Perception of Form & Organisation

Aims:
Perceiving Form and
- Tell you about why the perception of form and organisation is
Perceptual Organisation important.
- Marrʼs approach
luke.jones@manchester.ac.uk
- Gestalt approach to organisation including laws (for example,
Law of Prägnanz) & figure-ground decisions …

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Perception of Form & Organisation

• Why is the perception of form and organisation important?

- Environment contains hundreds of overlapping objects.
- Yet perceptual experience is of structured, coherent objects
which we can recognise, use and usually name.

- Starting point is that light, reflected from objects, reaches

the eyes. How do we go from this perceiving a coherent,
stable, 3D object?

- Fallacy of the visual system as camera analogy

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Even this is misleading

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 And remember the retina is curved!

And its constantly moving, and being updated

50 times a second!

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So…
• Receptors are unevenly distributed
• Image is inverted, distorted and tiny and FLAT
• Compensate for eye movement, body movement and object
movement
• Uneven amount of cortex devoted to different parts of the visual
field
• Nothing visual about the cortical representation? Nothing square
about a square.

Men In Black (1997)

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(1) Marrʼs approach

Perception of Form & Organisation
- David Marr (English) 1945-1980 (published ʻVisionʼ 1982)

- ʻBottom upʼ approach.

Two approaches:
(1) Marr’s approach, concerned with the representation
of edges, contours and other areas of contrast change
(2) Gestalt approach, concerned with rules of perceptual
organisation
- Starts with input to perceptual system in form of retinal image
and describes the stages in processing of this image.
- Each stage takes as its input the information from the previous
stage and transforms it into a more complex description or
representation.
- Computational model

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 Computational Model
Rubikʼs Cube Example
• Computational theory
• What is the model trying to do? What are the processes for? What is the
goal?
• Scrambled Cube
• Cross Algorithm

• Algorithmic level • Cross Complete On One Side

• Corners Algorithm
• What algorithm is needed? What process? • One side/layer complete
• Middle layer corners Algorithm
• Middle Layer complete
• Mechanism Level • Cross Algorithm
• What mechanism is needed to implement the algorithm? I.E. • Cross Complete on final side/layer
Neural/biological system • Rotate Cross To correct position Algorithm
• Cross in correct position
• Move corners to Correct position Algorithm
• Corners In correct position
• Rotate Corners to correct Position
• Solved Cube

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(1) Marrʼs approach

Retinal image is analysed sequentially at different levels:
Retinal Input to Grey Level To Primal Sketch
Retinal Image

Grey level description – measuring intensity of light at

each point in image.

Primal sketch -representation of contrast change (blobs,

edges, bars etc) over range of spatial frequencies)

21/2D sketch - representation of orientation, depth,

colour relative to the observer

3D representation - representation of objects

independent of observer

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 Primal Sketch to 21/2D Sketch

• Primal Sketch combined with depth cues, colour, motion.

• Its not 3D because it is observer-orientated. (unseen parts of scene

and objects)

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3D representation
3D
Primal Sketch 2 1/2 D Sketch Representation

Object’s Identify Group Perceive

• 2 1/2 sketch analyzed for 3D volume primitives (cylinders, cones, image on edges and primitives 3-D
cubes etc).
retina primitives and process object
• Produces 3D representation that is independent of observer

• Conscious experience of vision.

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 Importance of the Computational Approach
• An algorithm/rule/system is more likely to be understood by
(2) Gestalt approach
understanding the problem that has to be solved, rather than the
examining the mechanism (and hardware) in which it is embodied

• To understand perception (purely) by studying neurons is like trying • Gestalt psychology – the whole is greater (different) than
to understand bird flight by studying only feathers : function not the sum of its parts (Max Wertheimer, 1912).
form (AI argument)

• Top-Down Approach

• Gestalt psychologists interested in how we group parts of

a stimulus together and the way we separate figure from
ground….SEGREGATION and GROUPING

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Necker Cube
Multistability

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 The Gestalt School

Wolfgang Kohler
1887-1967
Series of Experiments on Kohler and Koffka by Wertheimer,
Max Wertheimer Kurt Koffka together they developed the Gestalt school
1880-1943 1886-1947 Series of influential publications in 1920’s

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(2) Gestalt approach

Perceptual organisation

• Gestalt psychology – the whole is greater (different) than Ambiguity generally does not arise in the real world. Rather,
the sum of its parts (Max Wertheimer, 1912). we usually see a stable and organised world.

• Don’t see lines and figures but forms and shapes (Gestalt
means form/shape in German)

• Top-Down Approach

• Gestalt psychologists interested in how we group parts of For example, most people see a set of overlapping
a stimulus together and the way we separate figure from circles, rather than one circle touching two adjoining
ground….SEGREGATION and GROUPING shapes that have ‘bites’ taken out of them. Why?

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 • Argue that we see objects according to all their elements taken
together as a whole

• Sought to isolate principles of perception

• Seemingly innate ʻlawsʼ which determine way in which objects are
perceived

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Gestalt laws of perceptual

organisation 1. Similarity

Similar things appear to be grouped together

1. Similarity
2. Good continuation
3. Proximity
4. Connectedness
5. Closure
6. Common Fate
7. Familiarity
8. Invariance Grouping can occur due to shape, lightness,
9. Prägnanz – “good figure” hue, orientation, size ….

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 2. Good continuation

Points that, when connected, result in straight or smoothly

curving lines, are seen as belonging together, and the lines
tend to be seen in such a way as to follow the smoothest
path.

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Reification - More spatial info than is present

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 3. Proximity

Things that are near to one another appear to be grouped

together

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4. Connectedness

Things that are physically connected are perceived as a unit

(Rock & Palmer, 1990, December, Scientific American).

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 5. Closure

Of several geometrically possible perceptual organisations,

a closed figure will be preferred to an open figure.

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We tend to ‘complete’ a broken figure because of the

Strong closure cue for organizing what we see

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Reification - More spatial info than is present

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 6. Common Fate Common Fate cont..
• Objects with same orientation are grouped together
Things that are moving in the same direction are grouped
together

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7. Familiarity

Things are more likely

to form groups if the
groups appear familiar
or meaningful.

Explanation or
description?

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 8: Invariance
CAPTCHA Test
MAJOR Problem in
Computer vision
• Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computer and
Humans Apart

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 Figure-Ground Segregation
8. Prägnanz – “Good Figure”

• The central law of Gestalt Psychology Gestalt

psychologists also
• Many of the laws are manifestations of Prägnanz interested in how we
separate figure from
• “Of several geometrically possible organisations that one ground..
will occur which possesses the best, simplest and most
stable shape” Koffka, K. (1935) Principles of Gestalt Usually no doubt –
Psychology. New York: Harcourt Brace (p138). but some reversible
figure-ground
patterns.

Rubin

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Figure-Ground

• These are extreme examples

• Normally in a visual scene some objects (figures)
seem prominent, and other aspects of field recede
into the background (ground).
• Lecturer (figure), other objects (background)
• Gestalt interested in this because it infers top-
down process

Mosaic II by M.C. Escher (1957)

Kitchen example

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 Figure-Ground Segregation
- Properties that affect whether area seen as figure or ground are:

- Symmetry: symmetrical areas usually figure.

- Convexity: convex shapes usually figure.

- Area: stimuli with comparatively smaller area usually figure.

- Orientation: vertical and horizontal orientations usually figure.

- Meaning/Importance: meaningful objects more likely to be seen as

figure. Implies attention - top-down

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Problems with the Gestalt approach

• Underplay the parallel processing and unconscious

Some positive points
processing that the brain does

• Explanation of how some of their laws worked was wrong. • Their laws actually appear to be generally correct.
• Their laws provide a description of how things work rather • Percepts can be analysed into basic elements.
than an explanation.
• The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
• Their laws are ill defined – Prägnanz – what is the simplest
and most stable shape?
• Context and experience effect perception
• Stating the obvious?

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 Bottom-Up versus Top-Down

-Bottom-Up
Start from the bottom, considering physical stimuli
being perceived and then work their way up to
higher-order cognitive processes (organizing
principles and concepts)
• Top-Down
• The perceiver builds (constructs) a cognitive understanding
(perception) of a stimulus, using sensory information as the
foundation for the structure but also using other sources of
information to build the perception

- Higher cognitive processes can not directly

influence processing at lower levels

• E.G. Marr’s computational approach

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KEY CONCEPTS

• During perception we quickly form and test various hypotheses regarding

percepts based on
• Marr’s approach inc. stages
•
•
What we sense (sensory data)
What we know (knowledge stored in memory)
• Gestalt approach
• What we can infer (using thinking) • Segregation and grouping
• What we expect
• Gestalt laws of perceptual organization
• Example of Orange • Problems with Gestalt approach
• Positive points of Gestalt approach
• Figure-ground segregation
• Bottom-Up Versus Top-Down

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 Depth Perception

Dr Luke Jones

Luke.jones@manchester.ac.uk
Weblinks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=DrzmvI6iMrE

https://freakonometrics.hypothese
s.org/18317

http://psych.hanover.edu/Krantz/M
otionParallax/MotionParallax.html

https://wifflegif.com/tags/302273-
wiggle-stereoscopy-gifs
https://giphy.com/explore/wiggle-
stereoscopy 2
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Seeing a 3-D world

Image from real world is essentially two-dimensional.

Yet our perception is of a three-dimensional world.

Generally people are quite accurate in judging ambient distance (up

to about twenty feet). This is typically demonstrated by having
them survey the scene, close their eyes, and walk to a
predesignated object (Loomis et al., 1992).

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Strong Innate Element to Perception of Depth ? 6
Visual Cliff video

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrzmvI6iMrE

• From 53 sec

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Cues to depth

(1) Oculomotor cues: cues that depend on our ability to sense the position
of our eyes and tension in our eye muscles.

(2) Pictorial cues (monocular cues): cues that can be depicted in a still
picture.

(3) Motion-produced cues: cues that depend on movement of the

observer, or movement of objects in the environment.

(4) Binocular disparity: a cue that depends on the fact that slightly
different images of a scene are formed on each eye.

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 1) Oculomotor Cues

cues that depend on our ability to

sense the position of our eyes and
tension in our eye muscles
(1) Oculomotor cues

DEMONSTRATION

Look at your finger as you hold it at arm’s length. Then slowly move
your finger towards your nose. Be aware of how, as your finger
moves closer, you feel your eyes looking inward and you feel
increasing tension inside your eyes.

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(1) Oculomotor cues

Feelings you experiences are:

- convergence as your eye muscles cause you eyes to look inward

- accommodation as the lens bulges to focus on a near object)

Shape of lens and position of eyes are correlated with the distance
of the object we are observing. Only effective cues at distances
closer than 5 – 10 feet (Liebowitz, Shina & Hennessay, 1972).

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The closer the object the greater the convergence

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VEILED CHAMELEON (Chamaeleo calyptratus )

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 2) Pictorial Cues
Cues that can be depicted in a
still (2D) picture.

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2) Pictorial Cues
• Pictorial Cues (also called monocular cues) do not require viewing with both eyes in order
to work

• In fact often better to view monocularly

• TV, photos, paintings

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i) Overlap or Interposition or Occlusion

• One object obscures part of another, or overlaps with it

NB: Gestault Completion

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 (2) Pictorial cues

(i) Overlapl/Interposition

Place des Lices

Paul Signac,
1893
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 Overlap cont..

Place des Lices

Paul Signac,
1893
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(ii) Relative Size
The retinal size of objects gets smaller as they
get further away

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Perception of size and depth
perception
n An object can look the same size at different distances But:
retinal image size changes with distance
n Increase distance : decrease retinal image size
n Decrease distance : increase retinal image size

n The fact that an object can look the same size regardless of
changing retinal image size is referred to as size constancy

SIZE CONSTANCY
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Emmert’s law

• Emmert's Law states that objects that generate retinal images of the same size
will look different in physical size if they appear to be located at different
distances.

• Specifically, the perceived size of an object increases as its perceived distance

from the observer increases.

• An object of constant size will project progressively smaller retinal images as its
distance from the observer increases.

• Similarly, if the retinal images of two different objects at different distances are
the same, the physical size of the object that's farther away must be larger
than the one that is closer.

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(iii) Relative Height

•As objects get further away they get nearer the horizon

•IF the objects are below eye height the highest object
is furthest away

•If the objects are above eye height then the lowest object
•is further away

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•If the objects are above eye height then the lowest object
is further away

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•IF the objects are below eye height the highest object
is furthest away

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(iv) Atmospheric Perspective

Distant objects appear less sharp because more

air and particles to look through.

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Also appear more blue as blue light
is scattered more by atmosphere

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Used as major depth cue in computer games

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(iv) Familiar Size

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(v) Linear perspective
Lines that are parallel in the scene converge as
they get further away.

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But remember the retina is curved!

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 (vi)Shading and shadow
Shadows within objects - Attached Shadows

The shading that results from depth within an object is a cue to depth i.e.
ATTACHED SHADOW. The meaning of shading is ambiguous. A depression
and an elevation of a surface will be shaded on one side. Telling the
difference relies on knowing the direction of the light source. We assume
that light comes from above.

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Assume direction of lighting from above.
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Detached Shadows

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Texture gradient

Texture becomes smaller/finer as distance increases

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Texture gradient cont…

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(3) Movement-produced cues

(i ) Motion parallax
As an observer moves relative to a 3-D scene, nearby objects appear to
move rapidly whereas far objects appear to move slowly.

Monocular cue to depth.

http://psych.hanover.edu/Krantz/MotionParallax/MotionParallax.html

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1. Relative
direction

2. Amount
of motion

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Motion Parallax

• Used more by animals that don’t have much binocular overlap.

• Head bob and orthogonal running

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(3) Movement-produced cues
(ii) Deletion and Accretion

As one object moves in front of another, deletion occurs

whereby the front object covers more of the back object.
As one object moves away from another, accretion occurs
whereby the front object covers less of the back object.

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2. Accretion & Deletion

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Deletion Accretion

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Binocular Disparity

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(4) Binocular disparity

• Also called binocular stereopsis.

• Cue depends on two eyes & fact that our eyes see the world from slightly
different positions determined by the distance between them.

• Basis of stereoscope (Wheatstone, 1802-1875) & 3-D movies.

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(4) Binocular disparity

DEMONSTRATION

With only your right eye open hold one finger upright
about 6 inches in front of you. Then position a finger
from your other hand about 6 inches further back, so
that it is completely hidden by the front finger. Now
close your right eye and open your left one, and the rear
finger become visible. Since your left eye sees from a
different point of view, it has looked around your front
finger.

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(4) Binocular disparity

When two eyes receive slightly different images of the

same scene, we experience an impression of depth.
Why?

Corresponding retinal points….

For every point on one retina, there is a corresponding point on the

other.

These points would be identical if one retina was moved over to

superimpose the other retina

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 Corresponding Retinal Points

Regions on the two retinae that would overlap if you slid one
retina on top of the other.

When you fixate on an object it will stimulate corresponding

points in the two eyes.
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 Non-Corresponding Retinal Points

Regions on the two retinae that would not overlap if you slid
one retina on top of the other.

These points are separated on the retinae, and create

disparity.
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Fixation Point
Corresponding

Point at different depth

Non- Corresponding

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The red lines between the tree
and the retinas describe the
angle of convergence the eyes
make when the tree is imaged
on both foveae. The tree is
imaged on corresponding points
of the retina - there is no
disparity.
Because the eyes are fixated on
the tree, the policeman, has its
image falling on non-
corresponding points of the
retinas. That is to say its images
are binocular disparate.

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(4) Binocular disparity

An object located between the policeman and the tree would be result
in less disparate images on the retina.

The amount of disparity tells us how far the policeman is from the tree.

2 - 5% of people show stereo-blind performance and appear to lack

mechanisms for processing disparities (Richards, 1971).

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Binocular Disparity

• This cue for depth diminishes with distance

• Determined by distance of the two eyes

• Hyperstereo – can give increased depth from disparity

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 Hyperstereo
Telestereoscope

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(4) Binocular disparity

Julesz (1964) demonstrated that the visual system can use disparity
information directly to generate a percept of depth.

To create a vivid sense of stereoscopic depth:

Present the same image to both eyes

But, shift one slightly to the left or right
The shifted area will appear to be displaced in depth
This 3D image is called a stereogram

There are many ways to make a stereogram:

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Random Dot Stereogram

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Animated autostereogram

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Colour Filters

Cube 85
Orthostereography

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Shutter Glasses

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Lenticular Displays/Printing

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Parallax Barrier Technology

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Virtual Reality

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 Motion
parallax
Occlusion

Cast Shadows

Size constancy
Depth Contrast

Disparity
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Convergence

Aerial

1 10 100

Depth (meters) Cutting, 1996

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrzmvI6iMrE

http://freakonometrics.hypotheses.org/18317

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFTgkibl7DU

http://vision.psych.umn.edu/users/kersten/kersten-
lab/demos/shadows.html

http://psych.hanover.edu/Krantz/MotionParallax/MotionP
arallax.html

http://wifflegif.com/tags/302273-wiggle-stereoscopy-gifs

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Colour vision
 Colour vision

(1) What is colour good for?

(2) Light and Colour
(3) Theories of Colour Perception
(4) Colour Blindness

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 (1) What is colour good for?

Of all mammals, only a few species have the necessary hardware

to see “colours” in a way comparable to us (trichromatic).

• Catarrhine monkeys (Old World monkeys and man)

• Platyrrhine monkeys (New World monkeys -only the females)

• Some tropical fish and birds have 4 types (tetrachromacy)

• Pigeons have 5! (pentachromats)

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 (1) What is colour good for?

(1) Scene Segmentation: Variations in colour often

signal object boundaries

(2) Camouflage: Animals use this fact to disguise

themselves by colour markings

(3) Perceptual Organisation: Our visual system uses

colour to group elements in a scene

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• Also strong evolutionary force depending
on species

• Food identification
– Ripe fruit
– Correct leaves
– Harmless or harmful berries
– Poisonous or venomous animals
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 (1) What is colour good for?

• Which would you like to eat?

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 WARNING
IMAGE OF SNAKE
ON NEXT SLIDE

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Camouflage

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Camouflage

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 Cephalopods: Octopuses,
Cuttlefish and Squid
Mather, J. A. (2011). Consciousness in cephalopods. Journal of Cosmology, 14.

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 What is colour?

• Visible light forms a narrow band of

frequencies in the electromagnetic spectrum.

• Within this band, different frequencies (or

wavelengths) have different hues, ranging
from red (for long wavelength light) to violet
(for short wave length light).
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 Electromagnetic Spectrum

1 millimeter = 1 000 000 nanometers

Whole spectrum of visible colours covers just 400 16nm
• 0.00000000000001 meters to 10,000
meters

• We see between 0.00000390 and

0.00000750 meters

• range of 4 thousandths of a millimeter

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• Different objects absorb and reflect
different wavelengths of light

• This gives them their ‘colour’

• The colour also depends on the light

source

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 Hue, intensity and saturation
• The phenomenon of colour is more complicated than
just wavelength judgement.

• The wavelength of the light reflected only determines

the hue which is seen.

• Perceived colour is also determined by the:

– intensity of the reflected light (how bright it is)
– the saturation of the colour (how much white light is mixed
in with the pure hue).
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 (2) Light and Colour

Property of Light Psychological Attribute

Wavelength Hue (colour)
Intensity Brightness (perceived intensity)
Spectral Purity Saturation (i.e how much colour
or how much white)

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(2) Examples

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(3) Theories of Colour Perception

Trichromatic Theory

Opponent Process Theory

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 Trichromatic Theory (Young-
Helmholtz)

There are three receptor types and their combined

responses account for all colours
Blue-sensitive cones maximally responsive to short
wavelengths. (S-Cones)
Green-sensitive cones maximally responsive to
medium wavelengths. (M-Cones)
Red-sensitive cones maximally responsive to long
wavelengths. (L-Cones)
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Not exactly red green & blue! So we usually now refer to them as S, M & L

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Three types of Cones: S, M and L

S M L

Short: ~ 419 nm
Medium: ~ 531 nm
Long: ~ 558 nm
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Tapetum lucidum

(tap-e-tum lucyd-um)
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Pigments in the cones determine which wavelengths
they respond to best

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 Hang on a minute...
• From the cones light is encoded as electrical
signal

• Light is not coloured, objects are not coloured

and neither is the visual signal

• http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/col_benham/index
.html
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_0Z4Bi3JQo
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 Is your Red the same as my
Red?

• Explanatory gap
• Example of pain
• Consider tastes in colour
• Consider differences in taste.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59YN8
_lg6-U
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Retina: cone distribution
n There is a concentration of
cones in an area called the
fovea – a small pit in the retina
(edge to edge: retina 32mm,
fovea 1.5mm).

n Eye movements – image of

object of interest falls on the
fovea.

n Fovea has highest density of

receptors - best acuity (1% -
50%)

n No rods in the centre of the

fovea. 36
 Rods versus Cones
• Rods very sensitive don’t need much intensity to
be activated
• Cones need good lighting conditions to be
activated
• Rods sensitive to intensity (black-white) only
• Cones responsive to different wavelengths - 3
types
• Rods found all over retina except centre of fovea
• Cones concentrated in fovea
• 20 times more rods than cones across whole
retina 37
 Trichromatic Theory (Young -
Helmholtz(1802:1866)

• This theory hypothesised that there are three different sorts

of receptors and that they respond best to different
wavelengths of light.
• They respond best to long wavelength (which looks yellow/
red), medium (green ) or short (blue) wavelength light - this
is what cones do!
• The colour you see is determined by the relative levels of
activity in the three sorts of receptors.
• So red objects reflect more long wavelength light than
other wavelengths.
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 Support for Trichromatic Theory
• Three primary colours combine to produce all
possible colours

• Three forms of
dichromatism (colour
blindness)

A mixture of green
and red light produces
same perception of yellow colour as monochromatic
yellow light (metamersim)- we cant tell the difference 39
Afterimages

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Only red and green cones can respond producing
Yellow. Blue cones/channel fatigued/adapted

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And coloured afterimages

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 Opponent Process Theory
(Hering (1920), Hurvich-Jameson)
Hering noticed that when people are
presented with large number of colour
samples and asked to pick out those that are
pure (not a mix), then:
The pick a red a green and a blue (as
predicted by trichromatic theory)
But also Yellow!
Also cones and fatigue were not understood,
so it was unclear how trichromacy could
explain afterimages

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So he proposed

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 Opponent Process Theory
(Hering, Hurvich-Jameson)
3 processes which are opponent in nature:
(i) Red-Green
(ii) Yellow-Blue
(iii) Black-White

e.g. Red-Green Receptor

will signal either Red or Green
but not both

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Three types of Cones: S, M and L

S M L

Short: ~ 419 nm
Medium: ~ 531 nm
Long: ~ 558 nm
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 Support for Opponent Process
Theory

(1) Non-existence of certain colours, e.g., bluish-yellow

(2) Colour confusions in colour blindness (red and green)

(3) Complementary afterimages

(4) Colour context effects

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Colour context effect

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 Lightness constancy

Perceive the squares are different even though reflected amount of light is same
Lightness constancy
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Blue and Black? Gold and
White?

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Trichromacy versus opponent process

Both theories are in fact correct

(a) trichromacy at the level of the cones

(b) opponent processes at the level of LGN

(The Lateral Geniculate Nucleus) and cortical cells.

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 Colour Blindness
• First described by John Dalton in 1794

• Suffered from a form of it himself

• Diagnosed 200 years later!

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 (4) Colour Blindness

Anopias: Insensitive to L, M or S wavelengths of light.

(missing a type of cone)

Anomalies: Misalignment of L or M in trichromats.

(distribution or deficiency)

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 (4) Colour Blindness

'Colour blindness’ should really be termed 'colour

deficiency'.

With the exception of people with cortical colour

blindness who see the world in B/W, colour blind people
just exhibit colour confusions. Their experience of colour
is very different from 'normal'

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 Anopia:
Dichromatism: Missing cones
(a) Protanopia: L-cone pigment missing:
1.3% M 0.02% F

(b) Deuteranopia: M-cone pigment missing:

1.2% M 0.01% F

(c) Tritanopia: S-cone pigment missing:

0.001% M 0.003% F

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Protanopes (L missing) see only 2,
Deuteranopes (M missing) see only 4

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 Anomilies
Anomalous Trichromatism
(a) Protoanomaly: L-cone pigment deficiency:
1.3% M 0.02% F
(need more ‘red’ in ‘red-green’ mixture to match
‘yellow’)

(b) Deuteranomaly: M-cone pigment deficiency:

5.0 % M 0.35% F
(need more ‘green’ in ‘red-green’ mixture to match
‘yellow’)

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Note that colour blindness types supports both colour vision
theories.

1)Whole fact of anopia points to 3 cone types.

2)Opponent process theory supported by the fact that

people who have trouble with RED also have trouble
with GREEN etc

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 Human Tetrachromats
• Some very rare humans (predominantly
female) have 4 pigment cone types
• Can detect variations in hue that we
normally can not.

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 Other animals
• Some birds and butterflies have 5
receptors….

• But…..

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 The Mantis Shrimp

16 receptors! And trinocular vision! 78

• What might it look like?
• Impossible to know
• Explanatory Gap

• Higher and lower animals, smell, vision

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 Web Resources

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59YN8_
lg6-U

• http://youtu.be/evQsOFQju08

• http://www.ted.com/tedtalks/tedtalksplayer.
cfm?key=r_dawkins 80
Camouflage various animals
• http://www.boredpanda.com/animal-
camouflage/

• Octopus
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCgtYWU
ybIE
• Benham top
• http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/col_benham
/index.html
• Tommy Edison:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59YN8 81
 Evolutionary Importance
n Probably evolved very early
n Movement = life
n Predators that can detect movement of prey more likely
Perceiving motion and events to catch it
n Prey that can detect movement of predators more likely
to survive
n Many animals have very poor depth, shape, colour
perception
n NONE lack the ability to perceive movement
Dr Luke Jones
(Gordon Wallis, 1942)
2

1 2

Functions of motion
Movements attracts our attention (wave) (active or passive) Motion and form perception
Movement of an object relative to an observer provides information about
object’s 3 D shape.
Do we need to be able to recognise an object in order to see
Movement provides information that helps segregate figure from ground it move?
and perceptual organisation (common fate)
Do we match edges and contours between successive
Movement breaks camouflage (freeze reflex) views of an object?

Movement provides information that enables us to actively interact with Is this how motion works?
environment. Ball games

Informs of your heading and time to collision, your movement as well as

other objects

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1
 Motion and form perception

Random dot kinematograms suggest not - motion

analogs of Random dot stereograms.

Instead of presented each simultaneously to the right and

left eye, we now present the first and then the second
after a short time lag.

Here we perceive a central square to move rightward,

even though we cannot perceive a square in either
frame alone

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2
 Motion and form perception 5 Ways to make a spot of light move
(1) Real movement
The 'correspondence problem' highlighted by RDKs
suggest that motion detection is direct. (2) Apparent movement

(3) Induced movement

We cannot imagine a visual system matching point for point
over time in these displays. (4) Autokinetic movement

(5) Movement aftereffects

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(1) Real movement (1) Real movement

- We perceive movement when the eyes are stationary, so

A B that the image moves across the retina.

- When an image moves across the retina, it stimulates a

series of receptors.
Light physically moves, i.e. is physically displaced from - There are neurons in visual system that respond best when
one place to another. a stimulus moves in a particular direction.

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3
 Movement detectors
When an image
moves across the
retina, it stimulates a
series of receptors.
Excitation and
inhibition interact to
create a cell that
responds only to
movement from right
to left

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 n Detectors such as these have been found in insects and
frogs
n We have something similar
n Cells in cortex sensitive to different orientations, speed
and direction of movement
n Aperture problem means output of all detectors must be
integrated at some stage (Medial Temporal Area

n DEMO

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(1) Real movement

Much work focused on determining factors that influence:
Threshold For Detecting
Threshold for perceiving movement
Movement
-

- Perception of velocity

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6
 Threshold for movement detection 3 cm of travel, viewed from 30cm

Depends on object and its surroundings,

e.g. with the dot and surroundings (e.g. add vertical lines in
space between A & B, lower threshold)

B Threshold for detection would be 1/6th to 1/3rd of a degree

A
of visual angle per second (14 seconds)

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Perception of Velocity

Threshold for detection would be as low as 1/60th

of a degree of visual angle per second (280 seconds)

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 Perception of Velocity

- perception of motion velocity. Affected by surroundings plus

size of both the moving object and framework through which
it moves.
e.g., a cat in a large cage must move faster than a mouse in
a small cage – if they are to appear to move at the same
speed. (Helmholtz)

Circle of left has to travel twice as fast to appear at same speed a circle on
29 the right 30

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Circle of left has to travel twice as fast to appear at same speed a circle on Cat has to travel twice as fast to appear at same speed as mouse
the right 31 32

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8
 Movement detectors
Cannot explain movement perception when:

(1) There is no movement on the retina

– as when you follow a moving object with your eyes so your
eye movements keep the object’s image stationary on fovea.

(2) When you perceive no movement when there is movement

on retina
- as when you move your eyes to look at different parts of the
scene or as you walk through a scene.
Cat has to travel twice as fast to appear at same speed as mouse
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Helmholtz’s Outflow theory

Motion perception
Need a mechanism that tells us whether retinal stimulation
results from movement of stimulus, movement of observer
or both:

Helmholtz’s outflow theory (von Holst, 1954 – Corollary

discharge theory)

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9
 n If there is a difference between muscle
movement command and movement of image
across the retina then we perceive movement
n E.g. when tracking car, eyes move but retinal
signal remains stationary, therefore perceive
movement of the car
n When keeping eyes still and object moves across
we perceive movement
n When we look around the world, eye movement
command and retinal image movement are equal
so we perceive NO movement 37
Helmholtz outflow theory
Convincing evidence from:
1. Afterimages move when we move our eyes (Eye muscle
movement signal no retinal movement).
2. The world moves when we passively wobble our eyes
(retinal movement, no eye muscle movement signal).
3. Immobilizing eye-ball results in attempted eye- movement
leading to apparent movement of world in opposite
direction (Eye movement signal, no retinal movement).
ES = Eye movement signal
RM = Retinal movement
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(2) Apparent movement

(stroboscopic movement)

Illusion of movement between two lights by flashing one

light on and off, waiting between 40 & 200 msec, then
flashing other light on and off.

Perception of movement in film = series of static images.

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(2) Apparent movement

Less than 30 msec = no movement, simultaneous.
Above 30 – 60 msec = partial movement
About 60 msec = optimum movement
About 60 – 200 msec = Beta and phi movement
(phenomenon). Phi: While movement appears to occur
between the two lights, it is difficult to actually perceive an
object moving across the space between them. Beta
perceive an object between
Above about 200 msec = no movement, successive
Graham (1965)
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 Slow apparent motion can be ambiguous

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 (2) Apparent movement cont... (3) Induced movement
Distance between two lights also affects perception of
apparent movement

As distance increases, either the time

interval or the intensity of the flashes
must be increased to maintain the
same perception of movement. Surround spot with another object and then move this
object.
Duncker (1929)

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http://psychlab1.hanover.edu/Classes/Sensation/induced/
(3) Induced movement
Sitting on train – feel it move backward, only to realize that
your train is actually standing still, and the one next to you
is moving forward.

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17
 (4) Autokinetic movement (4) Autokinetic movement

- Sherif (1935)
Individually – dot moved from 0.8 – 7.4 inches
Group – all reported moved 4 inches
Autokinetic effect open to suggestion!
Turn out all room lights. When the surrounding
framework of the room is not visible, the small
- Control of eye muscle not completely stable in dark?
stationary light appears to move, usually in an erratic
Knowing where eyes are and how stable they are may be
path. difficult in dark.
- Foo-fighters
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(5) Movement after-effects (5) Movement aftereffects

Waterfall illusion
If an observer first views
a pattern moving in Anstis & Gregory (1964) – depends on movement of stripes
one direction, and then across retina.
views the spot of light,
the spot (and
surroundings) will appear Supports idea of movement detectors, which respond only to
to move the opposite movement across the retina.
direction.

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18
 Ratio hypothesis Barlow & Hill (1963)
ON OFF
Hubel & Wiesel (1959) identified directionally specific motion Impulses
detectors. per second
Firing in preferred
direction cell
Sutherland (1961) argued that motion after-effects arose
from an imbalance in the ratio of activities from two sets of
directionally-tuned receptors, each sensitive to the Note fall off in
rate of firing Period of
opposite directions of motion. presumed
motion
Barlow & Hill (1963) provide direct evidence to support ratio Firing in null direction cell after-effect
hypothesis.

Time
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Event perception Creating structure through motion

Movement provides information about 3 D shape, helps us
segregate figure from ground, and interact with the
environment.

Examples:
- Creating structure from motion

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