Visual receptive fields and clustering

A pattern recognition technique—clustering—has been used to analyze and evaluate meaningful characteristics of visual receptive fields in the frog tectum. The fields were mapped either by an automatic scanning technique or by a response-feedback method called ALOPEX. The data were then analyzed by the clustering technique, which separates the receptive field into isoresponse regions. The latter can be checked on line by stimulating the eye with each cluster and with combinations of clusters. In this way, existing nonlinearities can be checked objectively.