Macaque Brains Store Suppressed Face Images
Neuroscientists report that monkey brains retain face images that the animals no longer consciously perceive, according to a preprint study.
Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Social Sciences
Researchers Janis Hesse and Doris Tsao found that macaque brains store suppressed face images alongside consciously perceived ones. The study was posted to the bioRxiv preprint server and awaits peer review.
Why it matters
The findings offer a clearer look at why some neural activity becomes consciously available while other activity does not. Identifying a neural representation of conscious perception could help scientists understand how the brain selects what reaches awareness.
Macaque recordings in the inferotemporal cortex and prefrontal cortex showed alternating perception and suppression states while the stimulus stayed the same. Suppressed face images could be reconstructed from neural activity with high fidelity, but the study remains a preprint awaiting peer review.
The players
Janis Hesse
Neuroscientist who co-led the study on suppressed face image storage in macaque brains.
Doris Tsao
Neuroscientist at the University of California, Berkeley who co-led the study on suppressed face image storage in macaque brains.
The details
Researchers implanted electrodes in macaque brains and used red-and-blue 3D glasses to show each eye a different image. Human subjects tested with the same technique reported that the second image took over their perception.
Timeline
Article about the Hesse and Tsao study was published on November 4, 2026.
The study was posted to bioRxiv and is awaiting peer review.
Big Picture
Earlier binocular rivalry studies in visual neuroscience had not identified a pure neural representation of conscious perception in any recorded brain region. This preprint suggests that suppressed images are stored in the inferotemporal and prefrontal cortex, extending that line of research.
Understanding how the brain separates conscious from unconscious processing could eventually inform treatments for perception disorders. The practical applications remain distant, since the work is still a preprint and has not been replicated or peer reviewed.
The takeaway
The brain processes far more information than it consciously perceives, and this study suggests suppressed visual information is still stored. Readers interested in how perception works can follow ongoing research as the preprint moves through peer review.
Further reading
Explore more on Social Sciences to see how researchers study perception and the mind.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Popular Mechanics.
