Human psychophysical analysis of receptive field-like properties—III. Dichoptic properties of a new transient-like psychophysical function

Abstract

A new psychophysical transient-like visual response, based upon a rotating windmill target similar to that used by Werblin in his electrophysiological studies of the Necturus retina, has been examined under monoptic, mixed (“50/50”), and dichoptic viewing conditions in the fovea. The transientlike response, defined as the threshold difference between stationary and rotating windmill conditions, was greatest monoptically when the inner and outer bounds of the windmill vanes corresponded to the desensitization (summation-like) and sensitization (inhibition-like) areas of the previously determined Westheimer function. The “50/50” and dichoptic conditions showed negligible effects of dichoptic background field windmill patterns of the psychophysical transient-like function, suggesting that the response is retinally based.