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Abstract
Contour integration is a fundamental form of perceptual organization. We introduce a new method of studying the mechanisms responsible for contour integration. This method capitalizes on the perceptual persistence of contours under conditions of impending camouflage. Observers viewed arrays of randomly arranged line segments upon which circular contours comprised of similar line segments were superimposed via abrupt onset. Crucially, these contours remained visible for up to a few seconds following onset, but eventually disappeared due to the camouflaging effects of surrounding background line segments. Our main finding was that the duration of contour visibility depended on the distance and degree of co-alignment between adjacent contour segments such that relatively dense smooth contours persisted longest. The stimulus-related effects reported here parallel similar results from contour detection studies, and complement previous reported top–down influences on contour persistence (Strother et al., 2011). We propose that persistent contour visibility reflects the sustained activity of recurrent processing loops within and between visual cortical areas involved in contour integration and other important stages of visual object recognition.
Highlights
The perceptual binding of spatially local edge information into global contours, or contour integration, is a crucial stage of visual object recognition
Contour integration is subject to both bottom– up and top–down influences that depend on stimulus regularities, expectations, task demands, and other factors (Hess and Field, 1999; Gilbert and Li, 2013)
Regan (1986) noted that a highly camouflaged shape made visible by motion does not disappear immediately after it stops moving1. Several studies of this phenomenon have since shown that outlines of recognizable objects and simple shapes persist perceptually for up to several seconds, and this persistence of global form is accompanied by persistent neural activity in V1 and highertier visual cortical areas (Ferber et al, 2003; Large et al, 2005; Strother et al, 2011, 2012)
Summary
The perceptual binding of spatially local edge information into global contours, or contour integration, is a crucial stage of visual object recognition. Several studies of this phenomenon have since shown that outlines of recognizable objects and simple shapes persist perceptually for up to several seconds, and this persistence of global form is accompanied by persistent neural activity in V1 and highertier visual cortical areas (Ferber et al, 2003; Large et al, 2005; Strother et al, 2011, 2012). These findings demonstrate a unique type of perceptual hysteresis, which we refer to here as contour persistence. Contour persistence differs from other types of visual persistence in terms of its relatively long duration—contour persistence typically lasts >1 s, whereas other visual persistence phenomena typically last
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