COMPASS: Computations for Orientation and Motion Perception in Altered Sensorimotor States

Reliable perception of self-motion and orientation requires the central nervous system (CNS) to adapt to changing environments, stimuli, and sensory organ function. The proposed computations required of neural systems for this adaptation process remain conceptual, limiting our understanding and ability to quantitatively predict adaptation and mitigate any resulting impairment prior to completing adaptation. Here, we have implemented a computational model of the internal calculations involved in the orientation perception system’s adaptation to changes in the magnitude of gravity. In summary, we propose that the CNS considers parallel, alternative hypotheses of the parameter of interest (in this case, the CNS’s internal estimate of the magnitude of gravity) and uses the associated sensory conflict signals (i.e., difference between sensory measurements and the expectation of them) to sequentially update the posterior probability of each hypothesis using Bayes rule. Over time, an updated central estimate of the internal magnitude of gravity emerges from the posterior probability distribution, which is then used to process sensory information and produce perceptions of self-motion and orientation. We have implemented these hypotheses in a computational model and performed various simulations to demonstrate quantitative model predictions of adaptation of the orientation perception system to changes in the magnitude of gravity, similar to those experienced by astronauts during space exploration missions. These model predictions serve as quantitative hypotheses to inspire future experimental assessments.

The Misperception of Orientation in Depth When Processing Multiple Pictures With Linear Perspective Cues

The leaning tower illusion suggests that combining perspective cues across multiple images can affect the perceived orientation of objects in space. We measured the accuracy of orientation perception when viewing multiple pictures. Across several experiments, 11–16 participants viewed two pictures: a sidewalk and either another sidewalk, a nature scene, or no picture. Participants adjusted an on-screen line to match the remembered orientation of one of the sidewalks. Participants also made a judgment about the parallelism of the sidewalks. Sidewalks perceived as parallel were perceived to have orientations more similar to each other than when they were paired with a nature scene or no picture. The degree of misperception can be approximately twice as large as in the leaning tower illusion, and this effect survived inversion and partially survived alternating presentation of the images. The misperception was eliminated when the participants were cued on which sidewalk they would be judging; however, when forced to process both sidewalks, the misperception reappeared. We conclude that the orientation of objects with perspective cues is misperceived when viewing multiple pictures with perspective cues and this misperception appears to be related at least in part to how parallel those objects are perceived to be.

Association between vestibular function and rotational spatial orientation perception in older adults

BACKGROUND: Spatial orientation is a complex process involving vestibular sensory input and possibly cognitive ability. Previous research demonstrated that rotational spatial orientation was worse for individuals with profound bilateral vestibular dysfunction. OBJECTIVE: Determine whether rotational and linear vestibular function were independently associated with large amplitude rotational spatial orientation perception in healthy aging. METHODS: Tests of rotational spatial orientation accuracy and vestibular function [vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR), ocular and cervical vestibular evoked myogenic potentials (VEMP)] were administered to 272 healthy community-dwelling adults participating in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Using a mixed model multiple linear regression we regressed spatial orientation errors on lateral semicircular canal function, utricular function (ocular VEMP), and saccular function (cervical VEMP) in a single model controlling for rotation size, age, and sex. RESULTS: After adjusting for age, and sex, individuals with bilaterally low VOR gain (β= 20.9, p = 0.014) and those with bilaterally absent utricular function (β= 9.32, p = 0.017) made significantly larger spatial orientation errors relative to individuals with normal vestibular function. CONCLUSIONS: The current results demonstrate for the first time that either bilateral lateral semicircular canal dysfunction or bilateral utricular dysfunction are associated with worse rotational spatial orientation. We also demonstrated in a healthy aging cohort that increased age also contributes to spatial orientation ability.

To See, Not to See, or to See Poorly: Perceptual Quality and Guess Rate as a Function of Electroencephalography (EEG) Brain Activity in an Orientation Perception Task

Brain oscillations are known to modulate detection of visual stimuli, but it is unclear if this is due to increased guess rate or decreased precision of the mental representation. Here we estimated quality and guess rate as a function of electroencephalography (EEG) brain activity using an orientation perception task. Errors on each trial were quantified as the difference between the target orientation and the orientation reported by participants with a response stimulus. Response errors were fitted to standard mixed model by Zhang and Luck (2008) to quantify how participants’ guess rate and standard deviation parameters varied as a function of brain activity. Twenty-four participants were included in the analysis.Within subjects, the power and phase of delta and theta post-target oscillatory activity were found to vary along with performance on the orientation perception task in that greater power and phase coherence in the 2-5 Hz band range was measured in trials with more accurate responses. In addition, the phase of delta and theta correlated with the degree of response error while oscillatory power did not have a relationship with trial-by-trial response errors. Analysis of task-related alpha activity yielded no significant results implying that alpha oscillations do not play an important role in orientation perception at single trial level. Across participants, only the standard deviation parameter correlated with oscillatory power in the high alpha and low beta frequency ranges. These results indicate that post-target power is associated with the precision of mental representations rather than the guess rate, both across trials within subjects and across subjects.