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The Journal of Neuroscience, June 17, 2009, 29(24):7723-7730; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5518-08.2009

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Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
Optimal Control of Gaze Shifts

Andreas A. Kardamakis1,2 and Adonis K. Moschovakis1,2

1Institute of Applied and Computational Mathematics, Foundation of Research and Technology Hellas, Heraklion 71003, Crete, Greece, and 2Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion 71003, Crete, Greece

Correspondence should be addressed to Andreas A. Kardamakis at the above address. Email: kardamak{at}edu.med.uoc.gr

To explore the visible world, human beings and other primates often rely on gaze shifts. These are coordinated movements of the eyes and head characterized by stereotypical metrics and kinematics. It is possible to determine the rules that the effectors must obey to execute them rapidly and accurately and the neural commands needed to implement these rules with the help of optimal control theory. In this study, we demonstrate that head-fixed saccades and head-free gaze shifts obey a simple physical principle, "the minimum effort rule." By direct comparison with existing models of the neural control of gaze shifts, we conclude that the neural circuitry that implements the minimum effort rule is one that uses inhibitory cross talk between independent eye and head controllers.

Received Nov. 16, 2008; revised March 2, 2009; accepted March 30, 2009.

Correspondence should be addressed to Andreas A. Kardamakis at the above address. Email: kardamak{at}edu.med.uoc.gr






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