Abstract
A ring of points that is rotated so rapidly is perceived as a stationary outline circle that can induce an illusory rotation with the same spin direction in a subsequently presented ring of stationary points. This motion bridging effect (MBE) demonstrates that motion information can be conveyed by temporal frequencies generally thought to exceed the processing capabilities of the human visual system. It was first described in displays shown with an analog oscilloscope, but the rapid rotation rates needed to produce the MBE have heretofore prevented it from being investigated with conventional raster scan monitors. Here, we demonstrate the MBE can be reliably generated using the new generation of 240 Hz LCD gaming monitors, and exhibits basic characteristics similar to those reported previously. These monitors therefore provide a readily available resource for research on the MBE and the studies of the visual processing rapid motions in general.
Highlights
A ring of points that is rotated so rapidly is perceived as a stationary outline circle that can induce an illusory rotation with the same spin direction in a subsequently presented ring of stationary points
The ability of observers to perceive the motion of repetitive patterns is limited by the temporal frequency of the intensity modulations that those motions generate (Burr & Ross, 1982)
The rapid rotations of the ring stimuli needed to demonstrate the motion bridging effect (MBE) produce modulations too rapid to support conscious motion percepts, but not so rapid they prevent the encoding of information that can reveal the direction of the rotations
Summary
A ring of points that is rotated so rapidly is perceived as a stationary outline circle that can induce an illusory rotation with the same spin direction in a subsequently presented ring of stationary points This motion bridging effect (MBE) demonstrates that motion information can be conveyed by temporal frequencies generally thought to exceed the processing capabilities of the human visual system. The conscious perception of spatial or temporal changes in the environment is limited by the visual system’s ability to perceptually resolve high spatial and temporal frequencies This limit is approximately 60 cycles per degree of visual angle when discriminating the orientation of fine grids (He & MacLeod, 1996), 30 to 60 Hz when observing flickering patches (Cornsweet, 1970; Hartmann et al, 1979; Kelly, 1961), and approximately 30 Hz when detecting the direction of sinusoidally moving gratings (Burr & Ross, 1982). The MBE would reflect the joint action of two processes, one that registers the direction of the inducing ring’s rotation and one that generates the illusory test ring spin
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