speaker:
Zefan Zheng, MSc (Predictive Brain Lab, RUB)

Venue:
GA 04/187 or Zoom: https://ruhr-uni-bochum.zoom-x.de/j/61984366303?pwd=OUtZcENqdFBPK3VBL3ZIdVNtSmVuQT09

Starting time:
12:00 PM (s.t.)