Sensory gating describes neural processes of filtering out redundant or irrelevant stimuli from all possible environmental stimuli reaching the brain. Also referred to as gating or filtering, sensory gating prevents an overload of information in the higher cortical centers of the brain.

What is sensory gating?

Sensory gating is a phenomenon in which the brain shows reduced evoked response to repeated stimuli (e.g., Boutros and Belger, 1999, Freedman et al., 1987, Freedman et al., 1996). It is typically explored using a conditioning-testing paradigm (or paired-stimulus paradigm) during an electroencephalogram (EEG) recording.

How does the brain manage to cut off sensory input and yet let in the really important or insistent stimuli?

How does the brain manage to cut off sensory input, yet still let in the really important (or insistent) stimuli. The answer lies in the thalamus. ... If the gate of the thalamus is closed, then the cortex can shut out the world and go into sleep-mode (Figure 1).