EEG correlates of static and dynamic face perception: The role of naturalistic motion.

Much of our understanding of how the brain processes dynamic faces comes from research that compares static photographs to dynamic morphs, which exhibit simplified, computer-generated motion. By comparing static, video recorded, and dynamic morphed expressions, we aim to identify the neural correlates of naturalistic facial dynamism, using time-domain and time-frequency analysis. Dynamic morphs were made from the neutral and peak frames of video recorded transitions of happy and fearful expressions, which retained expression change and removed asynchronous and non-linear features of naturalistic facial motion.

Can deepfakes be used to study emotion perception? A comparison of dynamic face stimuli.

Video recordings accurately capture facial expression movements; however, they are difficult for face perception researchers to standardise and manipulate. For this reason, dynamic morphs of photographs are often used, despite their lack of naturalistic facial motion. This study aimed to investigate how humans perceive emotions from faces using real videos and two different approaches to artificially generating dynamic expressions - dynamic morphs, and AI-synthesised deepfakes.

New evidence for the sensorimotor mismatch theory of weight perception and the size-weight illusion.

The size-weight illusion is a phenomenon where a smaller object is perceived heavier than an equally weighted larger object. The sensorimotor mismatch theory proposed that this illusion occurs because of a mismatch between efferent motor commands and afferent sensory feedback received when lifting large and small objects (i.e.

Linear perspective cues have a greater effect on the perceptual rescaling of distant stimuli than textures in the virtual environment.

The presence of pictorial depth cues in virtual environments is important for minimising distortions driven by unnatural viewing conditions (e.g., vergence-accommodation conflict).

Comparison of Tiling Artifact Removal Methods in Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Images.

Time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) imaging is used across many fields for the atomic and molecular characterization of surfaces, with both high sensitivity and high spatial resolution. When large analysis areas are required, standard ToF-SIMS instruments allow for the acquisition of adjoining tiles, which are acquired by rastering the primary ion beam. For such large area scans, tiling artifacts are a ubiquitous challenge, manifesting as intensity gradients across each tile and/or sudden changes in intensity between tiles.

A review of the impairments, preserved visual functions, and neuropathology in 21 patients with visual form agnosia - A unique defect with line drawings.

We present a comprehensive review of the rare syndrome visual form agnosia (VFA). We begin by documenting its history, including the origins of the term, and the first case study labelled as VFA. The defining characteristics of the syndrome, as others have previously defined it, are then described.

Visual illusions in young people reporting psychotic-like experiences.

Background And Objectives: A disruption in the co-ordination of bottom-up and top-down processing is thought to underlie anomalous perceptual experiences in psychosis. Visual illusions represent a valuable methodology in exploring this disruption. Here, we examined visual illusions in a group of young people having psychotic-like experiences.

Seeing Things: A Community Science Investigation into Motion Illusion Susceptibility in Domestic Cats () and Dogs ().

Illusions-visual fields that distort perception-can inform the understanding of visual perception and its evolution. An example of one such illusion, the Rotating Snakes illusion, causes the perception of motion in a series of static concentric circles. The current study investigated pet dogs' and cats' perception of the Rotating Snakes illusion in a community science paradigm.

The Effects of Adding Pictorial Depth Cues to the Poggendorff Illusion.

We tested if the misapplication of perceptual constancy mechanisms might explain the perceived misalignment of the oblique lines in the Poggendorff illusion. Specifically, whether these mechanisms might treat the rectangle in the middle portion of the Poggendorff stimulus as an occluder in front of one long line appearing on either side, causing an apparent decrease in the rectangle's width and an apparent increase in the misalignment of the oblique lines. The study aimed to examine these possibilities by examining the effects of adding pictorial depth cues.

fMRI form adaptation and size repetition enhancement in different subdivisions of the lateral occipital complex.

Research findings on which brain areas demonstrate fMRI adaptation to the form, orientation, and size of visual stimuli has been mixed. Studies demonstrate effects in various subdivisions of the lateral occipital complex (LOC), including retinotopically tuned areas LO-1 and LO-2, and dorsal stream areas in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS). Therefore, we aimed to examine fMRI adaptation in four subdivisions of the LOC (LO-proper, posterior fusiform sulcus, LO-1, and LO-2) and three discrete regions in the IPS (caudal IPS, IPS-proper, and anterior IPS) to clarify the role that these structures play in form, orientation, and size processing.

A review on various explanations of Ponzo-like illusions.

This article reviews theoretical and empirical arguments for and against various theories that explain the classic Ponzo illusion and its variants from two different viewpoints concerning the role of perceived depth in size distortions. The first viewpoint argues that all Ponzo-like illusions are driven by perceived depth. The second viewpoint argues that the classic Ponzo illusion is unrelated to depth perception.

The Effects of Word Identity, Case, and SOA on Word Priming in a Subliminal Context.

It is widely assumed that subliminal word priming is case insensitive and that a short SOA (< 100 ms) is required to observe any effects. Here we attempted to replicate results from an influential study with the inclusion of a longer SOA to re-examine these assumptions. Participants performed a semantic categorisation task on visible word targets that were preceded either 64 or 192 ms by a subliminal prime.

The conceptual understanding of depth rather than the low-level processing of spatial frequencies drives the corridor illusion.

Our objective was to determine how different spatial frequencies affect the perceptual size rescaling of stimuli in the corridor illusion. Two experiments were performed using the method of constant stimuli. In experiment 1, the task required participants to compare the size of comparison and standard rings displayed over the same background image.

Alterations in Rapid Social Evaluations in Individuals with High Autism Traits.

Typically developing adults with low and high Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) scores made rapid social evaluations of neutral faces when these were primed by briefly presented emotional faces. High AQ participants rated neutral faces as more threatening than low AQ participants, regardless of the prime condition. Both groups rated target neutral faces as more threatening with fearful compared with neutral primes, while neither group demonstrated an effect of happy primes on the ratings of neutral target faces.

A priming study on naming real versus pictures of tools.

There is a growing body of literature demonstrating the relationship between the activation of sensorimotor processes in object recognition. It is unclear, however, if these processes are influenced by the differences in how real (3D) tools and two-dimensional (2D) images of tools are processed by the brain. Here, we examined if these differences could influence the naming of tools.

Interocular transfer effects of linear perspective cues and texture gradients in the perceptual rescaling of size.

Our objective was to determine whether the influence of linear perspective cues and texture gradients in the perceptual rescaling of stimulus size transfers from one eye to the other. In experiment 1, we systematically added linear perspective cues and texture gradients in a background image of the corridor illusion. To determine whether perceptual size rescaling takes place at earlier or later stages, we tested how the perceived size of top and bottom rings changed under binocular (rings and background presented to both eyes), monocular (rings and background presented to the dominant eye only), and dichoptic (rings and background presented separately to the dominant and nondominant eyes, respectively) viewing conditions.

Grip Constancy but Not Perceptual Size Constancy Survives Lesions of Early Visual Cortex.

Object constancies are central constructs in theories of visual phenomenology. A powerful example is "size constancy," in which the perceived size of an object remains stable despite changes in viewing distance [1-4]. Evidence from neuropsychology [5], neuroimaging [6-11], transcranial magnetic stimulation [12, 13], single-unit and lesion studies in monkey [14-20], and computational modeling [21] suggests that re-entrant processes involving reciprocal interactions between primary visual cortex (V1) and extrastriate visual areas [22-26] play an essential role in mediating size constancy.

Having a live huntsman spider on a rubber hand does not modulate the rubber-hand illusion in a top-down manner.

The rubber-hand illusion is an illusion where a person embodies a rubber hand as if it were their own. After embodiment, many studies have threatened the false hand and measured physiological responses to the threat for the purposes of verification. For the first time, we tested if embodiment of the false hand could be modulated with a fearful stimulus already present prior to the elicitation of the illusion.

Grey-Matter Thickness of the Left But Not the Right Primary Visual Area Correlates with Autism Traits in Typically Developing Adults.

We examined whether functional and structural variability in the primary visual area (V1) correlated with autism traits. Twenty-nine participants (16 males; M = 26.4 years, SD = 4.

The contribution of stereopsis in Emmert's law.

Size constancy is the ability to perceive objects as remaining constant in size regardless of their distance from the observer. Emmert's law demonstrates that viewing distance determines the perceived size of afterimages according to the amount of depth cues that are available. Using an afterimage paradigm, we examined to what extent removing stereopsis and other depth cues affects size-distance scaling.

The strength of the Shepard illusion in children coincides with age and cognitive skills but not perceptual abilities.

We examined how the strength of the Shepard illusion develops with age in typically developing children. To this end, we recruited children between the ages of 6 and 14 years and quantified the degree to which they experienced the illusion. The strength of the illusion increased with age - reaching adult levels by 11.

The contribution of linear perspective cues and texture gradients in the perceptual rescaling of stimuli inside a Ponzo illusion corridor.

We examined the influence of linear perspective cues and texture gradients in the perceptual rescaling of stimuli over a highly-salient Ponzo illusion of a corridor. We performed two experiments using the Method of Constant Stimuli where participants judged the size of one of two rings. In experiment 1, one ring was presented in the upper visual-field at the end of the corridor and the other in the lower visual-field at the front of the corridor.