The lemon illusion: seeing curvature where there is none

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Lars StrotherG P Caplovitz

Abstract

Curvature is a highly informative visual cue for shape perception and object recognition. We introduce a novel illusion-the Lemon Illusion-in which subtle illusory curvature is perceived along contour regions that are devoid of physical curvature. We offer several perceptual demonstrations and observations that lead us to conclude that the Lemon Illusion is an instance of a more general illusory curvature phenomenon, one in which the presence of contour curvature discontinuities lead to the erroneous extension of perceived curvature. We propose that this erroneous extension of perceived curvature results from the interaction of neural mechanisms that operate on spatially local contour curvature signals with higher-tier mechanisms that serve to establish more global representations of object shape. Our observations suggest that the Lemon Illusion stems from discontinuous curvature transitions between rectilinear and curved contour segments. However, the presence of curvature discontinuities is not sufficient to produce the Lemon Illusion, and the minimal conditions necessary to elicit this subtle and insidious illusion are difficult to pin down.

References

Jan 15, 1979·Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Containing Papers of a Biological Character·S Ullman
Mar 15, 1991·The Journal of Comparative Neurology·B A McGuireT N Wiesel
Jan 18, 1990·Nature·T Poggio, S Edelman
Jan 1, 1989·Vision Research·A DobbinsM S Cynader
Apr 1, 1987·Psychological Review·Irving Biederman
Mar 1, 1968·The Journal of Physiology·D H Hubel, T N Wiesel
May 20, 1983·The Journal of Comparative Neurology·K S Rockland, J S Lund
Jan 1, 1984·Perception·J J Koenderink
Dec 1, 1984·Cognition·D D Hoffman, W A Richards
Dec 9, 1982·Nature·E H Adelson, J A Movshon
Jan 1, 1995·Annual Review of Neuroscience·W Singer, C M Gray
Oct 1, 1996·Journal of Neurophysiology·J L GallantD C Van Essen
Dec 5, 1996·Nature·P Sinha, T Poggio
Apr 1, 1997·Cognition·D D Hoffman, M Singh
Jul 13, 1999·Journal of Neurophysiology·M MissalG A Orban
Nov 24, 1999·Journal of Neurophysiology·A Pasupathy, C E Connor
Jun 21, 2001·Perception & Psychophysics·A Kristjánsson, P U Tse
Oct 5, 2001·Nature Reviews. Neuroscience·A K EngelW Singer
Nov 8, 2001·Journal of Neurophysiology·A Pasupathy, C E Connor
Nov 6, 2002·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Scott O MurrayDavid L Woods
May 1, 1954·Psychological Review·F ATTNEAVE
Apr 2, 2004·The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience·Christopher C PackRichard T Born
Jun 26, 2004·Annual Review of Neuroscience·Kalanit Grill-Spector, Rafael Malach
Aug 11, 2004·Trends in Cognitive Sciences·James T Todd
Jan 6, 2005·Psychological Review·Jacob Feldman, Manish Singh
Mar 11, 2006·Vision Research·Frédéric J A M Poirier, Hugh R Wilson
Apr 26, 2006·Journal of Experimental Psychology. Human Perception and Performance·Lars Strother, Michael Kubovy
Aug 18, 2006·Psychological Science·Moshe Bar, Maital Neta
Oct 3, 2006·Progress in Brain Research·Peter Ulric Tse, Gideon P Caplovitz
Mar 21, 2007·Current Opinion in Neurobiology·Charles E ConnorAnitha Pasupathy
Sep 18, 2007·Nature Neuroscience·Akiyuki AnzaiDavid C Van Essen
Jan 10, 2012·Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience·Lars StrotherTutis Vilis
Apr 11, 2012·Journal of Experimental Psychology. Human Perception and Performance·Lars Strother, Michael Kubovy
Jul 11, 2012·Psychological Review·Manish Singh, Jacob Feldman

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Sep 9, 2015·Computational Intelligence and Neuroscience·Birgitta Dresp-Langley

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Trending Feeds

COVID-19

Coronaviruses encompass a large family of viruses that cause the common cold as well as more serious diseases, such as the ongoing outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19; formally known as 2019-nCoV). Coronaviruses can spread from animals to humans; symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties; in more severe cases, infection can lead to death. This feed covers recent research on COVID-19.

Blastomycosis

Blastomycosis fungal infections spread through inhaling Blastomyces dermatitidis spores. Discover the latest research on blastomycosis fungal infections here.

Nuclear Pore Complex in ALS/FTD

Alterations in nucleocytoplasmic transport, controlled by the nuclear pore complex, may be involved in the pathomechanism underlying multiple neurodegenerative diseases including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Dementia. Here is the latest research on the nuclear pore complex in ALS and FTD.

Applications of Molecular Barcoding

The concept of molecular barcoding is that each original DNA or RNA molecule is attached to a unique sequence barcode. Sequence reads having different barcodes represent different original molecules, while sequence reads having the same barcode are results of PCR duplication from one original molecule. Discover the latest research on molecular barcoding here.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome is a disease characterized by unexplained disabling fatigue; the pathology of which is incompletely understood. Discover the latest research on chronic fatigue syndrome here.

Evolution of Pluripotency

Pluripotency refers to the ability of a cell to develop into three primary germ cell layers of the embryo. This feed focuses on the mechanisms that underlie the evolution of pluripotency. Here is the latest research.

Position Effect Variegation

Position Effect Variagation occurs when a gene is inactivated due to its positioning near heterochromatic regions within a chromosome. Discover the latest research on Position Effect Variagation here.

STING Receptor Agonists

Stimulator of IFN genes (STING) are a group of transmembrane proteins that are involved in the induction of type I interferon that is important in the innate immune response. The stimulation of STING has been an active area of research in the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Here is the latest research on STING receptor agonists.

Microbicide

Microbicides are products that can be applied to vaginal or rectal mucosal surfaces with the goal of preventing, or at least significantly reducing, the transmission of sexually transmitted infections. Here is the latest research on microbicides.

Related Papers

Cortex; a Journal Devoted to the Study of the Nervous System and Behavior
Erminio Capitani, Marcella Laiacona
Neural Networks : the Official Journal of the International Neural Network Society
P J Kellman
Sheng li ke xue jin zhan [Progress in physiology]
H Y Tao, Y F Zhou
Archives of Ophthalmology
Ilya Rozenbaum, Robert Ritch
American Journal of Optometry and Archives of American Academy of Optometry
G A FRY
© 2022 Meta ULC. All rights reserved