Abstract Visual representations express distinctively visual content. Such content takes the form of a kind of space where objects and properties are assigned locations in relation to a viewpoint. Many have conceived of visual space as a metric three-dimensional volume, analogous to physical space. Yet this assumption, I argue, over-constrains visual content, excluding the ubiquitous phenomenon of indeterminate depth perception. In this paper, I propose that visual contents are view spaces: two-dimensional directional arrays of objects, properties and relations. View spaces prioritize visual direction as a core aspect of structure, while demoting depth to a variable feature like colour or shape. This proposal accommodates depth indeterminacy while preserving distinctive visual structure, and it aligns with the use of feature maps in vision science and computer vision. I will argue that this architectural differentiation of direction and depth is supported by a wide range of evidence from philosophy and psychology.

Understanding 3D representations of spatial information, particularly in naturalistic scenes, remains a significant challenge in vision science. This is largely because of conceptual difficulties in disentangling higher-level 3D information from co-occurring features and cues (e.g., the 3D shape of a scene image is necessarily defined by "low-level" spatial frequency and orientation information). Recent work has employed newer models and analysis techniques that attempt to mitigate these difficulties within a model-comparison framework. For example, one such study reported 3D-surface features were uniquely present in areas OPA, PPA, and MPA/RSC (areas typically referred to as 'scene-selective'), above and beyond a Gabor-wavelet baseline model. Here, we tested whether these findings generalized to a new stimulus set that, on average, dissociated static Gabor-wavelet baseline features from 3D scene-surface features. Surprisingly, we found evidence that a Gabor-wavelet baseline model-commonly thought of as a "low-level" or "2D" model-better fit voxel responses in areas OPA, PPA and MPA/RSC compared to a model with 3D-surface information. We highlight that this difference in results could be due to differences in the baseline conditions used across studies. These findings emphasize that much of the information in "scene-selective" regions-potentially even information about 3D surfaces-may be in the form of spatial frequency and orientation information often considered 2D or low-level. Disentangling lower-level and higher-level visual information is a continuing fundamental challenge for model-comparison approaches in visual cognition, and it motivates future work investigating which visual features could cue higher-level properties in our real-world visual experience-both within and beyond current model comparison frameworks.

ABSTRACT Clinical relevance The theoretical basis and evidence-based clinical practice of optometry and vision science are expressed primarily in refereed journals of academic and professional repute. These journals serve as the reference and access point for advances and innovations in the field of optometry. Background Africa has the highest global burden of visual impairment, yet the contribution of African optometry researchers to ophthalmic research has not been assessed. This study examines the scholarly output and publication outlets of the leading African optometry academics to evaluate their contribution to ophthalmic literature. Methods A bibliometric analysis was undertaken using Scopus-indexed publications authored by the leading African optometry researchers. The Scopus records for each of the fifty scholars were extracted and deduplicated, yielding metadata on document types, language, citation counts, journal titles, and metrics (h-index, Impact Factor, Cite Score). The Bibliometrix package in R was used to analyse the research output and publication trends. The Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to assess the associations between African contributions and global journal metrics. Results African optometry researchers published 1319 papers across 341 journals, accumulating 86,218 citations with an overall h-index of 72. Original research articles comprised 84.4%. Though open access articles had a higher volume (58.7%), subscription-based articles (41.3%) showed a higher citation impact than open access articles (mean rank:641.18 vs 686.73; U = 225,481.50, p = 0.032). Publications were concentrated in 27 core journals. No significant correlations were found between African-authored article counts and Impact Factor (rs = –0.069, p = 0.738) or between African h-index and journal quartile (χ2 (2) = 4.58, p = 0.101). Conclusions African optometry researchers have demonstrated increasing productivity and contribution to ophthalmic research. However, relevance and accessibility drive journal selection more than impact metrics alone, highlighting the need to bridge the gap between research visibility and global recognition.

There is a growing burden that highlights the need for ophthalmology research to improve treatment outcomes and patient care. By promoting transparency, reproducibility, and collaboration, Data Sharing Statements (DSS) provide a formal declaration of whether and how data can be accessed, reused, or shared, ensuring that research findings can be validated. This study examines the prevalence, content, and implementation of DSS in ophthalmology journals from 2018 to 2023. A comprehensive literature search in MEDLINE (PubMed) was conducted to evaluate clinical studies published in ten leading ophthalmology journals between January 1, 2018, and December 14, 2023. Data extraction was conducted via a standardized form in a masked, duplicate fashion. A hierarchical logistic regression was used to assess factors with potential influence on DSS inclusion. A qualitative analysis was performed to identify common themes in DSS. Of the 1385 articles analyzed, 326 (23.54%) included a DSS, with notable variability in DSS inclusion between journals. The British Journal of Ophthalmology had the highest DSS rate (152/228, 66.67%), while Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science had the lowest (4/103, 3.88%). Clinical trials were the most observed study design; however, DSS rates were low (183/667; 27%). Factors including study design, impact factor, funding type, and article access did not significantly influence DSS inclusion. The most common DSS themes were Conditional Data Availability (199/302, 65.89%) and Gatekeeper Role (87/302, 28.81%). Implementing stronger mandates and adopting standardized data-sharing policies could address barriers to data-sharing practices, improving transparency and reproducibility in ophthalmology research.

Commentary: Toward a global atlas of ocular surface biology: Rationale, design, and clinical applications.

Recent Topics of Research and Development in Light Application and Visual Science

The design of commercial posters must effectively capture consumer attention. To scientifically evaluate the impact of different design formats on attention-grabbing efficiency, three advertising posters were selected. Corresponding dynamic and static, as well as colour and black-and-white (B&W), versions were generated. Sixty participants were recruited for an eye-tracking experiment, recording key metrics such as fixation duration and fixation count. Results indicate: (1) Dynamic posters significantly outperformed static posters for both total fixation duration and total fixation count. When observing the total fixation duration, F = 245.896, p < 0.001, confirming the distinct advantage of dynamic design for capturing attention. (2) Colour posters generally attracted and sustained visual attention more effectively than did B&W posters. When observing the total fixation duration, F = 5.067, p = 0.028 < 0.05. (3) The impact of dynamic effects on attention is more pronounced than that of colour. For both static and dynamic posters, colour and B&W designs show no significant difference in their effect on attention, p = 0.330 > 0.05, η2 = 0.018. This provides a context-dependent prioritisation framework for commercial poster design decisions grounded in visual cognitive science.

For many years the accepted wisdom in vision science has been that humans tend to underestimate the speed of an object when they pursue it with their gaze in comparison to when they fixate a spot in the visual scene and the object moves across the retina, an effect that is referred to as the Aubert-Fleischl phenomenon. However, experiments on the Aubert-Fleischl effect have generally employed a target moving in front of a blank background. For objects moving in the real world, relative motion between the object and the background provides additional cues, potentially allowing the visual system to compensate for the Aubert-Fleischl phenomenon. To test this hypothesis, we asked 50 participants to compare the speed of a single sphere to the speed of a sphere-cloud in a two-interval forced-choice task while they either followed the single sphere with their gaze or kept their eyes on a fixation cross. Stimuli were presented in virtual reality and the sphere’s movement could occur either in a completely black environment with no relative motion cues present, or against a visible, textured background behind the moving sphere. The probe sphere-cloud always moved in front of the same background as the target. We found no evidence for an Aubert-Fleischl effect, i.e., no evidence for an underestimation of speed during pursuit relative to fixation, in either of the environments. Our results challenge the prevailing notion that object speed is underestimated when the object is pursued versus when fixation is maintained and highlights the necessity to take into account characteristics of the visual scene when it comes to the Aubert-Fleischl effect.

Uveal melanoma is a malignant intraocular tumor with a high propensity for metastasis, and the significance of programmed cell death (PCD) in this disease has attracted growing attention in recent decades. However, few studies have systematically investigated the global publication trends, collaboration networks, and thematic focus areas in this domain. The current study utilized a bibliometric approach to examine how PCD research in uveal melanoma has evolved from 1999 to 2024, highlighting key contributors, citation patterns, and emerging research topics. Data were collected from the Web of Science Core Collection (WoSCC) for publications dated January 1, 1999-December 31, 2024. We restricted our search to original articles and reviews in English, employing a comprehensive keyword strategy to identify publications specifically addressing PCD mechanisms-such as apoptosis, autophagy, and ferroptosis-in the context of uveal melanoma. After removing duplicates and screening for relevance, 536 publications were included. WoSCC was selected for its standardized indexing and cited-reference data; potential omissions from Scopus, PubMed, or Embase are addressed in Limitations. Bibliometric indicators, including annual output, institutional productivity, citation counts, and keyword co-occurrence, were analyzed using R-bibliometrix and VOSviewer. Data were last retrieved on May 1, 2025; analyses were restricted to the WoSCC 'Publication Year' 1999-2024 to avoid post-hoc reassignment. References published in 2025 are cited only for context and were not counted in the bibliometric dataset. In total, 536 articles in 242 distinct sources were identified, reflecting an annual growth rate of 11.05%. The United States and China emerged as the leading producers of relevant publications, exhibiting robust and often international collaborative networks. Top institutions included major Chinese universities (e.g., Sun Yat-sen University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University) and renowned Western research centers such as Harvard University and Leiden University, many of which formed high-density clusters in collaboration maps. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science was the most prolific journal in this area, while Cancer Research and Nature ranked among the top in local citations. Keyword co-occurrence analysis revealed an evolving focus over time-from foundational topics like apoptosis and tumor proliferation to more recent interests in ferroptosis, immunotherapy, and metastatic pathways. These findings suggest that PCD research in uveal melanoma has matured into a dynamic, multidisciplinary field that intersects with precision oncology and immuno-oncology. This bibliometric study established a view of PCD research trends in uveal melanoma, demonstrating the field's rapid expansion, strong international collaborations, and an increasing emphasis on emerging cell-death pathways. These results underscore that deeper mechanistic insights into PCD processes have the potential to inform more effective therapies and prognostic tools, particularly in light of the limited treatment options once metastatic disease occurs. Early integration of PCD-focused hypotheses may support precision-medicine study design; however, bibliometrics cannot establish treatment benefit, and clinical trials are required to determine whether PCD-targeted strategies improve outcomes.

Natural selection has produced diverse vision systems, from simple patches of photoreceptors to complex camera eyes, representing just one set of evolutionary outcomes. Computational evolution offers a way to systematically test hypotheses, isolate individual factors, and ask the “why” questions behind vision. We recreate vision evolution by coevolving eyes and behaviors in embodied agents and use this to illuminate principles shaping vision across different levels of the Marr’s hierarchy. This leads to three key findings: First, we provide computational evidence that task-specific selection drives bifurcation in eye evolution. Second, we reveal how optical innovations naturally emerge to resolve fundamental trade-offs between light collection and spatial precision. Third, we uncover scaling laws between visual acuity and neural processing that provide insights into long-standing hypothesis behind eye and brain size. Our work introduces a paradigm that uses embodied artificial intelligence (AI) as hypothesis-testing machines that can help accelerate discoveries in vision science.

Objective: To compare the effect of eating habits during fasting versus three months after fasting on biometric parameters and intra ocular pressure. Method: A Prospective observational study was done at institute of ophthalmology COAVS (College of Ophthalmology and Allied Vision Sciences) Mayo Hospital, Lahore. By using non-probability convenient sampling, 158 healthy participants who had no history of ocular or systemic diseases and a normal ocular status aged 20-30 years were included. Ocular parameters comprised intraocular pressure, axial length, anterior chamber depth, and central corneal thickness were measured by using standardized instruments. Each measurement was made twice, once during the Ramadan fast and once three-month after Ramadan. The data was analyzed by using SPSS version 27 and p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: In this study 158 individuals were enrolled among those 61 (39%) were male and 97 (61%) were female with mean age of 24.5 & SD ± 2.6. The difference of IOP between both measurements was significant (during Ramadan: RE=13.9, LE=14.2 however 3-month post Ramadan: RE & LE=14.9) as the p-value was < 0.001. In contrast, biometric parameters including CCT, ACD, and AXL did not show any significant alteration between two observations because the p-value was > 0.05. Conclusion: Fasting significantly lowers intraocular pressure, but it has no effect on biometric measurements (CCT, ACD, and AXL). Therefore, fasting has no effect on the structural integrity of the eye, but it does change the dynamics of ocular pressure.

BackgroundVideo-based eye trackers are widely used in vision science, psychology, clinical assessment, and neurophysiology. Many such systems track the pupil center and corneal reflection (P-CR) and compare their positions to estimate the direction of gaze. However, P-CR eye trackers are often too imprecise for applications with stringent eye tracking quality requirements.New methodWe present OpenIrisDPI, an open-source plugin for the OpenIris framework that implements dual Purkinje image (DPI) tracking. OpenIrisDPI supports simultaneous pupillography, a technique widely used in perceptual psychology and neuroscience, and it enables direct comparison between P-CR and DPI signals.ResultsData collected from macaque monkeys using OpenIrisDPI show that the P-CR method overestimates the amount of fixational drift between saccades compared to DPI. The accuracy of the DPI signal was further validated using high-density extracellular recording of neurons in the lateral geniculate nucleus. Compensating for the effects of fixational eye movements using DPI signals produced sharper estimates of neuronal receptive fields than using simultaneously collected P-CR signals.Comparison with existing methodsOpenIrisDPI is provided as open-source software and operates on consumer-grade hardware, making it more accessible than previously described DPI eye trackers and less costly than many P-CR systems. To our knowledge, OpenIrisDPI is the first eye tracker to perform both pupillography and DPI eye tracking.ConclusionOpenIrisDPI makes high-precision eye tracking readily available to the research community. It is well suited for visual neuroscience applications, where accurate knowledge of the retinal image during experiments is critical.

Stem cell therapy has emerged as a promising strategy for inherited retinal diseases (IRDs), yet its global research trajectory has not been systematically mapped. This study analyzes publication trends, leading contributors, and thematic evolution of IRD stem cell therapy research from 2000 to 2024. Publications were retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection and analyzed with CiteSpace and VOSviewer. We identified 1060 articles with a steady rise in annual output. The United States and China were the most prolific countries; University College London and the University of Iowa were major institutions; and key outlets included Stem Cell Research & Therapy, Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, and Cell Transplantation. Keyword and co-citation analyses reveal a clear trajectory: early emphasis on stem cell–derived retinal pigment epithelium transplantation for photoreceptor rescue, subsequent expansion to photoreceptor precursor and retinal organoid replacement, and recent movement toward early clinical translation. Persisting challenges include long-term graft survival, functional integration, and immune compatibility. Overall, this bibliometric roadmap clarifies how the field is transitioning from foundational studies to translational application and highlights priorities for interdisciplinary collaboration to accelerate clinical advancement.

More than meets the eye: Retinal phosphenes as confounds in transcranial alternating current stimulation.

Vision and Psychosis: A Clinical Translational Perspective.

To describe the visual field of three common model species in vision science to understand the organization of their visual perceptual experience and contribute to continued studies of visual processing. Visual fields were measured using an ophthalmoscopic reflex technique in four common ferrets, four albino rats, and six northern tree shrews. Animals were anesthetized to avoid stress and the midpoint between their eyes was centered inside a spherical space. A rotating perimetric arm was manipulated in 10° increments around the head. At each increment, direct ophthalmoscopy was used to visualize limits of the retinal reflex for each eye, the overlap being the binocular visual field. Mean binocularity in the horizontal plane was 63.7 ± 5.1°, 79.1 ± 7.4°, and 53.6 ± 12.0° in the ferret, rat, and shrew, respectively. Maximum mean binocularity was 69.0 ± 1.6° in the ferret, 90.0 ± 3.1° in the rat, and 53.6 ± 12.2° in the shrew, located at 10° above, 40° above, and at the horizontal plane, respectively. Binocularity extended to 160°, 200°, and 180° in the sagittal plane in the ferret, rat, and shrew, respectively, from at least below the nose to above the head in all animals. Establishing the extent of the visual field accessible to the retina provides insight into the egocentric perceptual experience of animals. In describing the visual field, we provide a reference for the representation of the visual space in different cortical and retinal regions, many of which represent specific subregions of the visual field.

Far-infrared imaging is a powerful tool in night vision and temperature measurement, with broad applications in military, astronomy, meteorology, industrial, and medical fields. However, conventional imaging lenses face challenges such as large size, heavy weight, and difficulties in miniaturization, which hinder their integration and use in applications with strict requirements for mass and volume, such as drone-based observation and imaging. To address these limitations, we designed a dual-plane diffractive optical lens optimized for the 10.9–11.1 μm wavelength band with a 0.2 μm bandwidth. By optimizing parameters including focal length, spot size, and field of view, we derived the phase distribution of the lens and converted it into the surface sag. To enhance diffraction efficiency and minimize energy loss, the lens was fabricated using a continuous phase surface on single-crystal Germanium. Finally, an imaging system was constructed to achieve clear imaging of various samples, demonstrating the feasibility of both the device and the system. This approach shows great potential for applications requiring lightweight and miniaturized solutions, such as infrared imaging, machine vision, remote sensing, biological imaging, and materials science.

Video games are increasingly used in vision science and clinical interventions, particularly in the treatment of amblyopia. Among them, action video games have shown promise in enhancing visual functions such as attention, spatial resolution, and contrast sensitivity. However, the classification of games in current studies typically relies on broad commercial genre labels, which lack functional specificity and fail to capture the perceptual, cognitive, and motor demands relevant to therapeutic use. This imprecision can lead to suboptimal game selection and limit comparability across studies. To address this gap, we developed a data-driven framework to classify commercial video games based on functional load profiles. Twelve experts evaluated seven games across nine dimensions derived from prior literature on action video games, including Perceptual Load, motor demands, Working Memory, and attentional control. We applied Multidimensional Scaling and K-means clustering to group games based on similarity ratings, and validated the structure using Principal Component Analysis. Three distinct clusters emerged: (1) Action video games with high motor and Perceptual Load (e.g., Call of Duty, Unreal Tournament); (2) puzzle and arcade games with moderate visuomotor and cognitive engagement (e.g., Tetris, Pac-Man); and (3) low-demand simulation games (The Sims). Notably, Tetris reflected moderate visuomotor but higher cognitive demands, confirming its hybrid profile. This multidimensional classification provides a reliable and objective tool to guide therapeutic video game selection and development, offering a valuable alternative to the subjective genre-based selection of video games in both research and clinical applications.

"Core knowledge" refers to a set of cognitive systems that underwrite early representations of the physical and social world, appear universally across cultures, and likely result from our genetic endowment. Although this framework is canonically considered as a hypothesis about early-emerging conception - how we think and reason about the world - here we present an alternative view: that many such representations are inherently perceptual in nature. This "core perception" view explains an intriguing (and otherwise mysterious) aspect of core-knowledge processes and representations: that they also operate in adults, where they display key empirical signatures of perceptual processing. We first illustrate this overlap using recent work on "core physics", the domain of core knowledge concerned with physical objects, representing properties such as persistence through time, cohesion, solidity, and causal interactions. We review evidence that adult vision incorporates exactly these representations of core physics, while also displaying empirical signatures of genuinely perceptual mechanisms, such as rapid and automatic operation on the basis of specific sensory inputs, informational encapsulation, and interaction with other perceptual processes. We further argue that the same pattern holds for other areas of core knowledge, including geometrical, numerical, and social domains. In light of this evidence, we conclude that many infant results appealing to precocious reasoning abilities are better explained by sophisticated perceptual mechanisms shared by infants and adults. Our core-perception view elevates the status of perception in accounting for the origins of conceptual knowledge, and generates a range of ready-to-test hypotheses in developmental psychology, vision science, and more.

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disorder that predisposes individuals to a range of systemic and ocular complications. Among these, diabetic eye diseases such as cataracts, retinopathy, diabetic macular edema, and corneal changes are significant causes of visual impairment. With the global prevalence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes continuing to rise, the incidence of diabetic cataracts is also expected to increase. Early identification of the most prevalent cataract types in diabetics is crucial for timely intervention and prevention of vision loss. Objective: To evaluate the common forms of cataract among patients with diabetes mellitus and assess their association with lifestyle and systemic risk factors. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 380 diabetic patients recruited through convenience sampling. Participants were examined at the Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Department of Dow University of Health Sciences, Ojha Campus, and Dr. Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital, Karachi, between January and April 2025. Inclusion criteria comprised patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, while exclusions included neurological disorders, congenital or traumatic cataracts, prior intraocular surgery, gestational diabetes, and secondary causes of diabetes. Visual acuity was tested with a Snellen chart, cataracts were classified via slit-lamp examination (TopCon SL-3C, VOLK 90D lens), blood glucose was measured with a glucometer, and anterior chamber and fundus were evaluated using an ophthalmoscope. Data entry and analysis were performed with Microsoft Excel and SPSS version 26. Results: The median age was 59 years (range: 52–65), with 207 males (54.5%) and 173 females (45.5%). Type 2 diabetes was predominant (91.1%), while 8.9% had type 1 diabetes. Controlled diabetes was present in 78.2%, and uncontrolled in 21.8%. Nuclear sclerotic cataract was most frequent (55%), followed by posterior subcapsular (23.7%) and cortical cataract (15.8%). Combination forms were less common, including PSCC with nuclear (2.6%), PSCC with cortical (2.4%), and cortical with nuclear (0.5%). Significant associations were observed between cataract type and uncontrolled diabetes (p=0.006), unregulated diet (p<0.001), lack of physical activity (p<0.001), stress (p<0.001), and uncontrolled hypertension (p=0.02). Non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy was observed in 1.6% of cases and showed a significant association with cataract type (p<0.001). Conclusion: Nuclear sclerotic cataract was the most common form in diabetic patients, particularly in those with uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension. Lifestyle factors such as poor dietary regulation, lack of exercise, and stress further amplified cataract risk. Effective management of glycemic status and hypertension, combined with lifestyle modification, is vital to reducing the burden of cataracts in diabetic populations.