For the first time in history, neuroscience is beginning to shed light on this long-held mystery of why ental imagery & perception look and feel so different

Why do imagery and perception look and feel so different? Roger Koenig-Robert and Joel Pearson. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. December 14 2020. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2019.0703

Abstract: Despite the past few decades of research providing convincing evidence of the similarities in function and neural mechanisms between imagery and perception, for most of us, the experience of the two are undeniably different, why? Here, we review and discuss the differences between imagery and perception and the possible underlying causes of these differences, from function to neural mechanisms. Specifically, we discuss the directional flow of information (top-down versus bottom-up), the differences in targeted cortical layers in primary visual cortex and possible different neural mechanisms of modulation versus excitation. For the first time in history, neuroscience is beginning to shed light on this long-held mystery of why imagery and perception look and feel so different.