Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Perception of solid shape from shading.

E Mingolla, J T Todd

    Biological Cybernetics
    |January 1, 1986
    PubMed
    Summary
    This summary is machine-generated.

    Human perception of 3D shape from shading is biased towards screen-aligned surfaces. Specular highlights and cast shadows do not impact performance, challenging existing computational models of visual perception.

    Related Concept Videos

    You might also read

    Related Articles

    Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

    Sort by
    Same author

    The great power of steady misrepresentation: Behaviorism's presumed denial of instinct.

    The Behavior analyst·2012
    Same author

    Laboratory lore and research practices in the experimental analysis of human behavior: Subject selection.

    The Behavior analyst·2012
    Same author

    The history of behavior analysis: Some historiography and a bibliography.

    The Behavior analyst·2012
    Same author

    Tempered with a harsh word: Harzem's review of modern perspectives on John B. Watson and classical behaviorism.

    The Behavior analyst·2012
    Same author

    Misconception and miseducation: Presentations of radical behaviorism in psychology textbooks.

    The Behavior analyst·2012
    Same author

    The early research of John B. Watson: Before the behavioral revolution.

    The Behavior analyst·2012
    Same journal

    Harmonic memory in phasor neural networks.

    Biological cybernetics·2026
    Same journal

    Correction: Decreased spinal inhibition leads to undiversified locomotor patterns.

    Biological cybernetics·2026
    Same journal

    Foundational issues of network models in biology.

    Biological cybernetics·2026
    Same journal

    Dynamical mechanisms for coordinating long-term working memory based on the precision of spike-timing in cortical neurons.

    Biological cybernetics·2026
    Same journal

    Distinct dopaminergic spike-timing-dependent plasticity rules are suited to different functional roles.

    Biological cybernetics·2026
    Same journal

    Fluctuation-response relations for a two-stage population of spiking neurons stimulated by common noise.

    Biological cybernetics·2026
    See all related articles

    Area of Science:

    • Visual perception
    • Computational vision
    • Psychophysics

    Background:

    • Formal models of shape from shading often rely on specific assumptions about visual processing.
    • These assumptions include Lambertian reflectance, known illuminant direction, and local orientation detection.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate the psychological validity of assumptions in shape from shading models.
    • To determine how surface properties and illumination affect the perception of 3D structure.

    Main Methods:

    • Observers judged surface slants and tilts in shaded images of ellipsoids.
    • Image properties included shape, orientation, reflectance, and illumination direction.
    • Perceived 3D structure was calculated from observer judgments.

    Related Experiment Videos

    Main Results:

    • Perceptual errors were primarily due to a bias for screen-aligned surfaces.
    • Specular highlights and cast shadows did not influence performance.
    • Existing model assumptions regarding Lambertian reflectance and illuminant direction were found to be psychologically invalid.

    Conclusions:

    • The visual system does not necessarily assume Lambertian reflectance or require known illuminant direction for shape perception.
    • A screen-alignment bias suggests alternative mechanisms for 3D shape perception.
    • An alternative model by Koenderink and van Doorn may offer a more psychologically accurate account of shape from shading.