1
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Karakashevska E, Derpsch Y, Jones A, Makin ADJ. The extrastriate symmetry response is robust to alcohol intoxication. Psychophysiology 2024; 61:e14593. [PMID: 38643374 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/22/2024]
Abstract
Visual symmetry activates a network of regions in the extrastriate cortex and generates an event-related potential (ERP) called the sustained posterior negativity (SPN). Previous work has found that the SPN is robust to experimental manipulations of task, spatial attention, and memory load. In the current study, we investigated whether the SPN is also robust to alcohol-induced changes in mental state. A pilot experiment (N = 13) found that alcohol unexpectedly increased SPN amplitude. We followed this unexpected result with two new experiments on separate groups, using an alcohol challenge paradigm. One group completed an Oddball discrimination task (N = 26). Another group completed a Regularity discrimination task (N = 26). In both groups, participants consumed a medium dose of alcohol (0.65 g/kg body weight) and a placebo drink, in separate sessions. Alcohol reduced SPN amplitude in the Oddball task (contrary to the pilot results) but had no effect on SPN amplitude in the Regularity task. In contrast, the N1 wave was consistently dampened by alcohol in all experiments. Exploratory analysis indicated that the inconsistent effect of alcohol on SPN amplitude may be partly explained by individual differences in alcohol use. Alcohol reduced the SPN in light drinkers and increased it in heavier drinkers. Despite remaining questions, the results highlight the automaticity of symmetry processing. Symmetry still produces a large SPN response, even when participants are intoxicated, and even when symmetry is not task relevant.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Karakashevska
- Department of Psychology, Population Health Institute, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Yiovanna Derpsch
- Faculty of Social Sciences, School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Andrew Jones
- Faculty of Health, School of Psychology, Liverpool John Moores, Liverpool, UK
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychology, Population Health Institute, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
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2
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Zamboni E, Makin ADJ, Bertamini M, Morland AB. The role of task on the human brain's responses to, and representation of, visual regularity defined by reflection and rotation. Neuroimage 2024; 297:120760. [PMID: 39069225 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120760] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 07/25/2024] [Accepted: 07/26/2024] [Indexed: 07/30/2024] Open
Abstract
Identifying and segmenting objects in an image is generally achieved effortlessly and is facilitated by the presence of symmetry: a principle of perceptual organisation used to interpret sensory inputs from the retina into meaningful representations. However, while imaging studies show evidence of symmetry selective responses across extrastriate visual areas in the human brain, whether symmetry is processed automatically is still under debate. We used functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to study the response to and representation of two types of symmetry: reflection and rotation. Dot pattern stimuli were presented to 15 human participants (10 female) under stimulus-relevant (symmetry) and stimulus-irrelevant (luminance) task conditions. Our results show that symmetry-selective responses emerge from area V3 and extend throughout extrastriate visual areas. This response is largely maintained when participants engage in the stimulus irrelevant task, suggesting an automaticity to processing visual symmetry. Our multi-voxel pattern analysis (MVPA) results extend these findings by suggesting that not only spatial organisation of responses to symmetrical patterns can be distinguished from that of non-symmetrical (random) patterns, but also that representation of reflection and rotation symmetry can be differentiated in extrastriate and object-selective visual areas. Moreover, task demands did not affect the neural representation of the symmetry information. Intriguingly, our MVPA results show an interesting dissociation: representation of luminance (stimulus irrelevant feature) is maintained in visual cortex only when task relevant, while information of the spatial configuration of the stimuli is available across task conditions. This speaks in favour of the automaticity for processing perceptual organisation: extrastriate visual areas compute and represent global, spatial properties irrespective of the task at hand.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Zamboni
- University of Nottingham, School of Psychology, Nottingham, United Kingdom; University of York, Department of Psychology, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom; University of York, York Neuroimaging Centre, York, United Kingdom
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- University of Liverpool, Department of Psychological Sciences, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- University of Liverpool, Department of Psychological Sciences, Liverpool, United Kingdom; Università di Padova, Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, Padova, IT, Italy
| | - Antony B Morland
- University of York, Department of Psychology, York YO10 5DD, United Kingdom; University of York, York Neuroimaging Centre, York, United Kingdom; University of York, York Biomedical Research Institute, York, United Kingdom.
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3
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Hu F, Sinha D, Diamond S. Perception of wide-expanse symmetric patterns. Vision Res 2024; 223:108455. [PMID: 39029357 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2024.108455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2023] [Revised: 06/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/01/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024]
Abstract
Humans are remarkably proficient at the task of distinguishing between symmetric and non-symmetric visual patterns. The neural mechanisms underlying this ability are still unclear. Here we examine symmetry perception along a dimension that can help place some constraints on the nature of these mechanisms. Specifically, we study whether and how human performance on the task of classifying patterns as bilaterally symmetric versus non-symmetric changes as a function of the spatial separation between the flanks. Working with briefly flashed stimuli that embody flank separations of 6 degrees to 54 degrees, we find that classification performance declines significantly with increasing inter-flank distance, but remains well above chance even at the largest separations. Response time registers a progressive increase as the space between the flanks expands. Baseline studies show that these performance changes cannot be attributed solely to reduced acuity in the visual periphery, or increased conduction times for relaying information from those locations. The findings argue for the need to adapt current feedforward models of symmetry perception to be more consistent with the empirical data, and also point to the possible involvement of recurrent processing, as suggested by recent computational results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fengping Hu
- Department of Psychology, New York University, United States
| | - Darius Sinha
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Sidney Diamond
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States.
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4
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Makin ADJ, Buckley N, Austin E, Bertamini M. When does perceptual organization happen? Cortex 2024; 174:70-92. [PMID: 38492441 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2024.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/18/2024]
Abstract
Reflectional (mirror) symmetry is an important visual cue for perceptual organization. The brain processes symmetry rapidly and efficiently. Previous work suggests that symmetry activates the extrastriate cortex and generates an event related potential (ERP) called the Sustained Posterior Negativity (SPN). It has been claimed that no tasks completely block symmetry processing and abolish the SPN. We tested the limits of this claim with a series of eight new Electroencephalography (EEG) experiments (344 participants in total). All experiments used the same symmetrical or asymmetrical dot patterns. When participants attended to regularity in Experiment 1, there was a substantial SPN (Mean amplitude = -2.423 μV). The SPN was reduced, but not abolished, when participants discriminated dot luminance in Experiments 2 and 3 (-.835 and -1.410 μV) or the aspect ratio of a superimposed cross in Experiments 4 and 5 (-.722 and -.601 μV). The SPN also survived when the background pattern was potentially disruptive to the primary task in Experiment 6 (-1.358 μV) and when participants classified negative superimposed words in Experiment 7 (-.510 μV). Finally, the SPN remained when participants attended to the orientation of a diagonal line in Experiment 8 (-.589 μV). While task manipulations can turn down the extrastriate symmetry activation, they cannot render the system completely unresponsive. Permanent readiness to detect reflectional symmetry at the centre of the visual field could be an evolved adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
| | - Ned Buckley
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Emma Austin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, Università di Padova, Padova, Italy
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5
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Derpsch Y, Tyson-Carr J, Rampone G, Bertamini M, Makin ADJ. Event related potentials (ERP) reveal a robust response to visual symmetry in unattended visual regions. Neuroimage 2024; 290:120568. [PMID: 38499052 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2019] [Revised: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Visual symmetry at fixation generates a bilateral Event Related Potential (ERP) called the Sustained Posterior Negativity (SPN). Symmetry presented in the left visual hemifield generates a contralateral SPN over the right hemisphere and vice versa. The current study examined whether the contralateral SPN is modulated by the focus of spatial attention. On each trial there were two dot patterns, one to the left of fixation, and one to the right of fixation. A central arrow cue pointed to one of the patterns and participants discriminated its regularity (symmetry or random). We compared contralateral SPN amplitude generated by symmetry at attended and unattended spatial locations. While the response to attended symmetry was slightly enhanced, the response to unattended symmetry was still substantial. Although visual symmetry detection is a computational challenge, we conclude that the brain processes visual symmetry in unattended parts of the visual field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiovanna Derpsch
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, NR4 7TJ, United Kingdom; Department of Psychological Sciences, Eleanor Rathbone Building, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, United Kingdom.
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Eleanor Rathbone Building, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, United Kingdom
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Eleanor Rathbone Building, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Eleanor Rathbone Building, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, United Kingdom; Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 8 - 35131, Padova, Italy
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Eleanor Rathbone Building, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, United Kingdom
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6
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Makin ADJ, Rampone G, Bertamini M. The brain does not process horizontal reflection when attending to vertical reflection, and vice versa. J Vis 2024; 24:1. [PMID: 38427362 PMCID: PMC10913937 DOI: 10.1167/jov.24.3.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Previous work has found that feature attention can modulate electrophysiological responses to visual symmetry. In the current study, participants observed spatially overlapping clouds of black and white dots. They discriminated vertical symmetry from asymmetry in the target dots (e.g., black or white) and ignored the regularity of the distractor dots (e.g., white or black). We measured an electroencephalography component called the sustained posterior negativity (SPN), which is known to be generated by visual symmetry. There were five conditions with different combinations of target and distractor regularity. As well as replicating previous results, we found that an orthogonal axes of reflection in the distractor dots had no effect on SPN amplitude. We conclude that the visual system can processes reflectional symmetry in independent axis-orientation specific channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, Università di Padova, Padova, Italy
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7
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Makin ADJ, Tyson-Carr J, Rampone G, Derpsch Y, Wright D, Bertamini M. Lessons from a catalogue of 6674 brain recordings. eLife 2022; 11:66388. [PMID: 35703370 PMCID: PMC9200404 DOI: 10.7554/elife.66388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
It is now possible for scientists to publicly catalogue all the data they have ever collected on one phenomenon. For a decade, we have been measuring a brain response to visual symmetry called the sustained posterior negativity (SPN). Here we report how we have made a total of 6674 individual SPNs from 2215 participants publicly available, along with data extraction and visualization tools (https://osf.io/2sncj/). We also report how re-analysis of the SPN catalogue has shed light on aspects of the scientific process, such as statistical power and publication bias, and revealed new scientific insights.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Yiovanna Derpsch
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.,School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Damien Wright
- Patrick Wild Centre, Division of Psychiatry, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.,Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, Università di Padova, Padova, Italy
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8
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Perspective Slant Makes Symmetry Harder to Detect and Less Aesthetically Appealing. Symmetry (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sym14030475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract symmetric patterns are generally preferred to less regular patterns. Here, we studied 2D patterns presented as 2D images in the plane, and therefore producing a symmetric pattern on the retina, and the same patterns seen in perspective. This perspective transformation eliminates the presence of perfect symmetry in terms of retinotopic coordinates. Stimuli were abstract patterns of local coplanar elements, or irregular polygons. In both cases they can be understood as 2D patterns on a transparent glass pane. In the first study we found that perspective increased reaction time and errors in a classification task, even when the viewing angle was kept constant over many images. In a second study we tested a large sample (148 participants) and asked for a rating of beauty for the same images. In addition, we used the Cognitive Reflection Test (CRT) to test the hypothesis that people who tend to give the more immediate and intuitive answer would also show a stronger preference for the symmetry presented in the frontoparallel plane (in the image and on the retina). Preference for symmetry was confirmed, and there was a cost for perspective viewing. CRT scores were not related to preference, thus not supporting the hypothesis of a stronger preference for symmetry in the image when people follow a more immediate and intuitive gut response.
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9
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Rampone G, Adam M, Makin ADJ, Tyson-Carr J, Bertamini M. Electrophysiological evidence of the amodal representation of symmetry in extrastriate areas. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1180. [PMID: 35064121 PMCID: PMC8783022 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-04501-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 12/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Extrastriate visual areas are strongly activated by image symmetry. Less is known about symmetry representation at object-level rather than image-level. Here we investigated electrophysiological responses to symmetry, generated by amodal completion of partially-occluded polygon shapes. We used a similar paradigm in four experiments (N = 112). A fully-visible abstract shape (either symmetric or asymmetric) was presented for 250 ms (t0). A large rectangle covered it entirely for 250 ms (t1) and then moved to one side to reveal one half of the shape hidden behind (t2, 1000 ms). Note that at t2 no symmetry could be extracted from retinal image information. In half of the trials the shape was the same as previously presented, in the other trials it was replaced by a novel shape. Participants matched shapes similarity (Exp. 1 and Exp. 2), or their colour (Exp. 3) or the orientation of a triangle superimposed to the shapes (Exp. 4). The fully-visible shapes (t0-t1) elicited automatic symmetry-specific ERP responses in all experiments. Importantly, there was an exposure-dependent symmetry-response to the occluded shapes that were recognised as previously seen (t2). Exp. 2 and Exp.4 confirmed this second ERP (t2) did not reflect a reinforcement of a residual carry-over response from t0. We conclude that the extrastriate symmetry-network can achieve amodal representation of symmetry from occluded objects that have been previously experienced as wholes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Liverpool, L697ZA, UK. .,School of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Liverpool, L7 7DL, UK.
| | - Martyna Adam
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Liverpool, L697ZA, UK
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Liverpool, L697ZA, UK
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Liverpool, L697ZA, UK
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, Liverpool, L697ZA, UK.,Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Via Venezia, 8, 35131, Padova, Italy
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10
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Cattaneo Z, Bona S, Ciricugno A, Silvanto J. The chronometry of symmetry detection in the lateral occipital (LO) cortex. Neuropsychologia 2022; 167:108160. [PMID: 35038443 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Revised: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The lateral occipital cortex (LO) has been shown to code the presence of both vertical and horizontal visual symmetry in dot patterns. However, the specific time window at which LO is causally involved in symmetry encoding has not been investigated. This was assessed using a chronometric transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) approach. Participants were presented with a series of dot configurations and instructed to judge whether they were symmetric along the vertical axis or not while receiving a double pulse of TMS over either the right LO (rLO) or the vertex (baseline) at different time windows (ranging from 50 ms to 290 ms from stimulus onset). We found that TMS delivered over the rLO significantly decreased participants' accuracy in discriminating symmetric from non-symmetric patterns when TMS was applied between 130 ms and 250 ms from stimulus onset, suggesting that LO is causally involved in symmetry perception within this time window. These findings confirm and extend prior neuroimaging and ERP evidence by demonstrating not only that LO is causally involved in symmetry encoding but also that its contribution occurs in a relatively large temporal window, at least in tasks requiring fast discrimination of mirror symmetry in briefly (75 ms) presented patterns as in our study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zaira Cattaneo
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy; IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy
| | - Silvia Bona
- Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Juha Silvanto
- School of Psychology, University of Surrey, Surrey, UK
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11
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Wang M, Wu F, van Tonder G, Wu Q, Feng Y, Yu Y, Yang J, Takahashi S, Ejima Y, Wu J. Electrophysiological response to visual symmetry: Effects of the number of symmetry axes. Neurosci Lett 2021; 770:136393. [PMID: 34915099 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2021.136393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2021] [Revised: 12/02/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The symmetry axes of a stimulus are a critical determinant of visual perception. Although much is known about the effects of a single symmetry axis on perception, the effects of multiple symmetry axes are still poorly understood. Here, we investigated the influence of the number of symmetry axes on brain activity using event-related potentials (ERPs). Our results showed that altering the number of symmetry axes affects both the amplitude and the latency of ERPs. Specifically, the amplitude of ERP components increased as the number of symmetry axes increased, starting at the N1 (165-175 ms) component and lasting until the P2 (230-250 ms) component in the bilateral posterior areas and until the N2 (340 ms) component in the frontal-central areas. Importantly, the latency of ERP components was reduced when the number of symmetry axes increased, starting at the N1 in the right posterior area and lasting until the P2 component in the bilateral posterior areas. The temporal and spatial differences in these effects imply that activity related to symmetry axes gradually changes throughout the ventral visual streams in the human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng Wang
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
| | - Fengxia Wu
- Artificial intelligence, Changchun University of Science and Technology, Changchun, China
| | - Gert van Tonder
- Independent Researcher, Reki-An Pavilion, Kamigamo Minami Ojicho 5 Banchi Kitaku, Kyoto City 603-8074 Japan
| | - Qiong Wu
- Department of Psychology, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou, China.
| | - Yang Feng
- Department of Psychology, School of Teacher Education, Huzhou Normal University, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Yiyang Yu
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
| | - Jiajia Yang
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
| | - Satoshi Takahashi
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
| | - Yoshimichi Ejima
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
| | - Jinglong Wu
- Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Graduate School of Natural Science and Technology, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan; School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China.
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12
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Neural responses to reflection symmetry for shapes defined by binocular disparity, and for shapes perceived as regions of background. Neuropsychologia 2021; 163:108064. [PMID: 34666111 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2021.108064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Revised: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Human perception of symmetry is associated with activation in an extended network of extrastriate visual areas. This activation generates an ERP called the Sustained Posterior Negativity (SPN). In most studies so far, the stimuli have been defined by luminance. We tested whether the SPN is present when stimuli are defined by stereoscopic disparity using random dot stereograms (RDS). In Experiment 1, we compared the SPN signal for contours specified by binocular disparity and contours specified by monocular cues. The SPN was equivalent, suggesting that the type of contour does not alter the SPN signal. In Experiment 2 we exploited the unique property of RDS to provide unambiguous figure-ground arrangements. Psychophysical work has shown that symmetry is more easily detected when it is a property of a single object (i.e., within a figure), compared to a property of a gap between two objects (i.e., the ground). Therefore, the target regions in this experiment could either be foreground or background. The SPN onset was delayed when the symmetry was in a ground region. This may be because object formation interferes with the processing of shape information in the ground region.
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13
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Derpsch Y, Rampone G, Piovesan A, Bertamini M, Makin ADJ. The extrastriate symmetry response is robust to variation in visual memory load. Psychophysiology 2021; 58:e13941. [PMID: 34592790 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13941] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
An Event Related Potential response to visual symmetry, known as the Sustained Posterior Negativity (SPN), is generated whether symmetry is task relevant or not, and whether symmetry is attended or not. However, no study has yet examined interference from concurrent memory tasks. To answer this fundamental question, we investigated whether the SPN is robust to variation in Visual Working Memory (VWM) load. In Experiment 1 (N = 24), each trial involved a sample display, a probe and a test display. Sample and test displays contained either four colors or four black shapes, and the probe was either a symmetrical or random pattern. We compared a memory task and a passive viewing task. In the memory task, participants held color or shape information in VWM when the probe was presented. In the passive viewing task, there were no memory demands. Contrary to our predictions, there was no evidence that VWM interfered with the symmetry response. Instead, there was a general SPN enhancement during both color and shape memory tasks compared to passive viewing. In Experiment 2 (N = 24), we used symmetrical patterns themselves as sample and test to maximize interference. Again, the SPN was enhanced in the memory task compared to passive viewing. We conclude that the visual symmetry response is not impaired by concurrent VWM tasks, even when these tasks involve remembering symmetry itself. It seems that the SPN is not only attention-proof, but also memory-proof. This adds to evidence that symmetry perception is robust and automatic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiovanna Derpsch
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.,School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Andrea Piovesan
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.,Department of General Psychology, Università da Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
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14
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Kohler PJ, Clarke ADF. The human visual system preserves the hierarchy of two-dimensional pattern regularity. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211142. [PMID: 34284623 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Symmetries are present at many scales in natural scenes. Humans and other animals are highly sensitive to visual symmetry, and symmetry contributes to numerous domains of visual perception. The four fundamental symmetries-reflection, rotation, translation and glide reflection-can be combined into exactly 17 distinct regular textures. These wallpaper groups represent the complete set of symmetries in two-dimensional images. The current study seeks to provide a more comprehensive description of responses to symmetry in the human visual system, by collecting both brain imaging (steady-state visual evoked potentials measured using high-density EEG) and behavioural (symmetry detection thresholds) data using the entire set of wallpaper groups. This allows us to probe the hierarchy of complexity among wallpaper groups, in which simpler groups are subgroups of more complex ones. We find that both behaviour and brain activity preserve the hierarchy almost perfectly: subgroups consistently produce lower-amplitude symmetry-specific responses in visual cortex and require longer presentation durations to be reliably detected. These findings expand our understanding of symmetry perception by showing that the human brain encodes symmetries with a high level of precision and detail. This opens new avenues for research on how fine-grained representations of regular textures contribute to natural vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter J Kohler
- Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada.,Centre for Vision Research, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada.,Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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Rampone G, Makin ADJ, Tyson-Carr J, Bertamini M. Spinning objects and partial occlusion: Smart neural responses to symmetry. Vision Res 2021; 188:1-9. [PMID: 34271291 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2021.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Revised: 06/04/2021] [Accepted: 06/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
In humans, extrastriate visual areas are strongly activated by symmetry. However, perfect symmetry is rare in natural visual images. Recent findings showed that when parts of a symmetric shape are presented at different points in time the process relies on a perceptual memory buffer. Does this temporal integration need a retinotopic reference frame? For the first time we tested integration of parts both in the temporal and spatial domain, using a non-retinotopic frame of reference. In Experiment 1, an irregular polygonal shape (either symmetric or asymmetric) was partly occluded by a rectangle for 500 ms (T1). The rectangle moved to the opposite side to reveal the other half of the shape, whilst occluding the previously visible half (T2). The reference frame for the object was static: the two parts stimulated retinotopically corresponding receptive fields (revealed over time). A symmetry-specific ERP response from ~300 ms after T2 was observed. In Experiment 2 dynamic occlusion was combined with an additional step at T2: the new half-shape and occluder were rotated by 90°. Therefore, there was a moving frame of reference and the retinal correspondence between the two parts was disrupted. A weaker but significant symmetry-specific response was recorded. This result extends previous findings: global symmetry representation can be achieved in extrastriate areas non-retinotopically, through integration in both temporal and spatial domain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, L697ZA Liverpool, UK.
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, L697ZA Liverpool, UK
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, L697ZA Liverpool, UK
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychology, University of Liverpool, Eleanor Rathbone Building, L697ZA Liverpool, UK; Department of General Psychology, Via Venezia, 8 - 35131, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
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Makin ADJ, Tyson-Carr J, Derpsch Y, Rampone G, Bertamini M. Electrophysiological priming effects demonstrate independence and overlap of visual regularity representations in the extrastriate cortex. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0254361. [PMID: 34242360 PMCID: PMC8270198 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0254361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
An Event Related Potential (ERP) component called the Sustained Posterior Negativity (SPN) is generated by regular visual patterns (e.g. vertical reflectional symmetry, horizontal reflectional symmetry or rotational symmetry). Behavioural studies suggest symmetry becomes increasingly salient when the exemplars update rapidly. In line with this, Experiment 1 (N = 48) found that SPN amplitude increased when three different reflectional symmetry patterns were presented sequentially. We call this effect ‘SPN priming’. We then exploited SPN priming to investigate independence of different symmetry representations. SPN priming did not survive changes in retinal location (Experiment 2, N = 48) or non-orthogonal changes in axis orientation (Experiment 3, N = 48). However, SPN priming transferred between vertical and horizontal axis orientations (Experiment 4, N = 48) and between reflectional and rotational symmetry (Experiment 5, N = 48). SPN priming is interesting in itself, and a useful new method for identifying functional boundaries of the symmetry response. We conclude that visual regularities at different retinal locations are coded independently. However, there is some overlap between different regularities presented at the same retinal location.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis D. J. Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Yiovanna Derpsch
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
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Makin ADJ, Tyson-Carr J, Rampone G, Morris A, Bertamini M. Right lateralized alpha desynchronization increases with the proportion of symmetry in the stimulus. Eur J Neurosci 2021; 53:3175-3184. [PMID: 33675549 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2020] [Revised: 02/28/2021] [Accepted: 02/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Research into the neural basis of symmetry perception has intensified in the last two decades; however, the functional role of neural oscillations remains unclear. In previous work Makin et al. (2014, Journal of Vision, 14, 1-12) and Wright et al. (2015, Psychophysiology, 52, 638-647) examined occipital alpha event-related desynchronization (alpha ERD). It was concluded that alpha ERD is right lateralized during active regularity discrimination but not during a secondary task. Furthermore, alpha ERD was unaffected by stimulus properties, such as the type of regularity. These conclusions are refuted by new time-frequency analysis on an electroencephalography (EEG) data set first introduced by Makin et al. (2020, Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 32, 353-366). We compared alpha ERD across five tasks. First, we found that right lateralization of alpha ERD was evident in all tasks, not just active regularity discrimination. This was caused by hemispheric differences in alpha power during prestimulus baseline (left < right), which equalized after stimulus onset (left = right). Second, we found that Alpha ERD increased with the proportion of symmetric elements in the image (PSYMM). Sensitivity to PSYMM was stronger on the right. These findings suggest that known extrastriate symmetry activations are accompanied by reduced alpha power.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Amie Morris
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.,Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
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Source dipole analysis reveals a new brain response to visual symmetry. Sci Rep 2021; 11:285. [PMID: 33431986 PMCID: PMC7801689 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-79457-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Accepted: 12/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual regularity activates a network of brain regions in the extrastriate cortex. Previous EEG studies have found that this response scales parametrically with proportion of symmetry in symmetry + noise displays. The parametric symmetry response happens in many tasks, but it is enhanced during active regularity discrimination. However, the origins and time course of this selective enhancement are unclear. Here we answered remaining questions with new source dipole analysis. As assumed, the parametric symmetry response found at the sensor level was generated by a pair of dipoles in the left and right extrastriate cortex. This bilateral activity was itself enhanced during regularity discrimination. However, we identified a third, and later, symmetry response in the posterior cingulate during regularity discrimination. Unlike the extrastriate response, this previously unknown activation only indexes strong, task relevant regularity signals. This clarifies the neural circuits which mediate the perceptual and cognitive aspects of symmetry discrimination.
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Bertamini M, Rampone G, Tyson-Carr J, Makin ADJ. The response to symmetry in extrastriate areas and its time course are modulated by selective attention. Vision Res 2020; 177:68-75. [PMID: 32987356 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2020.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2020] [Revised: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Neurophysiological studies have shown a strong activation in visual areas in response to symmetry. Electrophysiological (EEG) studies, in particular, have confirmed that amplitude at posterior electrodes is more negative for symmetrical compared to asymmetrical patterns. This response is present even when observers perform tasks that do not require processing of symmetry. In this sense the activation is automatic. In this study we test this automaticity more directly by presenting stimuli that contain both symmetry and asymmetry, as overlapping patterns of dots of different colour (black and white). Observers were asked to respond to symmetry in only one of the two colours. If feature-based attention has no role the response should depend on properties of the image. If attention fully filters only the relevant colour the response should depend on properties of the relevant colour only. Neither of these models fully explained the data. We conclude that selective attention does modulate the neural response to symmetry, however we also found a significant contribution from the irrelevant pattern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Bertamini
- University of Liverpool, Department of Psychology, Liverpool L697ZA, UK; University of Padua, Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, Padua, Italy.
| | - Giulia Rampone
- University of Liverpool, School of Psychology, Liverpool L697ZA, UK
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- University of Liverpool, Department of Psychology, Liverpool L697ZA, UK
| | - Alexis D J Makin
- University of Liverpool, Department of Psychology, Liverpool L697ZA, UK
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Makin ADJ, Piovesan A, Tyson-Carr J, Rampone G, Derpsch Y, Bertamini M. Electrophysiological priming effects confirm that the extrastriate symmetry network is not gated by luminance polarity. Eur J Neurosci 2020; 53:964-973. [PMID: 32897595 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2020] [Revised: 08/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/29/2020] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
It is known that the extrastriate cortex is activated by visual symmetry. This activation generates an ERP component called the Sustained Posterior Negativity (SPN). SPN amplitude increases (i.e., becomes more negative) with repeated presentations. We exploited this SPN priming effect to test whether the extrastriate symmetry response is gated by element luminance polarity. On each trial, participants observed three stimuli (patterns of dots) in rapid succession (500 ms. with 200 ms. gaps). The patterns were either symmetrical or random. The dot elements were either black or white on a grey background. The triplet sequences either showed repeated luminance (black > black > black, or white > white > white) or changing luminance (black > white > black, or white > black > white). As predicted, SPN priming was comparable in repeated and changing luminance conditions. Therefore, symmetry with black elements is not processed independently from symmetry with white elements. Source waveform analysis confirmed that this priming happened within the extrastriate symmetry network. We conclude that the network pools information across luminance polarity channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis D J Makin
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Andrea Piovesan
- Department of Psychology, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, United Kingdom
| | - John Tyson-Carr
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Giulia Rampone
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Yiovanna Derpsch
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Marco Bertamini
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom
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Makin ADJ, Rampone G, Karakashevska E, Bertamini M. The extrastriate symmetry response can be elicited by flowers and landscapes as well as abstract shapes. J Vis 2020; 20:11. [PMID: 32455428 PMCID: PMC7409590 DOI: 10.1167/jov.20.5.11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous research has investigated the neural response to visual symmetry. It is well established that symmetry activates a network of extrastriate visual regions, including V4 and the Lateral Occipital Complex. This symmetry response generates an event-related potential called the sustained posterior negativity (SPN). However, previous work has used abstract stimuli, typically dot patterns or shapes. We tested the generality of the SPN. We confirmed that the SPN wave was present and of similar amplitude for symmetrical shapes, flowers and landscapes, whether participants were responding either to image symmetry or to image color. We conclude that the extrastriate symmetry response can be generated by any two-dimensional image and is similar in different stimulus domains.
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