Influence of Visual Motion,Suggestion, and Illusory Motion on Self-Motion Perception in the Horizontal Plane

A moving visual field can induce the feeling of self-motion or vection. Illusory motion from static repeated asymmetric patterns creates a compelling visual motion stimulus, but it is unclear if such illusory motion can induce a feeling of self-motion or alter self-motion perception. In these experiments, human subjects reported the perceived direction of self-motion for sway translation and yaw rotation at the end of a period of viewing set visual stimuli coordinated with varying inertial stimuli. This tested the hypothesis that illusory visual motion would influence self-motion perception in the horizontal plane. Trials were arranged into 5 blocks based on stimulus type: moving star field with yaw rotation, moving star field with sway translation, illusory motion with yaw, illusory motion with sway, and static arrows with sway. Static arrows were used to evaluate the effect of cognitive suggestion on self-motion perception. Each trial had a control condition; the illusory motion controls were altered versions of the experimental image, which removed the illusory motion effect. For the moving visual stimulus, controls were carried out in a dark room. With the arrow visual stimulus, controls were a gray screen. In blocks containing a visual stimulus there was an 8s viewing interval with the inertial stimulus occurring over the final 1s. This allowed measurement of the visual illusion perception using objective methods. When no visual stimulus was present, only the 1s motion stimulus was presented. Eight women and five men (mean age 37) participated. To assess for a shift in self-motion perception, the effect of each visual stimulus on the self-motion stimulus (cm/s) at which subjects were equally likely to report motion in either direction was measured. Significant effects were seen for moving star fields for both translation (p = 0.001) and rotation (p<0.001), and arrows (p = 0.02). For the visual motion stimuli, inertial motion perception was shifted in the direction consistent with the visual stimulus. Arrows had a small effect on self-motion perception driven by a minority of subjects. There was no significant effect of illusory motion on self-motion perception for either translation or rotation (p>0.1 for both). Thus, although a true moving visual field can induce self-motion, results of this study show that illusory motion does not.     

Interhemispheric connections shape subjective experience of bistable motion

The right and left visual hemifields are represented in different cerebral hemispheres and are bound together by connections through the corpus callosum. Much has been learned on the functions of these connections from split-brain patients [1-4], but little is known about their contribution to conscious visual perception in healthy humans. We used diffusion tensor imaging and functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate which callosal connections contribute to the subjective experience of a visual motion stimulus that requires interhemispheric integration. The "motion quartet" is an ambiguous version of apparent motion that leads to perceptions of either horizontal or vertical motion [5]. Interestingly, observers are more likely to perceive vertical than horizontal motion when the stimulus is presented centrally in the visual field [6]. This asymmetry has been attributed to the fact that, with central fixation, perception of horizontal motion requires integration across hemispheres whereas perception of vertical motion requires only intrahemispheric processing [7]. We are able to show that the microstructure of individually tracked callosal segments connecting motion-sensitive areas of the human MT/V5 complex (hMT/V5+; [8]) can predict the conscious perception of observers. Neither connections between primary visual cortex (V1) nor other surrounding callosal regions exhibit a similar relationship.     

Mathematical requirements of visual–vestibular integration

This article addresses the intersection between perceptual estimates of head motion based on purely vestibular and purely visual sensation, by considering how nonvisual (e.g. vestibular and proprioceptive) sensory signals for head and eye motion can be combined with visual signals available from a single landmark to generate a complete perception of self-motion. In order to do this, mathematical dimensions of sensory signals and perceptual parameterizations of self-motion are evaluated, and equations for the sensory-to-perceptual transition are derived. With constant velocity translation and vision of a single point, it is shown that visual sensation allows only for the externalization, to the frame of reference given by the landmark, of an inertial self-motion estimate from nonvisual signals. However, it is also shown that, with nonzero translational acceleration, use of simple visual signals provides a biologically plausible strategy for integration of inertial acceleration sensation, to recover translational velocity. A dimension argument proves similar results for horizontal flow of any number of discrete visible points. The results provide insight into the convergence of visual and vestibular sensory signals for self-motion and indicate perceptual algorithms by which primitive visual and vestibular signals may be integrated for self-motion perception.     

Motion parallax contribution to perception of self-motion and depth

The object of this study is to mathematically specify important characteristics of visual flow during translation of the eye for the perception of depth and self-motion. We address various strategies by which the central nervous system may estimate self-motion and depth from motion parallax, using equations for the visual velocity field generated by translation of the eye through space. Our results focus on information provided by the movement and deformation of three-dimensional objects and on local flow behavior around a fixated point. All of these issues are addressed mathematically in terms of definite equations for the optic flow. This formal characterization of the visual information presented to the observer is then considered in parallel with other sensory cues to self-motion in order to see how these contribute to the effective use of visual motion parallax, and how parallactic flow can, conversely, contribute to the sense of self-motion. This article will focus on a central case, for understanding of motion parallax in spacious real-world environments, of monocular visual cues observable during pure horizontal translation of the eye through a stationary environment. We suggest that the global optokinetic stimulus associated with visual motion parallax must converge in significant fashion with vestibular and proprioceptive pathways that carry signals related to self-motion. Suggestions of experiments to test some of the predictions of this study are made.     

Human Vection Perception Using Inertial Nulling and Certainty Estimation: The Effect of Migraine History

Vection is an illusory perception of self-motion that can occur when visual motion fills the majority of the visual field. This study examines the effect of the duration of visual field movement (VFM) on the perceived strength of self-motion using an inertial nulling (IN) and a magnitude estimation technique based on the certainty that motion occurred (certainty estimation, CE). These techniques were then used to investigate the association between migraine diagnosis and the strength of perceived vection. Visual star-field stimuli consistent with either looming or receding motion were presented for 1, 4, 8 or 16s. Subjects reported the perceived direction of self-motion during the final 1s of the stimulus. For the IN method, an inertial nulling motion was delivered during this final 1s of the visual stimulus, and subjects reported the direction of perceived self-motion during this final second. The magnitude of inertial motion was varied adaptively to determine the point of subjective equality (PSE) at which forward or backward responses were equally likely. For the CE trials the same range of VFM was used but without inertial motion and subjects rated their certainty of motion on a scale of 0–100. PSE determined with the IN technique depended on direction and duration of visual motion and the CE technique showed greater certainty of perceived vection with longer VFM duration. A strong correlation between CE and IN techniques was present for the 8s stimulus. There was appreciable between-subject variation in both CE and IN techniques and migraine was associated with significantly increased perception of self-motion by CE and IN at 8 and 16s. Together, these results suggest that vection may be measured by both CE and IN techniques with good correlation. The results also suggest that susceptibility to vection may be higher in subjects with a history of migraine.     

Isotropic integration of binocular disparity and relative motion in the perception of three-dimensional shape

Richards (1985) showed that veridical three-dimensional shape may be recovered from the integration of binocular disparity and retinal motion information, but proposed that this integration may only occur for horizontal retinal motion. Psychophysical evidence supporting the combination of stereo and motion information is limited to the case of horizontal motion (Johnston et al., 1994), and has been criticised on the grounds of potential object boundary cues to shape present in the stimuli. We investigated whether veridical shape can be recovered under more general conditions. Observers viewed cylinders that were defined by binocular disparity, two-frame motion or a combination of disparity and motion, presented at simulated distances of 30 cm, 90 cm or 150 cm. Horizontally and vertically oriented cylinders were rotated about vertical and horizontal axes. When rotation was about the cylinder's own axis, no boundary cues to shape were introduced. Settings were biased for the disparity and two-frame motion stimuli, while more veridical shape judgements were made under all conditions for combined cue stimuli. These results demonstrate that the improved perception of three-dimensional shape in these stimuli is not a consequence of the presence of object boundary cues, and that the combination of disparity and motion is not restricted to horizontal image motion.     

A common cortical substrate activated by horizontal and vertical sound movement in the human brain

Perception of movement in acoustic space depends on comparison of the sound waveforms reaching the two ears (binaural cues) as well as spectrotemporal analysis of the waveform at each ear (monaural cues). The relative importance of these two cues is different for perception of vertical or horizontal motion, with spectrotemporal analysis likely to be more important for perceiving vertical shifts. In humans, functional imaging studies have shown that sound movement in the horizontal plane activates brain areas distinct from the primary auditory cortex, in parietal and frontal lobes and in the planum temporale. However, no previous work has examined activations for vertical sound movement. It is therefore difficult to generalize previous imaging studies, based on horizontal movement only, to multidimensional auditory space perception. Using externalized virtual-space sounds in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) paradigm to investigate this, we compared vertical and horizontal shifts in sound location. A common bilateral network of brain areas was activated in response to both horizontal and vertical sound movement. This included the planum temporale, superior parietal cortex, and premotor cortex. Sounds perceived laterally in virtual space were associated with contralateral activation of the auditory cortex. These results demonstrate that sound movement in vertical and horizontal dimensions engages a common processing network in the human cerebral cortex and show that multidimensional spatial properties of sounds are processed at this level.     

Vestibular facilitation of optic flow parsing

Simultaneous object motion and self-motion give rise to complex patterns of retinal image motion. In order to estimate object motion accurately, the brain must parse this complex retinal motion into self-motion and object motion components. Although this computational problem can be solved, in principle, through purely visual mechanisms, extra-retinal information that arises from the vestibular system during self-motion may also play an important role. Here we investigate whether combining vestibular and visual self-motion information improves the precision of object motion estimates. Subjects were asked to discriminate the direction of object motion in the presence of simultaneous self-motion, depicted either by visual cues alone (i.e. optic flow) or by combined visual/vestibular stimuli. We report a small but significant improvement in object motion discrimination thresholds with the addition of vestibular cues. This improvement was greatest for eccentric heading directions and negligible for forward movement, a finding that could reflect increased relative reliability of vestibular versus visual cues for eccentric heading directions. Overall, these results are consistent with the hypothesis that vestibular inputs can help parse retinal image motion into self-motion and object motion components.     

Modelling of the UV Index on vertical and 40° tilted planes for different orientations

In this study, estimated data of the UV Index on vertical planes are presented for the latitude of Valencia, Spain. For that purpose, the UVER values have been generated on vertical planes by means of four different geometrical models a) isotropic, b) Perez, c) Gueymard, d) Muneer, based on values of the global horizontal UVER and the diffuse horizontal UVER, measured experimentally. The UVER values, obtained by any model, overestimate the experimental values for all orientations, with the exception of the Perez model for the East plane. The results show statistical values of the MAD parameter (Mean Absolute Deviation) between 10% and 25%, the Perez model being the one that obtained a lower MAD for all levels. As for the statistic RMSD parameter (Root Mean Square Deviation), the results show values between 17% and 32%, and again the Perez model provides the best results in all vertical planes. The difference between the estimated UV Index and the experimental UV Index, for vertical and 40° tilted planes, was also calculated. 40° is an angle close to the latitude of Burjassot, Valencia, (39.5°), which, according to various studies, is the optimum angle to capture maximum radiation on tilted planes. We conclude that the models provide a good estimate of the UV Index, as they coincide or differ in one unit compared to the experimental values in 99% of cases, and this is valid for all orientations. Finally, we examined the relation between the UV Index on vertical and 40° tilted planes, both the experimental and estimated by the Perez model, and the experimental UV Index on a horizontal plane at 12 GMT. Based on the results, we can conclude that it is possible to estimate with a good approximation the UV Index on vertical and 40° tilted planes in different directions on the basis of the experimental horizontal UVI value, thus justifying the interest of this study.     

Development of cue integration in human navigation

Mammalian navigation depends both on visual landmarks and on self-generated (e.g., vestibular and proprioceptive) cues that signal the organism's own movement [1-5]. When these conflict, landmarks can either reset estimates of self-motion or be integrated with them [6-9]. We asked how humans combine these information sources and whether children, who use both from a young age [10-12], combine them as adults do. Participants attempted to return an object to its original place in an arena when given either visual landmarks only, nonvisual self-motion information only, or both. Adults, but not 4- to 5-year-olds or 7- to 8-year-olds, reduced their response variance when both information sources were available. In an additional "conflict" condition that measured relative reliance on landmarks and self-motion, we predicted behavior under two models: integration (weighted averaging) of the cues and alternation between them. Adults' behavior was predicted by integration, in which the cues were weighted nearly optimally to reduce variance, whereas children's behavior was predicted by alternation. These results suggest that development of individual spatial-representational systems precedes development of the capacity to combine these within a common reference frame. Humans can integrate spatial cues nearly optimally to navigate, but this ability depends on an extended developmental process.     

Kinematics of Visually-Guided Eye Movements

One of the hallmarks of an eye movement that follows Listing’s law is the half-angle rule that says that the angular velocity of the eye tilts by half the angle of eccentricity of the line of sight relative to primary eye position. Since all visually-guided eye movements in the regime of far viewing follow Listing’s law (with the head still and upright), the question about its origin is of considerable importance. Here, we provide theoretical and experimental evidence that Listing’s law results from a unique motor strategy that allows minimizing ocular torsion while smoothly tracking objects of interest along any path in visual space. The strategy consists in compounding conventional ocular rotations in meridian planes, that is in horizontal, vertical and oblique directions (which are all torsion-free) with small linear displacements of the eye in the frontal plane. Such compound rotation-displacements of the eye can explain the kinematic paradox that the fixation point may rotate in one plane while the eye rotates in other planes. Its unique signature is the half-angle law in the position domain, which means that the rotation plane of the eye tilts by half-the angle of gaze eccentricity. We show that this law does not readily generalize to the velocity domain of visually-guided eye movements because the angular eye velocity is the sum of two terms, one associated with rotations in meridian planes and one associated with displacements of the eye in the frontal plane. While the first term does not depend on eye position the second term does depend on eye position. We show that compounded rotation - displacements perfectly predict the average smooth kinematics of the eye during steady- state pursuit in both the position and velocity domain.     

Acoustic facilitation of object movement detection during self-motion

In humans, as well as most animal species, perception of object motion is critical to successful interaction with the surrounding environment. Yet, as the observer also moves, the retinal projections of the various motion components add to each other and extracting accurate object motion becomes computationally challenging. Recent psychophysical studies have demonstrated that observers use a flow-parsing mechanism to estimate and subtract self-motion from the optic flow field. We investigated whether concurrent acoustic cues for motion can facilitate visual flow parsing, thereby enhancing the detection of moving objects during simulated self-motion. Participants identified an object (the target) that moved either forward or backward within a visual scene containing nine identical textured objects simulating forward observer translation. We found that spatially co-localized, directionally congruent, moving auditory stimuli enhanced object motion detection. Interestingly, subjects who performed poorly on the visual-only task benefited more from the addition of moving auditory stimuli. When auditory stimuli were not co-localized to the visual target, improvements in detection rates were weak. Taken together, these results suggest that parsing object motion from self-motion-induced optic flow can operate on multisensory object representations.     

The properties of the visual system in the Australian desert ant Melophorus bagoti

The Australian desert ant Melophorus bagoti shows remarkable visual navigational skills relying on visual rather than on chemical cues during their foraging trips. M. bagoti ants travel individually through a visually cluttered environment guided by landmarks as well as by path integration. An examination of their visual system is hence of special interest and we address this here. Workers exhibit distinct size polymorphism and their eye and ocelli size increases with head size. The ants possess typical apposition eyes with about 420-590 ommatidia per eye, a horizontal visual field of approximately 150° and facet lens diameters between 8 and 19?μm, depending on body size, with frontal facets being largest. The average interommatidial angle Δ? is 3.7°, the average acceptance angle of the rhabdom Δρ(rh) is 2.9°, with average rhabdom diameter of 1.6?μm and the average lens blur at half-width Δρ(l) is 2.3°. With a Δρ(rh)/Δ? ratio of much less than 2, the eyes undersample the visual scene but provide high contrast, and surprising detail of the landmark panorama that has been shown to be used for navigation.     

Perceived surface slant is systematically biased in the actively-generated optic flow

Humans make systematic errors in the 3D interpretation of the optic flow in both passive and active vision. These systematic distortions can be predicted by a biologically-inspired model which disregards self-motion information resulting from head movements (Caudek, Fantoni, & Domini 2011). Here, we tested two predictions of this model: (1) A plane that is stationary in an earth-fixed reference frame will be perceived as changing its slant if the movement of the observer's head causes a variation of the optic flow; (2) a surface that rotates in an earth-fixed reference frame will be perceived to be stationary, if the surface rotation is appropriately yoked to the head movement so as to generate a variation of the surface slant but not of the optic flow. Both predictions were corroborated by two experiments in which observers judged the perceived slant of a random-dot planar surface during egomotion. We found qualitatively similar biases for monocular and binocular viewing of the simulated surfaces, although, in principle, the simultaneous presence of disparity and motion cues allows for a veridical recovery of surface slant.     

Optimization of the mechanical performance of a two-duct semicircular duct system--part 3: the positioning of the ducts in the head

In the majority of vertebrates, the horizontal duct of the vestibular system lies approximately in the yawing plane of the head. The positioning of the vertical ducts, however, is not in the pitch- and roll planes but the vertical ducts generally lie under an angle of about 30-45 degrees relative to the medial plane. Using the equations for a hydrodynamically interconnected two-duct system, optimal positions of the vertical and horizontal ducts in different vertebrate groups can be derived. It was stated that the mean response of the vertical ducts should be optimized. This leads to a symmetrical positioning of the vertical ducts with respect to the medial plane. In all observed vertebrate groups, a solution of mu =(pi-alpha)/2 is found (mu is the angle of the vertical ducts relative to the medial plane, alpha is the angle between the vertical duct planes). For alpha=90 degrees, this provides an equal sensitivity for pitch- and roll- movements. For alpha>90 degrees, a larger sensitivity for pitch movements is obtained, at the expense of a lower sensitivity for roll movements. It is argued that the angle alpha between the vertical ducts may vary from 90 to 120 degrees. In most vertebrates, the centre of mass is stabilized by e.g. fins, tri- or quadrupedal stability, a crawling body or upside-down resting positions (e.g. bats). Birds are generally biped, so in walking they are also rather sensitive to roll. These features are related to labyrinth positioning in the head.     

Control of self-motion in dynamic fluids: fish do it differently from bees

To detect and avoid collisions, animals need to perceive and control the distance and the speed with which they are moving relative to obstacles. This is especially challenging for swimming and flying animals that must control movement in a dynamic fluid without reference from physical contact to the ground. Flying animals primarily rely on optic flow to control flight speed and distance to obstacles. Here, we investigate whether swimming animals use similar strategies for self-motion control to flying animals by directly comparing the trajectories of zebrafish (Danio rerio) and bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) moving through the same experimental tunnel. While moving through the tunnel, black and white patterns produced (i) strong horizontal optic flow cues on both walls, (ii) weak horizontal optic flow cues on both walls and (iii) strong optic flow cues on one wall and weak optic flow cues on the other. We find that the mean speed of zebrafish does not depend on the amount of optic flow perceived from the walls. We further show that zebrafish, unlike bumblebees, move closer to the wall that provides the strongest visual feedback. This unexpected preference for strong optic flow cues may reflect an adaptation for self-motion control in water or in environments where visibility is limited.     

Cue combination and the effect of horizontal disparity and perspective on stereoacuity

Relative depth judgments of vertical lines based on horizontal disparity deteriorate enormously when the lines form part of closed configurations (Westheimer, 1979). In studies showing this effect, perspective was not manipulated and thus produced inconsistency between horizontal disparity and perspective. We show that stereoacuity improves dramatically when perspective and horizontal disparity are made consistent. Observers appear to use unhelpful perspective cues in judging the relative depth of the vertical sides of rectangles in a way not incompatible with a form of cue weighting. However, 95% confidence intervals for the weights derived for cues usually exceed the a-priori [0-1] range.     

Parietal area VIP neuronal responses to heading stimuli are encoded in head-centered coordinates

The ventral intraparietal area (VIP) is a multimodal parietal area, where visual responses are brisk, directional, and typically selective for complex optic flow patterns. VIP thus could provide signals useful for visual estimation of heading (self-motion direction). A central problem in heading estimation is how observers compensate for eye velocity, which distorts the retinal motion cues upon which perception depends. To find out if VIP could be useful for heading, we measured its responses to simulated trajectories, both with and without eye movements. Our results showed that most VIP neurons very strongly signal heading direction. Furthermore, the tuning of most VIP neurons was remarkably stable in the presence of eye movements. This stability was such that the population of VIP neurons represented heading very nearly in head-centered coordinates. This makes VIP the most robust source of such signals yet described, with properties ideal for supporting perception.     

Components of Visual Prey Recognition by the Mexican Aquatic Garter Snake Thamnophis melanogaster

Garter snakes (genus Thamnophis) rely mainly on chemical cues to recognize prey, but in some of the more aquatic species visual stimuli may suffice to elicit predatory attacks. However, the only visual components known to be involved in the visual release of attacks are movement and contrast with background. We explored other visual components by presenting visual models varying only in size, shape, or path of movement to an aquatically specialized species, Thamnophis melanogaster. Snakes responded preferentially to models consistent in size with natural prey, to models having non-elongate shapes regardless of type of contour (rounded or angular), and to those following paths with vertical, rather than only horizontal, components.     

Demonstrating the Potential for Dynamic Auditory Stimulation to Contribute to Motion Sickness

Auditory cues can create the illusion of self-motion (vection) in the absence of visual or physical stimulation. The present study aimed to determine whether auditory cues alone can also elicit motion sickness and how auditory cues contribute to motion sickness when added to visual motion stimuli. Twenty participants were seated in front of a curved projection display and were exposed to a virtual scene that constantly rotated around the participant''s vertical axis. The virtual scene contained either visual-only, auditory-only, or a combination of corresponding visual and auditory cues. All participants performed all three conditions in a counterbalanced order. Participants tilted their heads alternately towards the right or left shoulder in all conditions during stimulus exposure in order to create pseudo-Coriolis effects and to maximize the likelihood for motion sickness. Measurements of motion sickness (onset, severity), vection (latency, strength, duration), and postural steadiness (center of pressure) were recorded. Results showed that adding auditory cues to the visual stimuli did not, on average, affect motion sickness and postural steadiness, but it did reduce vection onset times and increased vection strength compared to pure visual or pure auditory stimulation. Eighteen of the 20 participants reported at least slight motion sickness in the two conditions including visual stimuli. More interestingly, six participants also reported slight motion sickness during pure auditory stimulation and two of the six participants stopped the pure auditory test session due to motion sickness. The present study is the first to demonstrate that motion sickness may be caused by pure auditory stimulation, which we refer to as “auditorily induced motion sickness”.