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SUMMARY:Disturbing vision:  neural efficiency\, haemodynamics and homeosta
 sis - Professor Arnold Wilkins\, University of Essex
DTSTART:20130114T130000Z
DTEND:20130114T140000Z
UID:TALK41310@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:John Mollon
DESCRIPTION:People show consistency with respect to the images that they j
 udge to be uncomfortable. The discomfort can be predicted from the statist
 ics of the image\; this applies to images ranging from photographs of ever
 yday scenes to modern art\, and to geometric arrays\, coloured or in motio
 n. Images are generally rated as uncomfortable to view if the statistics d
 epart from those that occur in natural images in respect of luminance\, ch
 romatic contrast and variation in time. For the same variety of images\, t
 hose that are uncomfortable result in a large cortical haemodynamic respon
 se\, possibly reflecting an inefficiency of neuronal processing. The disco
 mfort can be understood as homeostatic\, and also as an evolutionary adapt
 ation because images of venomous animals have the statistics of uncomforta
 ble images and are indeed uncomfortable to view. There are far-reaching im
 plications for design because much of the modern urban environment has fea
 tures that are uncomfortable. Individuals with migraine are unusually sens
 itive to uncomfortable images. Individual differences in the size and time
 -course of the haemodynamic response in migraineurs appear to reflect a co
 rtical hyperexcitability. The abnormality can be reduced using coloured fi
 lters\, provided the filters have an appropriate\, individually selected c
 olour. This finding indicates that tinted spectacles may be of use in a va
 riety of neurological conditions in which the visual cortex is hyperexcita
 ble.
LOCATION:Kenneth Craik Room\, Craik-Marshall Building\, Downing Site
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