Much evidence has shown that perception is biased towards previously presented similar stimuli, an effect recently termed serial dependence. Serial dependence affects nearly every aspect of perception, often causing gross perceptual distortions, especially for weak and ambiguous stimuli. Despite unwanted side-effects, empirical evidence and Bayesian modeling show that serial dependence acts to improve efficiency and is generally beneficial to the system. Consistent with models of predictive coding, the Bayesian priors of serial dependence are generated at high levels of cortical analysis, incorporating much perceptual experience, but feed back to lower sensory areas. These feedback loops may drive oscillations in the alpha range, linked strongly with serial dependence. The discovery of top-down predictive perceptual processes is not new, but the new, more quantitative approach characterizing serial dependence promises to lead to a deeper understanding of predictive perceptual processes and their underlying neural mechanisms.

中文翻译：

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感知中的序列依赖性

许多证据表明，感知会偏向于先前出现的类似刺激，这种效应最近被称为序列依赖性。序列依赖性几乎影响知觉的每个方面，常常导致严重的知觉扭曲，特别是对于微弱和模糊的刺激。尽管存在不必要的副作用，但经验证据和贝叶斯模型表明，序列依赖性可以提高效率，并且通常对系统有益。与预测编码模型一致，序列依赖性的贝叶斯先验是在高水平的皮层分析中生成的，结合了很多感知经验，但反馈到较低的感觉区域。这些反馈回路可能会驱​​动 alpha 范围内的振荡，与序列依赖性密切相关。自上而下的预测知觉过程的发现并不新鲜，但表征序列依赖性的新的、更定量的方法有望导致对预测知觉过程及其潜在神经机制的更深入理解。