Gestalt rules the corner of your eye

We continually recognize objects without apparent effort. We don’t know how the brain does it and we can’t get machines to do it. Object recognition in the peripheral visual field is more limited and simpler than in central vision. Hoping to make faster progress by studying this simpler system, we tested the role of Gestalt laws in recognizing objects in central and peripheral vision. We continually recognize objects without apparent effort. We don’t know how the brain does it and we can’t get machines to do it. Form vision in the peripheral visual field is more limited and simpler than in central vision. Perhaps we can make faster progress by studying this simpler system. We tested the role of Gestalt laws in recognizing objects in central and peripheral vision. We measured efficiency for identifying objects as a function of position in the visual field for letters of simple and complex fonts. We also made letters out of strings of striped patches to test the Gestalt law of good continuation. We find that the effect in the periphery is twice as powerful as in the fovea. Studying the periphery allows us to isolate the effects of the Gestalt laws on letter identification. Samba Silla Page 3 of 1