scholarly journals Sensitivity of Visual System in 5-Day “Dry” Immersion With High-Frequency Electromyostimulation

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina Shoshina ◽  
Inna Zelenskaya ◽  
Valeriia Karpinskaia ◽  
Yuri Shilov ◽  
Elena Tomilovskaya
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Visual System ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Visual Sensitivity ◽  
Frequency Range ◽  
Dry Immersion ◽  
Lyer Illusion ◽  
Visual Contrast ◽  
Microgravity Conditions

The aim of this work was to study the sensitivity of the visual system in 5-day “dry” immersion with a course of high-frequency electromyostimulation (HFEMS) and without it. “Dry” immersion (DI) is one of the most effective models of microgravity. DI reproduces three basic effects of weightlessness: physical inactivity, support withdrawal and elimination of the vertical vascular gradient. The “dry” immersion included in the use of special waterproof and highly elastic fabric on of immersion in a liquid similar in density to the tissues of the human body. The sensitivity of the visual system was assessed by measuring contrast sensitivity and magnitude of the Müller-Lyer illusion. The visual contrast sensitivity was measured in the spatial frequency range from 0.4 to 10.0 cycles/degree. The strength of visual illusion was assessed by means of motor response using “tracking.” Measurements were carried out before the start of immersion, on the 1st, 3rd, 5th days of DI, and after its completion. Under conditions of “dry” immersion without HFEMS, upon the transition from gravity to microgravity conditions (BG and DI1) we observed significant differences in contrast sensitivity in the low spatial frequency range, whereas in the experiment with HFEMS—in the medium spatial frequency range. In the experiment without HFEMS, the Müller-Lyer illusion in microgravity conditions was absent, while in the experiment using HFEMS it was significantly above zero at all stages. Thus, we obtained only limited evidence in favor of the hypothesis of a possible compensating effect of HFEMS on changes in visual sensitivity upon the transition from gravity to microgravity conditions and vice versa. The study is a pilot and requires further research on the effect of HFEMS on visual sensitivity.

Independent Processing across Spatial Frequency in Moving Broadband Patterns

Perception ◽  
1997 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
pp. 961-976 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard A Eagle
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Visual System ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Power Spectra ◽  
Frequency Noise ◽  
Low Contrast ◽  
Task Requirements ◽  
Noise Frequency ◽  
Frame Motion

The aim of the experiments was to discover whether the visual system has independent access to motion information at different spatial scales when presented with a broadband stimulus. Subjects were required to discriminate between a pair of two-frame motion sequences, one containing a coherently displacing pattern and the other containing a pattern with high-frequency noise. The stimuli were either narrowband (1 octave) or broadband (6 octaves spanning 0.23–15.0 cycles deg−1) and their power spectra were either flat or followed a 1 /f2 function. For the broadband stimuli, noise was introduced cumulatively into increasingly lower frequencies. For the narrowband stimuli, noise was introduced into the same frequency band as the signal. All stimuli could be defined by the lowest noise frequency ( n1) they contained. For each stimulus, the largest spatial displacement across the two frames at which the task could be performed was measured ( dmax). For the narrowband stimuli, dmax increased as n1 was lowered. This was true over the entire frequency range for the 1 /f2 stimuli, though the task became impossible for the flat-spectrum stimuli at the lowest frequencies. This is attributed to the very low contrast of these latter stimuli. The dmax values for the broadband stimuli tended to shadow those of the narrowband stimuli with the equivalent values of n1 being around 25% lower. The data were modelled by spatiotemporally filtering the stimuli and considering the amount of directional power in the signal and noise sequences. The results suggest that there must be multiple spatial-frequency channels in operation, and that for broadband patterns the visual system has perceptual access to these individual channel outputs, utilising different filters depending on the task requirements.

Contrast Sensitivity of Air-Breathing Nonprofessional Scuba Divers at a Depth of 40 Meters

1992 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 275-283
Author(s):  
Nico A. M. Schellart
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
Fresh Water ◽  
Test Pattern ◽  
Sine Wave ◽  
Air Breathing ◽  
Scuba Divers ◽  
Visual Contrast ◽  
Sine Wave Gratings ◽  
Visual Contrast Sensitivity

Photopic contrast sensitivity of air-breathing scuba divers was measured with a translucent test pattern at depths up to 40 m. The pattern was composed of sine wave gratings with spatial frequency and contrast changing logarithmically. The spatial transfer characteristics were measured at various depths under controlled optical conditions in seawater and in fresh water. Analysis indicates that the visual contrast sensitivity, and therefore probably also acuity, of sport divers is not affected up to depths of 40 m. This holds under ideal as well as poor diving conditions.

Selective Adaptation to Low Spatial Frequencies Does Not Decrease the Mueller-Lyer Illusion

1994 ◽  
Vol 78 (1) ◽  
pp. 339-347
Author(s):  
Janet D. Larsen ◽  
Beth Anne Goldstein
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Visual System ◽  
Major Part ◽  
Selective Adaptation ◽  
Sinusoidal Grating ◽  
Square Wave ◽  
Frequency Information ◽  
Lyer Illusion ◽  
Spatial Frequencies

The idea that low spatial-frequency information in the Mueller-Lyer figure accounts for a major part of the illusion was tested in a series of five studies. In Study 1, subjects were selectively adapted to high or low square-wave spatial-frequency gratings with no difference in the magnitude of illusion they experienced. Similarly, adaptation to sinusoidal grating patterns with either high or low spatial frequency had no effect on the magnitude of illusion experienced (Studies 2 to 5). The failure of adaptation to low spatial-frequency gratings to affect the magnitude of illusion experienced indicates either that the illusion cannot be accounted for by the low spatial-frequency information or that adaptation of the visual system by grating patterns cannot be used to explore any effects of the low spatial frequencies in the figure.

A Test of the Spatial-Frequency Explanation of the Müller-Lyer Illusion

Perception ◽  
1986 ◽  
Vol 15 (5) ◽  
pp. 553-562 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marisa Carrasco ◽  
Jesus G Figueroa ◽  
J Douglas Willen
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Visual System ◽  
Human Visual System ◽  
Lyer Illusion ◽  
Lower Spatial Frequency ◽  
Spatial Frequencies ◽  
Frequency Components ◽  
Fourier Spectra

Previous investigations have shown that the response of spatial-frequency-specific channels in the human visual system is differentially affected by adaptation to gratings of distinct spatial frequencies and/or orientations. A study is reported of the effects of adaptation to vertical or horizontal gratings of a high or a low spatial frequency on the extent of the Brentano form of the Müller-Lyer illusion in human observers. It is shown that the illusion decreases after adaptation to vertical gratings of low spatial frequency, but seems unaffected otherwise. These results are consistent with the notion of visual channels that are spatial-frequency and orientation specific, and support the argument that the Müller-Lyer illusion may be due primarily to lower-spatial-frequency components in the Fourier spectra of the image.

Low Spatial Frequency Contrast Sensitivity Deficits in Migraine are not Visual Pathway Selective

Cephalalgia ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 539-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
AM McKendrick ◽  
GP Sampson
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
Parvocellular Pathway ◽  
Functional Deficits ◽  
Visual Contrast ◽  
Sensitivity Loss ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Pathway Function ◽  
Migraine Group ◽  
Visual Contrast Sensitivity

Some people who experience migraine demonstrate reduced visual contrast sensitivity that is measurable between migraines. Contrast sensitivity loss to low spatial frequency gratings has been previously attributed to possible impairment of magnocellular pathway function. This study measured contrast sensitivity using low spatial frequency targets (0.25–4 c/deg) where the adaptation aspects of the stimuli were designed to preferentially assess either magnocellular or parvocellular pathway function (steady and pulsed pedestal technique). Twelve people with migraine with measured visual field abnormalities and 17 controls participated. Subjects were tested foveally and at 10° eccentricity. Foveally, there was no significant difference in group mean contrast sensitivity. At 10°, the migraine group demonstrated reduced contrast sensitivity for both the stimuli designed to assess magnocellular and parvocellular function ( P < 0.05). The functional deficits measured in this study infer that abnormalities of the low spatial frequency sensitive channels of both pathways contribute to contrast sensitivity deficits in people with migraine.

The Contrast Sensitivity of the Visual System in “Dry” Immersion Conditions

BIOPHYSICS ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (4) ◽  
pp. 681-685
Author(s):  
I. I. Shoshina ◽  
I. S. Sosnina ◽  
K. A. Zelenskiy ◽  
V. Yu. Karpinskaya ◽  
V. A. Lyakhovetskii ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Visual System ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
Dry Immersion

scholarly journals Spatial Frequency Tuning and Transfer of Perceptual Learning for Motion Coherence Reflects the Tuning Properties of Global Motion Processing

Vision ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordi Asher ◽  
Vincenzo Romei ◽  
Paul Hibbard
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Perceptual Learning ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Frequency Tuning ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Motion Processing ◽  
Global Motion ◽  
Low Frequencies ◽  
Motion Coherence

Perceptual learning is typically highly specific to the stimuli and task used during training. However, recently, it has been shown that training on global motion can transfer to untrained tasks, reflecting the generalising properties of mechanisms at this level of processing. We investigated (i) if feedback was required for learning in a motion coherence task, (ii) the transfer across the spatial frequency of training on a global motion coherence task and (iii) the transfer of this training to a measure of contrast sensitivity. For our first experiment, two groups, with and without feedback, trained for ten days on a broadband motion coherence task. Results indicated that feedback was a requirement for robust learning. For the second experiment, training consisted of five days of direction discrimination using one of three motion coherence stimuli (where individual elements were comprised of either broadband Gaussian blobs or low- or high-frequency random-dot Gabor patches), with trial-by-trial auditory feedback. A pre- and post-training assessment was conducted for each of the three types of global motion coherence conditions and high and low spatial frequency contrast sensitivity (both without feedback). Our training paradigm was successful at eliciting improvement in the trained tasks over the five days. Post-training assessments found evidence of transfer for the motion coherence task exclusively for the group trained on low spatial frequency elements. For the contrast sensitivity tasks, improved performance was observed for low- and high-frequency stimuli, following motion coherence training with broadband stimuli, and for low-frequency stimuli, following low-frequency training. Our findings are consistent with perceptual learning, which depends on the global stage of motion processing in higher cortical areas, which is broadly tuned for spatial frequency, with a preference for low frequencies.

scholarly journals Selective modulation of visual sensitivity during fixation

2018 ◽  
Vol 119 (6) ◽  
pp. 2059-2067 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris Scholes ◽  
Paul V. McGraw ◽  
Neil W. Roach
Keyword(s):  
Eye Movements ◽  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
Eye Movement ◽  
Visual Processing ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Gain Control ◽  
Visual Sensitivity ◽  
Ocular Movements ◽  
Spatial Frequencies

During periods of steady fixation, we make small-amplitude ocular movements, termed microsaccades, at a rate of 1–2 every second. Early studies provided evidence that visual sensitivity is reduced during microsaccades—akin to the well-established suppression associated with larger saccades. However, the results of more recent work suggest that microsaccades may alter retinal input in a manner that enhances visual sensitivity to some stimuli. Here we parametrically varied the spatial frequency of a stimulus during a detection task and tracked contrast sensitivity as a function of time relative to microsaccades. Our data reveal two distinct modulations of sensitivity: suppression during the eye movement itself and facilitation after the eye has stopped moving. The magnitude of suppression and facilitation of visual sensitivity is related to the spatial content of the stimulus: suppression is greatest for low spatial frequencies, while sensitivity is enhanced most for stimuli of 1–2 cycles/°, spatial frequencies at which we are already most sensitive in the absence of eye movements. We present a model in which the tuning of suppression and facilitation is explained by delayed lateral inhibition between spatial frequency channels. Our data show that eye movements actively modulate visual sensitivity even during fixation: the detectability of images at different spatial scales can be increased or decreased depending on when the image occurs relative to a microsaccade. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Given the frequency with which we make microsaccades during periods of fixation, it is vital that we understand how they affect visual processing. We demonstrate two selective modulations of contrast sensitivity that are time-locked to the occurrence of a microsaccade: suppression of low spatial frequencies during each eye movement and enhancement of higher spatial frequencies after the eye has stopped moving. These complementary changes may arise naturally because of sluggish gain control between spatial channels.

Is the development of visual contrast sensitivity impaired in children with migraine? An exploratory study

Cephalalgia ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 30 (8) ◽  
pp. 991-995 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gábor Braunitzer ◽  
Alice Rokszin ◽  
Jenő Kóbor ◽  
György Benedek
Keyword(s):  
Visual System ◽  
Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Migraine Without Aura ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
Visual Contrast ◽  
Spatial Frequencies ◽  
Visual Contrast Sensitivity ◽  
Age And Sex

Introduction: Impairment of visual contrast sensitivity is a well-known phenomenon in adult migraineurs. Little is known, however, about whether contrast sensitivity deficits are already present in children with migraine. Methods: We conducted an exploratory study with 18 children with migraine without aura, in which we tested our subjects’ visual contrast sensitivity. Eighteen age- and sex-matched healthy children served as controls. Results: Among the youngest subjects (6–10 years) we found no significant differences at any of the spatial frequencies tested, as compared to the controls, whereas from the age of 10 on, migraineurs exhibited significantly poorer contrast sensitivity, especially at the lower spatial frequencies. Conclusion: To our knowledge, we are the first to report on such a deficit in children, and we conclude that our findings might be interpreted as reflecting an increased vulnerability of the visual system to migraine attacks as part of the migrainous endophenotype.

Spatial Frequency Selectivity of Spiral Aftereffect

1982 ◽  
Vol 55 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 1129-1130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Willard L. Brigner
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Visual System ◽  
Human Visual System ◽  
Frequency Selectivity ◽  
Frequency Range

The spiral aftereffect was noted for test spirals differing from the inducing spiral by approximately ±1 octave. These findings are consistent with previous investigations which indicate spatial frequency mechanisms in the human visual system are responsive to a spatial frequency range of approximately ±1 octave.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document