The nature and role of cortical feedback in perception, imagery, and synesthesia

Abstract

In his Discussion Paper, Seth makes the case for counterfactual richness of predictive processing models in explaining perceptual presence and its absence in synesthetic concurrent percepts. Here, we question the relevance of counterfactual richness for these and related phenomena, and we argue that alternative theories of perception that incorporate top-down/bottom-up facilitatory interactions are at no relative disadvantage in addressing them. This work was authored as part of the Contributor's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.