Journal article

Publication year: 2011

Pages: 2010-2016

Journal: Current Biology

Volume number: 21

Issue number: 23

ISSN: 0960-9822

eISSN: 1879-0445

Open access status: Green

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2011.10.036

Publisher: Cell Press

Abstract: 
Many critical perceptual judgments, from telling whether fruit is ripe to determining whether the ground is slippery, involve estimating the material properties of surfaces. Very little is known about how the brain recognizes materials, even though the problem is likely as important for survival as navigating or recognizing objects. Though previous research has focused nearly exclusively on the properties of static images [1-16], recent evidence suggests that motion may affect the appearance of surface material [17-19]. However, what kind of information motion conveys and how this information may be used by the brain is still unknown. Here, we identify three motion cues that the brain could rely on to distinguish between matte and shiny surfaces. We show that these motion measurements can override static cues, leading to dramatic changes in perceived material depending on the image motion characteristics. A classifier algorithm based on these cues correctly predicts both successes and some striking failures of human material perception. Together these results reveal a previously unknown use for optic flow in the perception of surface material properties.

Harvard Citation style: Doerschner, K., Fleming, R., Yilmaz, O., Schrater, P., Hartung, B. and Kersten, D. (2011) Visual Motion and the Perception of Surface Material, Current Biology, 21(23), pp. 2010-2016. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2011.10.036

APA Citation style: Doerschner, K., Fleming, R., Yilmaz, O., Schrater, P., Hartung, B., & Kersten, D. (2011). Visual Motion and the Perception of Surface Material. Current Biology. 21(23), 2010-2016. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2011.10.036