# Beyond Pixels: A Differentiable Pipeline for Probing Neuronal Selectivity in 3D

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.13433 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2510.13433/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 4 of its 25 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 15 Oct 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 4 of 4)

- [Deep Residual Learning for Image Recognition](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1512.03385/) (2015)
- [Batch Normalization: Accelerating Deep Network Training by Reducing Internal Covariate Shift](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1502.03167/) (2015)
- [VGGT: Visual Geometry Grounded Transformer](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.11651/) (2025)
- [Do Adversarially Robust ImageNet Models Transfer Better?](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2007.08489/) (2020)

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

- [MRD: Using Physically Based Differentiable Rendering to Probe Vision Models for 3D Scene Understanding](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2512.12307/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Visual perception relies on inference of 3D scene properties such as shape, pose, and lighting. To understand how visual sensory neurons enable robust perception, it is crucial to characterize their selectivity to such physically interpretable factors. However, current approaches mainly operate on 2D pixels, making it difficult to isolate selectivity for physical scene properties. To address this limitation, we introduce a differentiable rendering pipeline that optimizes deformable meshes to obtain MEIs directly in 3D. The method parameterizes mesh deformations with radial basis functions and learns offsets and scales that maximize neuronal responses while enforcing geometric regularity. Applied to models of monkey area V4, our approach enables probing neuronal selectivity to interpretable 3D factors such as pose and lighting. This approach bridges inverse graphics with systems neuroscience, offering a way to probe neural selectivity with physically grounded, 3D stimuli beyond conventional pixel-based methods.