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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

An Experimental Platform to Study the Closed-loop Performance of Brain-machine Interfaces
Published on: March 10, 2011
Neural gain changes subserving perceptual acuity
1Department of Physiology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City 84108, USA.
Abstract:
When small and large objects of equal weight are lifted, the small object feels heavier than the large one (the size-weight illusion) and requires more effort to lift (the size-effort illusion). It has been suggested that these illusions result from neural gain changes designed to maintain acuity under different working conditions. If this suggestion is correct, a given mass should produce a larger increase in perceived weight or effort when added to the small object. This was found to be the case.
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