The Biological Function of Sensory Systems

Sensory systems serve to link the organism to functionally relevant aspects of the physical environment. A mobile organism requires diverse information from the biological and physical environment and about its internal state for orientation and movement in space and in order to regulate and control its body and behavior. In the course of evolution, with the increased complexity of tasks serving towards orientation and behavioral control there was a growing need to interrelate the diverse sensory cues and also to integrate information about the internal state of the body. This sensory integration required a regulation of awareness to develop which would be able to filter the external signals according to internal motivational and emotional states. As sensory systems are central for behavioral control, the neuronal architecture of sensory systems is intricately interwoven with the motor system. Furthermore, evolutionary considerations suggest that fundamental features of perception formed the basis for more abstract cognitive achievements and that the underlying general principles are thus also reflected in the organization of cognitive processes.

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