Mentor
Dr. Rodica Curtu
Participation year
2009
Project title

Multistability in Visual Perception: A Mathematical Approach

Abstract

Why when we have two eyes and each of which we support perception by itself, we do not see two of everything? If we present two different images to each eye then a competition arises, a neuronal competition. When the eyes are presented with two distinct and conflicting images, an alternation between these on a timescale of seconds is reported. The phenomenon is termed binocular rivalry and has been investigated in psychophysical and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) experiments, and more recently within a modeling approach (1, 2, 4-7). Suzuki and Grabowecky also found multi-stable percepts induced by binocular rivalry. We introduce here a model for perceptual multistability and simulate it in accordance with the experimental findings using Dynamical Systems Theory and for the numerical simulations using XPPAUT software.

Sharniece  Holland
Education
Alabama State University