EAPSI: Enhancing spatial perceptual sensitivity on a simulated real-world complex visual search task

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Visual search for specific objects, people, or activities is an important requirement in many occupational tasks, including reconnaissance and search and rescue operations. Increasing deployment of unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) has further added to the need for human operators to search for targets in still and video images provided by sensors on such vehicles. Developing expertise in such tasks typically takes extensive practice and training. The purpose of this research is to investigate the feasibility and benefits of using non-invasive transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to accelerate learning on a complex visual search task simulating UAV operations. This work will be conducted in collaboration with Dr. Daniel Callan, an expert in the field of aviation research, at the Center for Information and Neural Networks (CiNET) in Osaka, Japan. Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) will be used to identify specific regions of activation in frontoparietal cortical networks during task performance. These areas will then be targeted for stimulation using tDCS. Electroencephalography (EEG) data will also be collected during task performance before and after tDCS training in order to observe the effects of tDCS on neural responses related to complex visual search. The results of this study will advance theoretical knowledge of the neurocognitive mechanisms of complex visual search and identify methods for improving skill acquisition in such tasks. This NSF EAPSI award is funded in collaboration with Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. This NSF EAPSI award is funded in collaboration with the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.