Eye-tracking causality

How do people make causal judgments? What role, if any, does counterfactual simulation play? Counterfactual theories of causal judgments predict that people compare what actually happened with what would have happened if the candidate cause had been absent. Process theories predict that people focus only on what actually happened, to assess the mechanism linking candidate cause and outcome. We tracked participants' eye movements while they judged whether one billiard ball caused another one to go through a gate or prevented it from going through. Both participants' looking patterns and their judgments demonstrated that counterfactual simulation played a critical role. Participants simulated where the target ball would have gone if the candidate cause had been removed from the scene. The more certain participants were that the outcome would have been different, the stronger their causal judgments. These results provide the first direct evidence for spontaneous counterfactual simulation in an important domain of high-level cognition.

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Eye-Tracking Causality

Psychological Science ◽

10.1177/0956797617713053 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 28 (12) ◽

pp. 1731-1744 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Tobias Gerstenberg ◽

Matthew F. Peterson ◽

Noah D. Goodman ◽

David A. Lagnado ◽

Joshua B. Tenenbaum

Keyword(s):

Eye Movements ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Direct Evidence ◽

Critical Role ◽

Billiard Ball ◽

Process Theories ◽

Causal Judgments ◽

High Level ◽

Counterfactual Simulation

How do people make causal judgments? What role, if any, does counterfactual simulation play? Counterfactual theories of causal judgments predict that people compare what actually happened with what would have happened if the candidate cause had been absent. Process theories predict that people focus only on what actually happened, to assess the mechanism linking candidate cause and outcome. We tracked participants’ eye movements while they judged whether one billiard ball caused another one to go through a gate or prevented it from going through. Both participants’ looking patterns and their judgments demonstrated that counterfactual simulation played a critical role. Participants simulated where the target ball would have gone if the candidate cause had been removed from the scene. The more certain participants were that the outcome would have been different, the stronger the causal judgments. These results provide the first direct evidence for spontaneous counterfactual simulation in an important domain of high-level cognition.

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Eye movements in sports research and practice: Immersive technologies as optimal environments for the study of gaze behaviour

10.31234/osf.io/fbwvk ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

David Harris ◽

Mark Wilson ◽

Tim Holmes ◽

Toby de Burgh ◽

Samuel James Vine

Keyword(s):

Virtual Reality ◽

Eye Movements ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Visual Information ◽

Successful Performance ◽

Experimental Control ◽

Research And Practice ◽

Gaze Behaviour ◽

Immersive Technologies

Head-mounted eye tracking has been fundamental for developing an understanding of sporting expertise, as the way in which performers sample visual information from the environment is a major determinant of successful performance. There is, however, a long running tension between the desire to study realistic, in-situ gaze behaviour and the difficulties of acquiring accurate ocular measurements in dynamic and fast-moving sporting tasks. Here, we describe how immersive technologies, such as virtual reality, offer an increasingly compelling approach for conducting eye movement research in sport. The possibility of studying gaze behaviour in representative and realistic environments, but with high levels of experimental control, could enable significant strides forward for eye tracking in sport and improve understanding of how eye movements underpin sporting skills. By providing a rationale for virtual reality as an optimal environment for eye tracking research, as well as outlining practical considerations related to hardware, software and data analysis, we hope to guide researchers and practitioners in the use of this approach.

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Exosomal miR-214-5p Released from Glioblastoma Cells Modulates Inflammatory Response of Microglia after Lipopolysaccharide Stimulation through Targeting CXCR5

CNS & Neurological Disorders - Drug Targets ◽

10.2174/1871527317666181105112009 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 18 (1) ◽

pp. 78-87 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Jian-kai Yang ◽

Hong-jiang Liu ◽

Yuanyu Wang ◽

Chen Li ◽

Ji-peng Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Inflammatory Response ◽

Critical Role ◽

Luciferase Reporter ◽

Clinical Prognosis ◽

Direct Target ◽

And Migration ◽

High Level ◽

Cxcr5 Expression ◽

Proliferation And Migration

Background and Objective: Exosomes communicate inter-cellularly and miRNAs play critical roles in this scenario. MiR-214-5p was implicated in multiple tumors with diverse functions uncovered. However, whether miR-214-5p is mechanistically involved in glioblastoma, especially via exosomal pathway, is still elusive. Here we sought to comprehensively address the critical role of exosomal miR-214-5p in glioblastoma (GBM) microenvironment.Methods:The relative expression of miR-214-5p was determined by real-time PCR. Cell viability and migration were measured by MTT and transwell chamber assays, respectively. The secretory cytokines were measured with ELISA kits. The regulatory effect of miR-214-5p on CXCR5 expression was interrogated by luciferase reporter assay. Protein level was analyzed by Western blot.Results:We demonstrated that miR-214-5p was aberrantly overexpressed in GBM and associated with poorer clinical prognosis. High level of miR-214-5p significantly contributed to cell proliferation and migration. GBM-derived exosomal miR-214-5p promoted inflammatory response in primary microglia upon lipopolysaccharide challenge. We further identified CXCR5 as the direct target of miR-214- 5p in this setting.Conclusion:Overexpression of miR-214-5p in GBM modulated the inflammatory response in microglia via exosomal transfer.

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Methionine Diet Evoked Hyperhomocysteinemia Causes Hippocampal Alterations, Metabolomics Plasma Changes and Behavioral Pattern in Wild Type Rats

International Journal of Molecular Sciences ◽

10.3390/ijms22094961 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (9) ◽

pp. 4961

Author(s):

Maria Kovalska ◽

Eva Baranovicova ◽

Dagmar Kalenska ◽

Anna Tomascova ◽

Marian Adamkov ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Morphological Changes ◽

Brain Area ◽

Critical Role ◽

Cerebrovascular Diseases ◽

Behavioral Pattern ◽

Cell Physiology ◽

Male Wistar Rats ◽

High Level ◽

Hippocampal Alterations ◽

The Impact

L-methionine, an essential amino acid, plays a critical role in cell physiology. High intake and/or dysregulation in methionine (Met) metabolism results in accumulation of its intermediate(s) or breakdown products in plasma, including homocysteine (Hcy). High level of Hcy in plasma, hyperhomocysteinemia (hHcy), is considered to be an independent risk factor for cerebrovascular diseases, stroke and dementias. To evoke a mild hHcy in adult male Wistar rats we used an enriched Met diet at a dose of 2 g/kg of animal weight/day in duration of 4 weeks. The study contributes to the exploration of the impact of Met enriched diet inducing mild hHcy on nervous tissue by detecting the histo-morphological, metabolomic and behavioural alterations. We found an altered plasma metabolomic profile, modified spatial and learning memory acquisition as well as remarkable histo-morphological changes such as a decrease in neurons’ vitality, alterations in the morphology of neurons in the selective vulnerable hippocampal CA 1 area of animals treated with Met enriched diet. Results of these approaches suggest that the mild hHcy alters plasma metabolome and behavioural and histo-morphological patterns in rats, likely due to the potential Met induced changes in “methylation index” of hippocampal brain area, which eventually aggravates the noxious effect of high methionine intake.

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Neurogastronomy as a Tool for Evaluating Emotions and Visual Preferences of Selected Food Served in Different Ways

Foods ◽

10.3390/foods10020354 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 354

Author(s):

Jakub Berčík ◽

Johana Paluchová ◽

Katarína Neomániová

Keyword(s):

Eye Movements ◽

Air Quality ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Facial Expressions ◽

Visual Design ◽

Personal Interview ◽

Visual Preferences ◽

New Perspective ◽

Corporate Resources ◽

Face Reading

The appearance of food provides certain expectations regarding the harmonization of taste, delicacy, and overall quality, which subsequently affects not only the intake itself but also many other features of the behavior of customers of catering facilities. The main goal of this article is to find out what effect the visual design of food (waffles) prepared from the same ingredients and served in three different ways—a stone plate, street food style, and a white classic plate—has on the consumer’s preferences. In addition to the classic tablet assistance personal interview (TAPI) tools, biometric methods such as eye tracking and face reading were used in order to obtain unconscious feedback. During testing, air quality in the room by means of the Extech device and the influence of the visual design of food on the perception of its smell were checked. At the end of the paper, we point out the importance of using classical feedback collection techniques (TAPI) and their extension in measuring subconscious reactions based on monitoring the eye movements and facial expressions of the respondents, which provides a whole new perspective on the perception of visual design and serving food as well as more effective targeting and use of corporate resources.

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Enhanced Round-Robin Algorithm in the Cloud Computing Environment for Optimal Task Scheduling

Computers ◽

10.3390/computers10050063 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 63

Author(s):

Fahd Alhaidari ◽

Taghreed Zayed Balharith

Keyword(s):

Cloud Computing ◽

Task Scheduling ◽

Critical Role ◽

Turnaround Time ◽

Round Robin ◽

Computing Systems ◽

Time Quantum ◽

Dynamic Time ◽

High Level ◽

Level Performance

Recently, there has been significant growth in the popularity of cloud computing systems. One of the main issues in building cloud computing systems is task scheduling. It plays a critical role in achieving high-level performance and outstanding throughput by having the greatest benefit from the resources. Therefore, enhancing task scheduling algorithms will enhance the QoS, thus leading to more sustainability of cloud computing systems. This paper introduces a novel technique called the dynamic round-robin heuristic algorithm (DRRHA) by utilizing the round-robin algorithm and tuning its time quantum in a dynamic manner based on the mean of the time quantum. Moreover, we applied the remaining burst time of the task as a factor to decide the continuity of executing the task during the current round. The experimental results obtained using the CloudSim Plus tool showed that the DRRHA significantly outperformed the competition in terms of the average waiting time, turnaround time, and response time compared with several studied algorithms, including IRRVQ, dynamic time slice round-robin, improved RR, and SRDQ algorithms.

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A Fast and Effective System for Analysis of Optokinetic Waveforms with a Low-Cost Eye Tracking Device

Healthcare ◽

10.3390/healthcare9010010 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (1) ◽

pp. 10

Author(s):

Chong-Bin Tsai ◽

Wei-Yu Hung ◽

Wei-Yen Hsu

Keyword(s):

Eye Movements ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Eye Movement ◽

Low Cost ◽

Saccadic Eye Movements ◽

Slow Phase ◽

Eye Tracker ◽

Effective System ◽

Tracking Device ◽

Traditional Approaches

Optokinetic nystagmus (OKN) is an involuntary eye movement induced by motion of a large proportion of the visual field. It consists of a “slow phase (SP)” with eye movements in the same direction as the movement of the pattern and a “fast phase (FP)” with saccadic eye movements in the opposite direction. Study of OKN can reveal valuable information in ophthalmology, neurology and psychology. However, the current commercially available high-resolution and research-grade eye tracker is usually expensive. Methods & Results: We developed a novel fast and effective system combined with a low-cost eye tracking device to accurately quantitatively measure OKN eye movement. Conclusions: The experimental results indicate that the proposed method achieves fast and promising results in comparisons with several traditional approaches.

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Vision as oculomotor reward: cognitive contributions to the dynamic control of saccadic eye movements

Cognitive Neurodynamics ◽

10.1007/s11571-020-09661-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Christian Wolf ◽

Markus Lappe

Keyword(s):

Eye Movements ◽

Visual Field ◽

Visual System ◽

Dynamic Control ◽

Saccadic Eye Movements ◽

Saccade Target ◽

Cognitive Mechanisms ◽

Foveal Vision ◽

Subsequent Behavior ◽

High Level

AbstractHumans and other primates are equipped with a foveated visual system. As a consequence, we reorient our fovea to objects and targets in the visual field that are conspicuous or that we consider relevant or worth looking at. These reorientations are achieved by means of saccadic eye movements. Where we saccade to depends on various low-level factors such as a targets’ luminance but also crucially on high-level factors like the expected reward or a targets’ relevance for perception and subsequent behavior. Here, we review recent findings how the control of saccadic eye movements is influenced by higher-level cognitive processes. We first describe the pathways by which cognitive contributions can influence the neural oculomotor circuit. Second, we summarize what saccade parameters reveal about cognitive mechanisms, particularly saccade latencies, saccade kinematics and changes in saccade gain. Finally, we review findings on what renders a saccade target valuable, as reflected in oculomotor behavior. We emphasize that foveal vision of the target after the saccade can constitute an internal reward for the visual system and that this is reflected in oculomotor dynamics that serve to quickly and accurately provide detailed foveal vision of relevant targets in the visual field.

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Effects of aging and noncanonical form presentation on idiom processing: Evidence from eye tracking

Applied Psycholinguistics ◽

10.1017/s0142716420000612 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-27

Author(s):

Katja I. Haeuser ◽

Shari Baum ◽

Debra Titone

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Eye Movements ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Healthy Aging ◽

Idiom Comprehension ◽

First Pass ◽

Effects Of Aging ◽

Open Question ◽

Idiom Processing ◽

Noncanonical Form

Abstract Comprehending idioms (e.g., bite the bullet) requires that people appreciate their figurative meanings while suppressing literal interpretations of the phrase. While much is known about idioms, an open question is how healthy aging and noncanonical form presentation affect idiom comprehension when the task is to read sentences silently for comprehension. Here, younger and older adults read sentences containing idioms or literal phrases, while we monitored their eye movements. Idioms were presented in a canonical or a noncanonical form (e.g., bite the iron bullet). To assess whether people integrate figurative or literal interpretations of idioms, a disambiguating region that was figuratively or literally biased followed the idiom in each sentence. During early stages of reading, older adults showed facilitation for canonical idioms, suggesting a greater sensitivity to stored idiomatic forms. During later stages of reading, older adults showed slower reading times when canonical idioms were biased toward their literal interpretation, suggesting they were more likely to interpret idioms figuratively on the first pass. In contrast, noncanonical form presentation slowed comprehension of figurative meanings comparably in younger and older participants. We conclude that idioms may be more strongly entrenched in older adults, and that noncanonical form presentation slows comprehension of figurative meanings.

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