Hybrid visual and memory search for scenes and objects with variable viewpoints.

In hybrid search, observers search visual arrays for any of several target types held in memory. The key finding in hybrid search is that response times (RTs) increase as a linear function of the number of items in a display (visual set size), but RTs increase linearly with the log of the memory set size. Previous experiments have shown this result for specific targets (find exactly this picture of a boot on a blank background) and for broad categorical targets (find any animal).

Visual search errors are persistent in a laboratory analog of the incidental finding problem.

When radiologists search for a specific target (e.g., lung cancer), they are also asked to report any other clinically significant "incidental findings" (e.

Looking ahead: When do you find the next item in foraging visual search?

Many real-world visual tasks involve searching for multiple instances of a target (e.g., picking ripe berries).

Perception in dynamic scenes: What is your Heider capacity?

The classic animation experiment by Heider and Simmel (1944) revealed that humans have a strong tendency to impose narrative even on displays showing interactions between simple geometric shapes. In their most famous animation with three simple shapes, observers almost inevitably interpreted them as rational agents with intentions, desires, and beliefs ("That nasty big triangle!"). Much work on dynamic scenes has identified basic visual properties that can make shapes seem animate.

Event monitoring: Can we detect more than one event at a time?

A prior study by Wu and Wolfe found that the capacity for event monitoring (e.g. did an item change its state?) is more limited than for classic multiple object tracking.

Hybrid value foraging: How the value of targets shapes human foraging behavior.

In hybrid foraging, observers search visual displays for multiple instances of multiple target types. In previous hybrid foraging experiments, although there were multiple types of target, all instances of all targets had the same value. Under such conditions, behavior was well described by the marginal value theorem (MVT).

How did I miss that? Developing mixed hybrid visual search as a 'model system' for incidental finding errors in radiology.

In a real world search, it can be important to keep 'an eye out' for items of interest that are not the primary subject of the search. For instance, you might look for the exit sign on the freeway, but you should also respond to the armadillo crossing the road. In medicine, these items are known as "incidental findings," findings of possible clinical significance that were not the main object of search.