Novel-view scene recognition relies on identifying spatial reference directions

doi:10.1016/j.cognition.2009.01.007

Cognition

Volume 111, Issue 2, May 2009, Pages 175-186

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2009.01.007 Get rights and content

Abstract

Five experiments investigated whether observer locomotion provides specialized information facilitating novel-view scene recognition. Participants detected a position change after briefly viewing a desktop scene when the table stayed stationary or was rotated and when the observer stayed stationary or locomoted. The results showed that 49° novel-view scene recognition was more accurate when the novel view was caused by observer locomotion than when the novel view was caused by table rotation. However such superiority of observer locomotion disappeared when the to-be-tested viewpoint was indicated during the study phase, when the study viewing direction was indicated during the test phase, and when the novel test view was 98°, and was even reversed when the study viewing direction was indicated during the test phase in the table rotation condition but not in the observer locomotion condition. These results suggest scene recognition relies on the identification of the spatial reference directions of the scene and accurately indicating the spatial reference direction can facilitate scene recognition. The facilitative effect of locomotion occurs because the spatial reference direction of the scene is tracked during locomotion and more accurately identified at test.

Section snippets

Experiment 1

In Experiment 1, we replicated the experiments of Simons and Wang (1998). After viewing an array of five objects for three seconds, participant walked to a new viewing position 49° from the learning position or stayed at the learning position while blindfolded. One object was moved to a new location after participants were blindfolded. Ten seconds after they put on the blindfold, participants were asked to remove the blindfold and indicate which object was moved.

Experiment 2

In Experiment 2, a short chopstick coated with phosphorescent paint was placed at the center of the table with an angle 49° counterclockwise away from the study viewpoint (Fig. 3) for the novel test view group and 0° from the study viewpoint for the familiar test view group so that the chopstick would point to the test viewpoint for both groups. We investigated whether change detection at a novel view caused by the table rotation was as accurate as change detection at a novel view caused by the

Experiment 3

In Experiment 3, a short chopstick coated with phosphorescent paint was placed at the center of the table pointing to the study viewpoint during the testing phase. We investigated whether performance in position change detection at a novel view was no less accurate when the novel view was caused by table rotation than when the novel view was caused by observer locomotion.

Experiment 4

In Experiment 4, the distance between the study view and the novel was 98° instead of 49° in Experiment 1. Farrell and Robertson (1998, p. 229) reported a linear increase of errors in pointing to objects as a function of rotation magnitude in the updating condition, indicating that errors of updating one’s position and orientation accumulate over greater distances. Accordingly we assumed that the inaccuracy in updating the self with respect to the spatial reference direction of the scene

Experiment 5

In Experiments 2 Experiment 2, 3 Experiment 3, participants were instructed on the to-be-tested viewpoint or the study viewpoint for both table rotation and table stationary conditions. Participants might have been able to use the chopstick cue when the novel view was caused by their locomotion. We were therefore not able to examine the relative facilitative effects of knowledge about the to-be-tested viewpoint, knowledge about the study viewpoint, and locomotion information on change

Experiment 6

In the previous experiments, a chopstick was placed either only at study (Experiment 2 and the indicating test viewpoint condition in Experiment 5) or only at test (Experiment 3 and the indicating study viewpoint condition in Experiment 5). These manipulations were included to reduce the likelihood that the chopstick would influence scene recognition as a reference object. When a chopstick was only presented at study, other objects might be coded with respect to the chopstick at study, but that

General discussion

The goal of this project was to investigate whether observer locomotion, compared with table rotation, provides unique information facilitating novel-view scene recognition. The findings of the experiments lead to a negative answer. Novel-view scene recognition was as accurate in the table rotation condition as in the observer locomotion condition when the to-be-tested viewpoint was indicated during the study phase, when the study viewing direction was indicated during the test phase, and when

Acknowledgements

Preparation of this paper and the research reported in it were supported in part by a grant from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and a grant from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30770709) to W.M. and National Institute of Mental Health Grant 2-R01-MH57868 to T.P.M. We are grateful to Dr. Andrew Hollingworth, Dr. Daniel Simons, and one anonymous reviewer for their helpful comments on a previous version of this manuscript.

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Novel-view scene recognition relies on identifying spatial reference directions

Abstract

Section snippets

Experiment 1

Experiment 2

Experiment 3

Experiment 4

Experiment 5

Experiment 6

General discussion

Acknowledgements

Cognition

Cognition

Cognition

Cognitive Psychology

Trends in Cognitive Sciences

Spatial cognition and the brain

Remembering the past and imagining the future: A neural model of spatial memory and imagery

Psychological Review

View dependence in scene recognition after active learning

Memory and Cognition

Extrinsic cues aid shape recognition from novel viewpoints

Journal of Vision

Viewpoint dependence in scene recognition

Psychological Science

Mental rotation and the automatic updating of body-centered spatial relationships

Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition

Allocentric coding of object-to-object relations in overlearned and novel environments

Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition