Behavioural and imaging studies of face and object perception

面部和物体感知的行为和成像研究

• 批准号: 7551-2008
• 负责人: Wilkinson, Frances
• 金额: $ 2.91万
• 依托单位: York University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2010-01-01 至 2011-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=450127
• 关键词: Behavioural; imaging; studies; face; object

This research program uses a combination of psychophysical and functional imaging techniques to examine intermediate levels of visual processing in the ventral visual pathway of the brain, the pathway responsible for object recognition. Part of the proposed work addresses basic theoretical issues concerning the way information about shape is encoded in the visual system (e.g. that an apple is round, while a pear is elongated) and how that shape code is combined with other cues to object identity (e.g., apples are often shiny and red, while pears are more likely to be matte brown). My work uses both abstract patterns and familiar objects including human faces, and fruits and vegetables. I want to learn how categories of objects are differentiated from one another in the brain and whether faces form a unique category treated differently from other objects, as some have suggested. This proposal goes beyond these basic questions to look at two problems with immediate practical significance. Firstly, how do we recognize the age of a face? What are the cues in a face that tell us how old the person is, and which of these cues are we best at detecting? If we can understand this, it will provide a basis for improving algorithms for predicting how a face will age over a period of years (important in missing persons and criminal investigations). Secondly, how do our higher level visual abilities change as we get older? We know that some aspects of vision may deteriorate with age due to changes at the level of the eyeball; however, we know less about whether there are changes in the way visual parts of the brain process spatial and temporal aspects of the constantly changing visual scene. Understanding this has importance in both designing supportive environments for the elderly, and for assessing competencies such as driving ability.

这项研究计划结合心理物理和功能成像技术来检查大脑腹侧视觉通路的中间视觉处理水平，这条通路负责识别物体。拟议工作的一部分涉及有关形状信息在视觉系统中编码的方式的基本理论问题(例如，苹果是圆形的，而梨是拉长的)，以及形状代码如何与其他线索组合以识别对象(例如，苹果通常是闪亮的和红色的，而梨更有可能是哑光棕色的)。我的作品既使用抽象的图案，也使用熟悉的对象，包括人脸和水果和蔬菜。我想了解大脑中物体的类别是如何相互区分的，以及脸部是否像一些人所说的那样，形成了一个与其他物体不同的独特类别。这项提议超越了这些基本问题，着眼于两个具有直接现实意义的问题。首先，我们如何识别一张脸的年龄？一张脸上的哪些线索可以告诉我们这个人的年龄，这些线索中的哪些是我们最擅长探测的？如果我们能够理解这一点，它将为改进预测一张脸在一段时间内如何变老的算法提供基础(在失踪人口和刑事调查中很重要)。其次，随着年龄的增长，我们的高级视觉能力是如何变化的？我们知道，由于眼球水平的变化，视力的某些方面可能会随着年龄的增长而恶化；然而，我们对大脑视觉部分处理不断变化的视觉场景的空间和时间方面的方式是否发生变化知之甚少。了解这一点对于为老年人设计支持性环境以及评估驾驶能力等能力都具有重要意义。