Preattentive and Predictive Processing of Visual Motion

Abstract

Interaction with the environment requires fast and reliable sensory processing. The visual system is confronted with a continuous flow of high-dimensional input (e.g. orientation, color, motion). From a theoretical point of view, it would be advantageous if critical information was processed independent of attentional load, i.e. preattentively. Here, we hypothesized that visual motion is such a critical signal and aimed for a neural signature of its preattentive encoding. Furthermore, we were interested in the neural correlates of predictability of linear motion trajectories based on the presence or absence of preceding motion. We presented a visual oddball paradigm and studied event-related potentials (ERPs). Stimuli were linearly moving Gabor patches that disappeared behind an occluder. The difference between deviant and standard trials was a trajectory change which happened behind the occluder in deviant trials only, inducing a prediction error. As hypothesized, we found a visual mismatch negativity-component over parietal and occipital electrodes. In a further condition, trials without preceding motion were presented in which the patch just appeared from behind the occluder and, hence, was not predictable. We found larger ERP-components for unpredictable stimuli. In summary, our results provide evidence for a preattentive and predictive processing of linear trajectories of visual motion.

How vision governs the collective behaviour of dense cycling pelotons

“…In preattentive vision, a large range of the human visual field is inspected in parallel without requiring a change in focal attention [38,39]. Although information processing capability is limited in preattentive visual processing, basic information along dimensions of texture, colour and motion can be handled in parallel and responded to rapidly [38–40]. Visual processing that requires focal attention over the limited range of the fovea occurs more slowly.…”

Ocular tracking of occluded ballistic trajectories: Effects of visual context and of target law of motion

“…This integration may occur at relatively high hierarchical stages of neural processing, before the information is relayed to the pursuit and saccadic components of the oculomotor system. Among the cortical areas involved in oculomotor control, frontal and supplementary eye fields could represent reasonable candidates, since their neural activity has been related to the extrapolation of occluded target motion in conjunction with other brain areas, such as the lateral intraparietal cortex and the cerebellum (Assad & Maunsell, 1995;Eskandar & Assad, 1999;Fukushima, Yamanobe, Shinmei, & Fukushima, 2002;Barborica & Ferrera, 2003Olson, Gatenby, Leung, Skudlarski, & Gore, 2004;Nagel et al, 2006;Xiao, Barborica, & Ferrera, 2007;Fukushima et al, 2008;O'Reilly, Mesulam, & Nobre, 2008;Cerminara, Apps, & Marple-Horvat, 2009;Ferrera & Barborica, 2010;Schmitt, Klingenhoefer, & Bremmer, 2018). Moreover, because of their responsiveness to vestibular stimulation, frontal and supplementary eye fields have been associated with the vestibular network, a constellation of cortical and subcortical brain areas receiving vestibular input that neuroimaging and transcranial magnetic stimulation studies have indicated as putative neural correlates of the internal model of gravity (Guldin & Grüsser, 1998;Brandt & Dieterich, 1999;Indovina et al, 2005;Bosco et al, 2008;Miller et al, 2008;Delle Monache et al, 2017; for reviews, see Dieterich & Brandt, 2015).…”

Proof of Concept of Novel Visuo-Spatial-Motor Fall Prevention Training for Old People

“…Perceptual continuity is a mental construct of the brain [146][147][148], even if eyes follow an object by smooth pursuit [149]. Perceptual illusion [150] occurs if the head moves, then heading is compressed [151][152][153]. The mature brain endows perspective upon space, with the role of foreshortening cues [154,155].…”