Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception
When we explore a visual scene, our eyes make saccades to jump rapidly from one area to another and fixate regions of interest to extract useful information. While the role of fixation eye movements in vision has been widely studied, their random nature has been a hitherto neglected issue. Here we c...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2012-01-01
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| Series: | The Scientific World Journal |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/956340 |
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| author | Jean Duchesne Vincent Bouvier Julien Guillemé Olivier A. Coubard |
| author_facet | Jean Duchesne Vincent Bouvier Julien Guillemé Olivier A. Coubard |
| author_sort | Jean Duchesne |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | When we explore a visual scene, our eyes make saccades to jump rapidly from one area to another and fixate regions of interest to extract useful information. While the role of fixation eye movements in vision has been widely studied, their random nature has been a hitherto neglected issue. Here we conducted two experiments to examine the Maxwellian nature of eye movements during fixation. In Experiment 1, eight participants were asked to perform free viewing of natural scenes displayed on a computer screen while their eye movements were recorded. For each participant, the probability density function (PDF) of eye movement amplitude during fixation obeyed the law established by Maxwell for describing molecule velocity in gas. Only the mean amplitude of eye movements varied with expertise, which was lower in experts than novice participants. In Experiment 2, two participants underwent fixed time, free viewing of natural scenes and of their scrambled version while their eye movements were recorded. Again, the PDF of eye movement amplitude during fixation obeyed Maxwell’s law for each participant and for each scene condition (normal or scrambled). The results suggest that eye fixation during natural scene perception describes a random motion regardless of top-down or of bottom-up processes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1cf101a5082a4e258c825d81b02fd758 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1537-744X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2012-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Scientific World Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-1cf101a5082a4e258c825d81b02fd7582025-02-03T06:11:08ZengWileyThe Scientific World Journal1537-744X2012-01-01201210.1100/2012/956340956340Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene PerceptionJean Duchesne0Vincent Bouvier1Julien Guillemé2Olivier A. Coubard3Laboratoire Paysage, Agrocampus Ouest, 2 rue André Le Nôtre, 49000 Angers, FranceLaboratoire Paysage, Agrocampus Ouest, 2 rue André Le Nôtre, 49000 Angers, FranceLaboratoire de Psychologie, Université d'Angers, 11 boulevard Lavoisier, 49000 Angers, FranceThe Neuropsychological Laboratory, CNS-Fed, 39 rue Meaux, 75019 Paris, FranceWhen we explore a visual scene, our eyes make saccades to jump rapidly from one area to another and fixate regions of interest to extract useful information. While the role of fixation eye movements in vision has been widely studied, their random nature has been a hitherto neglected issue. Here we conducted two experiments to examine the Maxwellian nature of eye movements during fixation. In Experiment 1, eight participants were asked to perform free viewing of natural scenes displayed on a computer screen while their eye movements were recorded. For each participant, the probability density function (PDF) of eye movement amplitude during fixation obeyed the law established by Maxwell for describing molecule velocity in gas. Only the mean amplitude of eye movements varied with expertise, which was lower in experts than novice participants. In Experiment 2, two participants underwent fixed time, free viewing of natural scenes and of their scrambled version while their eye movements were recorded. Again, the PDF of eye movement amplitude during fixation obeyed Maxwell’s law for each participant and for each scene condition (normal or scrambled). The results suggest that eye fixation during natural scene perception describes a random motion regardless of top-down or of bottom-up processes.http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/956340 |
| spellingShingle | Jean Duchesne Vincent Bouvier Julien Guillemé Olivier A. Coubard Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception The Scientific World Journal |
| title | Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception |
| title_full | Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception |
| title_fullStr | Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception |
| title_full_unstemmed | Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception |
| title_short | Maxwellian Eye Fixation during Natural Scene Perception |
| title_sort | maxwellian eye fixation during natural scene perception |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/956340 |
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