Binocular Rivalry in Human Vision

描述（由申请人提供）：本提案将使用心理物理技术，连同计算模型，来研究双目竞争，由不一致的单眼输入导致的稳定双目单视力的崩溃。在竞争过程中，眼睛向大脑传递关于视觉空间中给定位置的物体性质的矛盾信息。面对不同的解读，大脑会陷入一种不稳定状态，其特征是感知的波动，只要眼睛看到不一致的刺激，这种波动就会持续下去。双眼竞争以及其他形式的多稳定感知的研究，对视觉科学中的一些关键问题具有重要意义：知觉组织、动力系统、视觉意识、注意力，以及可能的斜视抑制的神经基础（一种基于发育的双眼视觉障碍，影响约5%的人口）。近年来，人们对双目竞争的兴趣大大增加，部分原因是主要研究者实验室以前的工作。然而，重要的问题仍未解决，这些问题涉及竞争的决定因素及其潜在的神经基础。在EY13358支持的早期工作的基础上，拟议的研究将探讨以下几个问题：A)神经适应在触发竞争优势不稳定性方面的作用（动力学），这是竞争计算模型所强调的问题；b)被抑制刺激的剩余有效性，这是由视觉适应后效（抑制）揭示的；c)竞争中初始优势的决定因素（选择），特别强调情感和注意因素；d)注意对竞争优势的影响（优势）。最近对竞争的报道所暗示的影响。利用心理物理技术与定量建模相结合，提出的实验将解决有关竞争的突出争议，包括神经适应和“自上而下”的认知因素在选择、优势和抑制中的作用。在心理物理技术中，有一种新的、客观的方法来记录竞争的动态。这些研究的结果将指导最近的竞争计算模型的改进和合并，并将检验新提出的双目抑制解释的预测。最后，这些实验的结果将指导神经生理学家和认知神经科学家寻求发现多稳定感知的实际神经伴随物。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposal will use psychophysical techniques, together with computational modeling, to study binocular rivalry, the breakdown in stable binocular single vision resulting from discordant monocular inputs. During rivalry the eyes convey contradictory information to the brain about the nature of objects at given locations in visual space. Faced with rival interpretations, the brain lapses into an unstable state characterized by fluctuations in perception that continues as long as the eyes view discordant stimuli. The study of binocular rivalry, as well as other forms of multi-stable perception, bears importantly on a number of key issues in vision science: perceptual organization, dynamical systems, visual awareness, attention and, possibly, neural bases of strabismic suppression (a developmentally-based disorder of binocular vision that affects an estimated 5% of the population). Interest in binocular rivalry has grown considerably in recent years, sparked in part by previous work from the principle investigator's laboratory. Still, important issues remain unresolved, issues concerning the determinants of rivalry and its underlying neural bases. Building on earlier work supported by EY13358, the proposed studies will explore several of these issues: a) the role of neural adaptation in triggering the instability of rivalry dominance (dynamics), a problem highlighted by computational models of rivalry, b) the residual effectiveness of a suppressed stimulus as revealed by visual adaptation aftereffects (suppression), c) determinants of initial dominance in rivalry (selection), with particular emphasis on affective and attentional factors, and d) the influence of attention on rivalry dominance (predominance), an influence implied by recent accounts of rivalry. Using psychophysical techniques paired with quantitative modeling, the proposed experiments will resolve outstanding controversies concerning rivalry, including the role of neural adaptation and "top-down" cognitive factors in selection, dominance and suppression. Among the psychophysical techniques is a new, objective procedure for creating records of rivalry dynamics. Results from these studies will guide refinement and amalgamation of recent computational models of rivalry and will test predictions from a newly proposed account of binocular suppression. Finally, results from these experiments will guide neurophysiologists and cognitive neuroscientists seeking to discover the actual neural concomitants of multi-stable perception.