From pictures to reality: modelling the phenomenology and psychophysics of 3D perception.
Dhanraj Vishwanath
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences December 13, 2022 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0454 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Humans Depth perception Distance perception Space perception Visual perception Psychophysics Stereopsis Picture perception 3d perception Affordance and embodiment |
| Key points | Argues that human 3D perception is not a single, unitary, mostly veridical inference about the external world, but is underwritten by at least three distinct and dissociated spatial encodings: egocentric distance perception at the ambulatory scale, exocentric distance (scaled depth) perception optimized for near space, and perception of object shape and layout (unscaled depth). This tripartite division, the author contends, better accounts for the phenomenology, psychophysics, and adaptive logic of 3D vision. |
Abstract
The dominant inferential approach to human 3D perception assumes a model of spatial encoding based on a physical description of objects and space. Prevailing models based on this physicalist approach assume that the visual system infers an objective, unitary and mostly veridical representation of the external world. However, careful consideration of the phenomenology of 3D perception challenges these assumptions. I review important aspects of phenomenology, psychophysics and neurophysiology which suggest that human visual perception of 3D objects and space is underwritten by distinct and dissociated spatial encodings that are optimized for specific regions of space. Specifically, I argue that 3D perception is underwritten by at least three distinct encodings for (1) egocentric distance perception at the ambulatory scale, (2) exocentric distance (scaled depth) perception optimized for near space, and (3) perception of object shape and layout (unscaled depth). This tripartite division can more satisfactorily account for the phenomenology, psychophysics and adaptive logic of human 3D perception. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'New approaches to 3D vision'.
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