Differential component contributions to pattern motion
Publication Type:
Conference PaperSource:
Perception 40 ECVP Abstract Supplement, p.133 (2011)URL:
http://www.perceptionweb.com/abstract.cgi?id=v110520Abstract:
We are interested in the representation of pattern and component motion in extrastriate visual cortex. Lacking precise information about extrastriate areas, we have previously derived theoretical limits on the basis of motion-selective neurons in area V1, which are quantitatively well characterized. Given a quantitative model of population coding for individual motion components in area V1, we predicted Fisher information about speed and direction of a coherently moving pattern composed of N components. Our analysis suggested that different motion components should contribute differentially to information about the speed and direction of pattern motion. We have now measured speed and direction thresholds for pattern motion with human observers, comparing the effects of adding or leaving out particular components. Our experimental observations are largely consistent with theoretical predictions. However, the existence of systematic differences suggests that the perception of pattern motion may not be a unitary mechanism.
