An invitation from the Editors to contribute to 'Studies of Brain Functions' with a monograph on the parietal lobe of- fers me an opportunity to present in a concentrated form my studies on this part of the brain from a period of some- what over a decade. The parietal lobe, notably its posterior part, is a very complex neural system whose functions I have been able to study only superficially and without ex- tensive coverage of all its parts. Therefore I did not want to limit myself entirely to my own work but found the task of writing more interesti'ng by including sections reviewing rel- evant literature. Thus Chapter III dealing with the primary somatosensory cortex and Chapters IX, X, and XI concerning area 7 describe work done in my laboratory. Chapter VIII describes microelectrode work on area 7 and covers both the work of my group and that of others working on this area. Chapters II and IV to VII are based on closely related anatomical, physiological and clinical studies performed by others, and Chapter XII is a personal attempt at a synthesis of the functions of the parietal lobe. Thus this monograph is neither a strict review of all important works on the parietal lobe nor is it limited only to my own studies and those of my collaborators. Instead it attempts to be a balanced ex- position of both aspects promoting, hopefully, a synthetic view of the primate parietal lobe.

I. Introduction.- II. Anatomy and Evolution of the Parietal Lobe in Monkeys and Man.- A. Anatomy.- B. Evolution.- III. Functional Properties of Neurones in the Primary Somatosensory Cortex.- A. Comments About Methods.- B. Movement and Orientation Selective Neurones in SI.- C. Receptive Field Integration and Submodality Convergence in SI.- D. Influence of Attention on Neuronal Function in SI.- IV. Neural Connections in the Posterior Parietal Lobe of Monkeys.- A. Connections of Area 5.- B. Connections of Area 7.- C. Summary of Connections.- V. Symptoms of Posterior Parietal Lesions.- A. Humans.- 1. Visuo-Spatial Disorientation.- 2. Defects in Eye Movements.- 3. Misreaching.- 4. Constructional Apraxia.- 5. Unilateral Neglect.- 6. Gerstmann Syndrome.- B. Monkeys.- 1. Visuo-Spatial Disorientation.- 2. Defects in Eye Movements.- 3. Misreaching.- 4. Unilateral Neglect.- 5. Somatic Deficits.- C. Comparison of Monkeys and Man.- VI. Electrical Stimulation of Posterior Parietal Lobe.- A. Monkey.- B. Man.- VII. Neuronal Activity in Area 5.- A. Sensory Properties.- B. Motor Properties.- C. Sensorimotor Interaction in Area 5.- VIII.Neuronal Activity in Area 7.- A. Visual and Oculomotor Mechanisms.- 1. Visual Fixation Neurones.- 2. Visual Tracking Neurones.- 3. Saccade Neurones...- 4. Visual Sensory Neurones.- B. Somatic Mechanisms.- 1. Cutaneous Responses.- 2. Kinaesthetic Responses.- 3. Activity Related to Somatic Movements.- C. Convergence of Somatic and Visual Functions.- D. Behavioural Mechanisms.- E. Effects of Drugs.- IX. Vestibular and Auditory Responses in the Parietal Lobe.- A. Vestibular Responses.- B. Auditory Responses in Area Tpt.- X. Regional Distribution of Functions in Area 7.- A. Mapping Methods.- B. Distribution of Responses.- 1. Visual Responses.- 2. Somatic Responses.- 3. Combined Responses from Several Modalities.- C. Somatotopy in Area 7.- D. Functional Differentiation.- XI. Modification of Area 7 and Functional Blindness After Visual Deprivation.- A. Visual Deprivation.- B. Deprivation Effects on the Visual Pathways.- C. Deprivation Effects on Area 7.- XII. Functional Role of Parietal Cortex.- A. Somatosensory Cortex.- B. Parietal Association Cortex.- 1. Sensory Functions.- a) Visual Functions.- b) Somaesthetic Functions.- c) Vestibular and Auditory Functions.- 2. Motor Functions.- a) Eye Movements.- b) Somatic Movements.- c) The Command Hypothesis.- d) The Corollary Discharge Hypothesis.- 3. Behavioural Functions.- a) Sensorimotor Interaction.- b) Spatial Schema.- c) Motivation-Intention-Attention.- d) Plasticity, Learning, Memory.- 4. Cellular Machinery.- a) Functional Organization.- b) Methodological Difficulties.- c) Factors That Influence Cellular Activity.- C. Parietal Lobe as a Whole.- References.