# Noninvasive precision modulation of high-level neural population activity via natural vision perturbations

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2506.05633 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2506.05633/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 6 of its 37 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 5 Jun 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 6 of 6)

- [Towards Deep Learning Models Resistant to Adversarial Attacks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1706.06083/) (2017)
- [Shortcut Learning in Deep Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2004.07780/) (2020)
- [The Quest for an Integrated Set of Neural Mechanisms Underlying Object Recognition in Primates](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2312.05956/) (2023)
- [Robustified ANNs Reveal Wormholes Between Human Category Percepts](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.06887/) (2023)
- [Universal scale-free representations in human visual cortex](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2409.06843/) (2024)
- [L-WISE: Boosting Human Visual Category Learning Through Model-Based Image Selection and Enhancement](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.09765/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Targeted perturbations reveal brain-like local coding axes in robustified, but not standard, ANN-based brain models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2509.23333/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Precise control of neural activity -- modulating target neurons deep in the brain while leaving nearby neurons unaffected -- is an outstanding challenge in neuroscience, generally approached using invasive techniques. This study investigates the possibility of precisely and noninvasively modulating neural activity in the high-level primate ventral visual stream via perturbations on one's natural visual feed. When tested on macaque inferior temporal (IT) neural populations, we found quantitative agreement between the model-predicted and biologically realized effect: strong modulation concentrated on targeted neural sites. We extended this to demonstrate accurate injection of experimenter-chosen neural population patterns via subtle perturbations applied on the background of typical natural visual feeds. These results highlight that current machine-executable models of the ventral stream can now design noninvasive, visually-delivered, possibly imperceptible neural interventions at the resolution of individual neurons.