Contrast thresholds for detecting sine-wave Gabor patches in two-dimensional externally added random-pixel noise were measured. Thresholds were obtained for monocular and binocular signals in the presence of spatial correlated (identical) and uncorrelated (independent) noise in the two eyes. Measurements were obtained at four different spectral densities of noise (including zero). Thresholds were higher for monocular stimuli than for binocular, and higher in the presence of correlated noise compared to uncorrelated noise. The magnitude of binocular summation, similar in correlated and uncorrelated noise, decreased with increasing noise strength. The independent contributions of internal noise and sampling efficiency to detection were analysed. Sampling efficiencies were higher for binocular than for monocular viewing for both types of noise, with values being higher with uncorrelated noise. Binocular stimuli showed a lower equivalent noise level compared to the mean monocular case for both types of noise.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AndersonP AMovshonJ A, 1989“Binocular combination of contrast signals”Vision Research291115–1132
2.
BarlowH B, 1977“Retinal and central factors in human vision limited by noise”, in Vertebrate Photoreception Eds BarlowH BFattP(London: Academic Press) pp 337–358
3.
BearseM AFreemanR D, 1994“Binocular summation in orientation discrimination depends on stimulus contrast and duration”Vision Research3419–29
BlakeRFoxR, 1973“The psychophysical inquiry into binocular summation”Perception & Psychophysics14161–185
6.
BlakeROvertonRLema-SternS, 1981a“Interocular transfer of visual after-effects”Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance7367–381
7.
BlakeRSloaneMFoxR, 1981b“Further developments in binocular summation”Perception & Psychophysics30266–276
8.
BlakeRWilsonH R, 1991“Neural models of stereoscopic vision”Trends in Neuroscience14445–452
9.
BracciniCGambardellaGSuettaG, 1980“A noise masking experiment in grating perception at threshold. The implications on binocular summation”Vision Research20373–376
10.
BurgessA E, 1986“On observer's internal noise”Proceedings of the SPIE 626 Medicine XIV/Pacs IV208–212
11.
CampbellF WGreenD G, 1965“Monocular versus binocular visual acuity”Nature (London)208191–192
12.
DaugmanJ G, 1980“Two-dimensional spectral analysis of cortical receptive field profiles”Vision Research20847–856
13.
De ValoisR LDe ValoisK K, 1988Spatial Vision(New York: Oxford University Press)
14.
FosterD HBishofW F, 1991“Thresholds from psychometric functions: superiority of bootstrap to incremental and probit variance estimators”Psychological Bulletin109152–159
15.
GeorgesonM A, 1979“Spatial Fourier analysis and human vision”, in Tutorial Essays in Psychology: A Guide to Recent Advancesvolume 2, Ed. SutherlandN S(Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates) pp 39–88
16.
GeorgesonM AMeeseT S, 1997“Perception of stationary plaids: The role of spatial filters in edge analysis”Vision Research373255–3271
17.
GrahamN V S, 1989Visual Pattern Analyzers(New York: Oxford University Press)
18.
GreenDSwetsJ, 1966Signal Detection Theory(New York: John Wiley)
19.
HubelD HWieselT N, 1968“Receptive fields and functional architecture of monkey striate cortex”Journal of Physiology (London)195215–242
20.
LeggeG E, 1984a“Binocular contrast summation. I. Detection and discrimination”Vision Research24373–383
21.
LeggeG E, 1984b“Binocular contrast summation. II. Quadratic summation”Vision Research24385–394
22.
LeggeG EKerstenDBurgessA E, 1987“Contrast discrimination in noise”Journal of the Optical Society of America A4391–404
23.
LehkyS RSejnowskiT J, 1990“Neural model of stereoacuity and depth interpolation based on a distributed representation of stereo disparity”Journal of Neuroscience102281–2299
24.
LeVaySVoigtT, 1988“Ocular dominance and disparity coding in cat visual cortex”Visual Neuroscience1395–414
25.
LoshinD SKleinS ALeviD M, 1983“Utrocular contrast discrimination—a signal detection approach”Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science24Supplement, 96
26.
MouldenB, 1980“After-effects and the integration of patterns of neural activity within a channel”Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London29039–55
27.
OhzawaIFreemanR D, 1986“The binocular organization of simple cells in the cat's visual cortex”Journal of Neurophysiology56221–242
28.
O'SheaR PBlakeR, 1987“Depth without disparity in random-dot stereograms”Perception & Psychophysics42205–214
29.
PardhanS, 1989Summation and Inhibition in Binocular Contrast Detection PhD thesis, University of Bradford, Bradford, UK
30.
PardhanSGilchristJBehG K, 1993“Contrast detection in noise: A new method for assessing cataract”Optometry and Vision Science70914–922
31.
PardhanSRoseDGilchristJ, 1996“Contrast detection in noise: binocular and monocular”Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science37(4) S290
32.
PelahA, (Ed.), 1997“The vision of natural and complex images”Vision Research373210–3439
33.
PelliD G, 1981Effects of Visual Noise PhD thesis, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
34.
PelliD G, 1991“Noise in the visual system may be early”, in Computational Models of Visual Processing Eds LandyM SMovshonJ A(Cambridge, MA: MIT Press) pp 147–151
35.
PelliD GZhangL, 1991“Accurate control of contrast on microcomputer displays”Vision Research311337–1350
36.
PoggioG F, 1984“Processing of stereoscopic information in primate visual cortex”, in Dynamic Aspects of Neocortical Function Eds EdelmanG MGallW ECowanW M(New York: John Wiley) pp 613–635
37.
PoggioG FGonzalezFKrauseF, 1988“Stereoscopic mechanisms in monkey visual cortex: binocular correlation and disparity selectivity”Journal of Neuroscience84531–4550
38.
RobsonJ G, 1975“Receptive fields: neural representation of the spatial and intensive attributes of the visual image”, in Handbook of Perception volume V Seeing Eds CarteretteE CFriedmanM P(New York: Academic Press) pp 81–116
39.
RoseD, 1978“Monocular versus binocular contrast thresholds for movement and pattern”Perception7195–200
40.
RoseDBlakeRHalpernD L, 1988“Disparity range for binocular summation”Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science29283–290
41.
SalehB E ACohnT, 1978“Reduction of the human detective quantum efficiency due to lateral neural interactions”Biological Cybernetics28137–141
42.
SchneiderBMoragliaG, 1992“Binocular unmasking with unequal interocular contrast: The case for multiple Cyclopean eyes”Perception & Psychophysics52639–660
43.
SchneiderBMoragliaG, 1994“Binocular vision enhances target detection by filtering the background”Perception231267–1286
44.
ThomasJ P, 1985“The effect of static noise and grating masks on detection and identification of grating targets”Journal of the Optical Society of America A21586–1592
45.
TimneyBPearsonPMacudaT, 1997“Is utrocular discrimination based on labelled lines?”Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science38(4) S908
