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Abstract:
With practice, humans can improve their ability to
discriminate similar stimuli, such as lines of slightly differing
orientation. Some animal research has shown a reorganization of the
primary sensory cortex that corresponds to such perceptual
learning. In previous research, Ive shown that training at one
retinal location with one set of similar orientations effects
performance on a new orientation at the original retinal location.
This suggests that the same reorganization that occurs in animals
also occurs in humans. In the current research, I test the effect
of learning about one set of similar orientations at one retinal
location on neighboring retinal locations. All of the stimuli are
presented at 8.16 degrees visual angle from the fixation point.
Subjects are tested at .95 degrees, 1.90 degrees, 2.84 degrees, and
5.67 degrees visual angle away from the original training location.
There is a significant decline in performance at 2.84 degrees away,
suggesting interference from the reorganization of the sensory
cortex. However, there is no interference at the location 5.67
degrees away, suggesting that the reorganization is retinally
based, but does not extend to this retinal position.
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