1
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Jiang P, Kent C, Rossiter J. Towards sensory substitution and augmentation: Mapping visual distance to audio and tactile frequency. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0299213. [PMID: 38530828 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0299213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Multimodal perception is the predominant means by which individuals experience and interact with the world. However, sensory dysfunction or loss can significantly impede this process. In such cases, cross-modality research offers valuable insight into how we can compensate for these sensory deficits through sensory substitution. Although sight and hearing are both used to estimate the distance to an object (e.g., by visual size and sound volume) and the perception of distance is an important element in navigation and guidance, it is not widely studied in cross-modal research. We investigate the relationship between audio and vibrotactile frequencies (in the ranges 47-2,764 Hz and 10-99 Hz, respectively) and distances uniformly distributed in the range 1-12 m. In our experiments participants mapped the distance (represented by an image of a model at that distance) to a frequency via adjusting a virtual tuning knob. The results revealed that the majority (more than 76%) of participants demonstrated a strong negative monotonic relationship between frequency and distance, across both vibrotactile (represented by a natural log function) and auditory domains (represented by an exponential function). However, a subgroup of participants showed the opposite positive linear relationship between frequency and distance. The strong cross-modal sensory correlation could contribute to the development of assistive robotic technologies and devices to augment human perception. This work provides the fundamental foundation for future assisted HRI applications where a mapping between distance and frequency is needed, for example for people with vision or hearing loss, drivers with loss of focus or response delay, doctors undertaking teleoperation surgery, and users in augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pingping Jiang
- Department of Engineering Mathematics, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
- SoftLab, Bristol Robotics Laboratory, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher Kent
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan Rossiter
- Department of Engineering Mathematics, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
- SoftLab, Bristol Robotics Laboratory, Bristol, United Kingdom
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2
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Baltieri M, Iizuka H, Witkowski O, Sinapayen L, Suzuki K. Hybrid Life: Integrating biological, artificial, and cognitive systems. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2023; 14:e1662. [PMID: 37403661 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Revised: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/06/2023]
Abstract
Artificial life is a research field studying what processes and properties define life, based on a multidisciplinary approach spanning the physical, natural, and computational sciences. Artificial life aims to foster a comprehensive study of life beyond "life as we know it" and toward "life as it could be," with theoretical, synthetic, and empirical models of the fundamental properties of living systems. While still a relatively young field, artificial life has flourished as an environment for researchers with different backgrounds, welcoming ideas, and contributions from a wide range of subjects. Hybrid Life brings our attention to some of the most recent developments within the artificial life community, rooted in more traditional artificial life studies but looking at new challenges emerging from interactions with other fields. Hybrid Life aims to cover studies that can lead to an understanding, from first principles, of what systems are and how biological and artificial systems can interact and integrate to form new kinds of hybrid (living) systems, individuals, and societies. To do so, it focuses on three complementary perspectives: theories of systems and agents, hybrid augmentation, and hybrid interaction. Theories of systems and agents are used to define systems, how they differ (e.g., biological or artificial, autonomous, or nonautonomous), and how multiple systems relate in order to form new hybrid systems. Hybrid augmentation focuses on implementations of systems so tightly connected that they act as a single, integrated one. Hybrid interaction is centered around interactions within a heterogeneous group of distinct living and nonliving systems. After discussing some of the major sources of inspiration for these themes, we will focus on an overview of the works that appeared in Hybrid Life special sessions, hosted by the annual Artificial Life Conference between 2018 and 2022. This article is categorized under: Neuroscience > Cognition Philosophy > Artificial Intelligence Computer Science and Robotics > Robotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuel Baltieri
- Araya Inc., Tokyo, Japan
- Department of Informatics, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK
| | - Hiroyuki Iizuka
- Faculty of Information Science and Technology, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Center for Human Nature, Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience (CHAIN), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Olaf Witkowski
- Center for Human Nature, Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience (CHAIN), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
- Cross Labs, Cross Compass, Kyoto, Japan
- College of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Lana Sinapayen
- Sony Computer Science Laboratories, Kyoto, Japan
- National Institute for Basic Biology, Okazaki, Japan
| | - Keisuke Suzuki
- Center for Human Nature, Artificial Intelligence and Neuroscience (CHAIN), Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
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3
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de Paz C, Travieso D. A direct comparison of sound and vibration as sources of stimulation for a sensory substitution glove. Cogn Res Princ Implic 2023; 8:41. [PMID: 37402032 DOI: 10.1186/s41235-023-00495-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Accepted: 06/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Sensory substitution devices (SSDs) facilitate the detection of environmental information through enhancement of touch and/or hearing capabilities. Research has demonstrated that several tasks can be successfully completed using acoustic, vibrotactile, and multimodal devices. The suitability of a substituting modality is also mediated by the type of information required to perform the specific task. The present study tested the adequacy of touch and hearing in a grasping task by utilizing a sensory substitution glove. The substituting modalities inform, through increases in stimulation intensity, about the distance between the fingers and the objects. A psychophysical experiment of magnitude estimation was conducted. Forty blindfolded sighted participants discriminated equivalently the intensity of both vibrotactile and acoustic stimulation, although they experienced some difficulty with the more intense stimuli. Additionally, a grasping task involving cylindrical objects of varying diameters, distances and orientations was performed. Thirty blindfolded sighted participants were divided into vibration, sound, or multimodal groups. High performance was achieved (84% correct grasps) with equivalent success rate between groups. Movement variables showed more precision and confidence in the multimodal condition. Through a questionnaire, the multimodal group indicated their preference for using a multimodal SSD in daily life and identified vibration as their primary source of stimulation. These results demonstrate that there is an improvement in performance with specific-purpose SSDs, when the necessary information for a task is identified and coupled with the delivered stimulation. Furthermore, the results suggest that it is possible to achieve functional equivalence between substituting modalities when these previous steps are met.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos de Paz
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - David Travieso
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain.
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4
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James M, Koshkina N, Froese T. From tech to tact: emotion dysregulation in online communication during the COVID-19 pandemic. PHENOMENOLOGY AND THE COGNITIVE SCIENCES 2023:1-32. [PMID: 37363715 PMCID: PMC10233186 DOI: 10.1007/s11097-023-09916-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Recent theorizing argues that online communication technologies provide powerful, although precarious, means of emotional regulation. We develop this understanding further. Drawing on subjective reports collected during periods of imposed social restrictions under COVID-19, we focus on how this precarity is a source of emotional dysregulation. We make our case by organizing responses into five distinct but intersecting dimensions wherein the precarity of this regulation is most relevant: infrastructure, functional use, mindful design (individual and social), and digital tact. Analyzing these reports, along with examples of mediating technologies (i.e., self-view) and common interactive dynamics (e.g., gaze coordination), we tease out how breakdowns along these dimensions are sources of affective dysregulation. We argue that the adequacy of available technological resources and competencies of various kinds matter greatly to the types of emotional experiences one is likely to have online. Further research into online communication technologies as modulators of both our individual and collective well-being is urgently needed, especially as the echoes of the digital push that COVID-19 initiated are set to continue reverberating into the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark James
- Embodied Cognitive Science Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Okinawa, 904-0495 Japan
| | - Natalia Koshkina
- Embodied Cognitive Science Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Okinawa, 904-0495 Japan
| | - Tom Froese
- Embodied Cognitive Science Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, 1919-1 Tancha, Okinawa, 904-0495 Japan
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5
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Huisman G. An Interaction Theory Account of (Mediated) Social Touch. Front Psychol 2022; 13:830193. [PMID: 35592150 PMCID: PMC9110885 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.830193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2021] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Research on mediated social touch (MST) has, either implicitly or explicitly, built on theoretical assumptions regarding social interactions that align with "theory theory" or "simulation theory" of social cognition. However, these approaches struggle to explain MST interactions that occur outside of a laboratory setting. I briefly discuss these approaches and will argue in favor of an alternative, "interaction theory" approach to the study of MST. I make three suggestions for future research to focus on.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gijs Huisman
- Human-Centered Design, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands
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6
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Abramson CI, Levin M. Behaviorist approaches to investigating memory and learning: A primer for synthetic biology and bioengineering. Commun Integr Biol 2021; 14:230-247. [PMID: 34925687 PMCID: PMC8677006 DOI: 10.1080/19420889.2021.2005863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The fields of developmental biology, biomedicine, and artificial life are being revolutionized by advances in synthetic morphology. The next phase of synthetic biology and bioengineering is resulting in the construction of novel organisms (biobots), which exhibit not only morphogenesis and physiology but functional behavior. It is now essential to begin to characterize the behavioral capacity of novel living constructs in terms of their ability to make decisions, form memories, learn from experience, and anticipate future stimuli. These synthetic organisms are highly diverse, and often do not resemble familiar model systems used in behavioral science. Thus, they represent an important context in which to begin to unify and standardize vocabulary and techniques across developmental biology, behavioral ecology, and neuroscience. To facilitate the study of behavior in novel living systems, we present a primer on techniques from the behaviorist tradition that can be used to probe the functions of any organism – natural, chimeric, or synthetic – regardless of the details of their construction or origin. These techniques provide a rich toolkit for advancing the fields of synthetic bioengineering, evolutionary developmental biology, basal cognition, exobiology, and robotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles I Abramson
- Department of Psychology, Laboratory of Comparative Psychology and Behavioral Biology at Oklahoma State University, United States of America
| | - Michael Levin
- Department of Biology, Allen Discovery Center at Tufts University, United States of America
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7
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Favela LH, Amon MJ, Lobo L, Chemero A. Empirical Evidence for Extended Cognitive Systems. Cogn Sci 2021; 45:e13060. [PMID: 34762738 PMCID: PMC9285798 DOI: 10.1111/cogs.13060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2021] [Revised: 08/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
We present an empirically supported theoretical and methodological framework for quantifying the system‐level properties of person‐plus‐tool interactions in order to answer the question: “Are person‐plus‐tool‐systems extended cognitive systems?” Nineteen participants provided perceptual judgments regarding their ability to pass through apertures of various widths while using visual information, blindfolded wielding a rod, or blindfolded wielding an Enactive Torch—a vibrotactile sensory‐substitution device for detecting distance. Monofractal, multifractal, and recurrence quantification analyses were conducted to assess features of person‐plus‐tool movement dynamics. Trials where people utilized the rod or Enactive Torch demonstrated stable “self‐similarity,” or indices of healthy and adaptive single systems, regardless of aperture width, trial order, features of the participants’ judgments, and participant characteristics. Enactive Torch trials exhibited a somewhat greater range of dynamic fluctuations than the rod trials, as well as less movement recurrence, suggesting that the Enactive Torch allowed for more exploratory movements. Findings provide support for the notion that person‐plus‐tool systems can be classified as extended cognitive systems and a framework for quantifying system‐level properties of these systems. Implications concerning future research on extended cognition are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis H Favela
- Department of Philosophy, University of Central Florida.,Cognitive Sciences Program, University of Central Florida
| | - Mary Jean Amon
- School of Modeling, Simulation, and Training, University of Central Florida
| | - Lorena Lobo
- Departamento de Psicología, Universidad a Distancia de Madrid
| | - Anthony Chemero
- Department of Philosophy, University of Cincinnati.,Department of Psychology, University of Cincinnati
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8
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Bongard J, Levin M. Living Things Are Not (20th Century) Machines: Updating Mechanism Metaphors in Light of the Modern Science of Machine Behavior. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.650726] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the most useful metaphors for driving scientific and engineering progress has been that of the “machine.” Much controversy exists about the applicability of this concept in the life sciences. Advances in molecular biology have revealed numerous design principles that can be harnessed to understand cells from an engineering perspective, and build novel devices to rationally exploit the laws of chemistry, physics, and computation. At the same time, organicists point to the many unique features of life, especially at larger scales of organization, which have resisted decomposition analysis and artificial implementation. Here, we argue that much of this debate has focused on inessential aspects of machines – classical properties which have been surpassed by advances in modern Machine Behavior and no longer apply. This emerging multidisciplinary field, at the interface of artificial life, machine learning, and synthetic bioengineering, is highlighting the inadequacy of existing definitions. Key terms such as machine, robot, program, software, evolved, designed, etc., need to be revised in light of technological and theoretical advances that have moved past the dated philosophical conceptions that have limited our understanding of both evolved and designed systems. Moving beyond contingent aspects of historical and current machines will enable conceptual tools that embrace inevitable advances in synthetic and hybrid bioengineering and computer science, toward a framework that identifies essential distinctions between fundamental concepts of devices and living agents. Progress in both theory and practical applications requires the establishment of a novel conception of “machines as they could be,” based on the profound lessons of biology at all scales. We sketch a perspective that acknowledges the remarkable, unique aspects of life to help re-define key terms, and identify deep, essential features of concepts for a future in which sharp boundaries between evolved and designed systems will not exist.
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9
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Life, death, and self: Fundamental questions of primitive cognition viewed through the lens of body plasticity and synthetic organisms. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2020; 564:114-133. [PMID: 33162026 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.10.077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2020] [Revised: 10/25/2020] [Accepted: 10/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Central to the study of cognition is being able to specify the Subject that is making decisions and owning memories and preferences. However, all real cognitive agents are made of parts (such as brains made of cells). The integration of many active subunits into a coherent Self appearing at a larger scale of organization is one of the fundamental questions of evolutionary cognitive science. Typical biological model systems, whether basal or advanced, have a static anatomical structure which obscures important aspects of the mind-body relationship. Recent advances in bioengineering now make it possible to assemble, disassemble, and recombine biological structures at the cell, organ, and whole organism levels. Regenerative biology and controlled chimerism reveal that studies of cognition in intact, "standard", evolved animal bodies are just a narrow slice of a much bigger and as-yet largely unexplored reality: the incredible plasticity of dynamic morphogenesis of biological forms that house and support diverse types of cognition. The ability to produce living organisms in novel configurations makes clear that traditional concepts, such as body, organism, genetic lineage, death, and memory are not as well-defined as commonly thought, and need considerable revision to account for the possible spectrum of living entities. Here, I review fascinating examples of experimental biology illustrating that the boundaries demarcating somatic and cognitive Selves are fluid, providing an opportunity to sharpen inquiries about how evolution exploits physical forces for multi-scale cognition. Developmental (pre-neural) bioelectricity contributes a novel perspective on how the dynamic control of growth and form of the body evolved into sophisticated cognitive capabilities. Most importantly, the development of functional biobots - synthetic living machines with behavioral capacity - provides a roadmap for greatly expanding our understanding of the origin and capacities of cognition in all of its possible material implementations, especially those that emerge de novo, with no lengthy evolutionary history of matching behavioral programs to bodyplan. Viewing fundamental questions through the lens of new, constructed living forms will have diverse impacts, not only in basic evolutionary biology and cognitive science, but also in regenerative medicine of the brain and in artificial intelligence.
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10
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Lloyd-Esenkaya T, Lloyd-Esenkaya V, O'Neill E, Proulx MJ. Multisensory inclusive design with sensory substitution. COGNITIVE RESEARCH-PRINCIPLES AND IMPLICATIONS 2020; 5:37. [PMID: 32770416 PMCID: PMC7415050 DOI: 10.1186/s41235-020-00240-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2019] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Sensory substitution techniques are perceptual and cognitive phenomena used to represent one sensory form with an alternative. Current applications of sensory substitution techniques are typically focused on the development of assistive technologies whereby visually impaired users can acquire visual information via auditory and tactile cross-modal feedback. But despite their evident success in scientific research and furthering theory development in cognition, sensory substitution techniques have not yet gained widespread adoption within sensory-impaired populations. Here we argue that shifting the focus from assistive to mainstream applications may resolve some of the current issues regarding the use of sensory substitution devices to improve outcomes for those with disabilities. This article provides a tutorial guide on how to use research into multisensory processing and sensory substitution techniques from the cognitive sciences to design new inclusive cross-modal displays. A greater focus on developing inclusive mainstream applications could lead to innovative technologies that could be enjoyed by every person.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tayfun Lloyd-Esenkaya
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK.,Department of Computer Science, University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | | | - Eamonn O'Neill
- Department of Computer Science, University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | - Michael J Proulx
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, University of Bath, Bath, BA2 7AY, UK. .,Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK.
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11
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Froese T, Ortiz-Garin GU. Where Is the Action in Perception? An Exploratory Study With a Haptic Sensory Substitution Device. Front Psychol 2020; 11:809. [PMID: 32411061 PMCID: PMC7198821 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Enactive cognitive science (ECS) and ecological psychology (EP) agree that active movement is important for perception, but they remain ambiguous regarding the precise role of agency. EP has focused on the notion of sensorimotor invariants, according to which bodily movements play an instrumental role in perception. ECS has focused on the notion of sensorimotor contingencies, which goes beyond an instrumental role because skillfully regulated movements are claimed to play a constitutive role. We refer to these two hypotheses as instrumental agency and constitutive agency, respectively. Evidence comes from a variety of fields, including neural, behavioral, and phenomenological research, but so far with confounds that prevent an experimental distinction between these hypotheses. Here we advance the debate by proposing a novel double-participant setup that aims to isolate agency as the key variable that distinguishes bodily movement in active and passive conditions of perception. We pilot this setup with a psychological study of width discrimination using the Enactive Torch, a haptic sensory substitution device. There was no evidence favoring the stronger hypothesis of constitutive agency over instrumental agency. However, we caution that during debriefing several participants reported using cognitive strategies that did not rely on spatial perception. We conclude that this approach is a viable direction for future research, but that greater care is required to establish and confirm the desired modality of first-person experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tom Froese
- Embodied Cognitive Science Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University, Okinawa, Japan
| | - Guillermo U Ortiz-Garin
- Laboratory 25, Department of Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
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12
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Segundo-Ortin M, Heras-Escribano M, Raja V. Ecological psychology is radical enough: A reply to radical enactivists. PHILOSOPHICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/09515089.2019.1668238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Segundo-Ortin
- Faculty of Law, Humanities and the Arts, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia
| | - Manuel Heras-Escribano
- Department of Logic and Philosophy of Science, University of the Basque Country, Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain
| | - Vicente Raja
- Rotman Institute of Philosophy, Western University, London, Canada
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13
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Favela LH, Riley MA, Shockley K, Chemero A. Perceptually Equivalent Judgments Made Visually and via Haptic Sensory-Substitution Devices. ECOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2018. [DOI: 10.1080/10407413.2018.1473712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Luis H. Favela
- Department of Philosophy and Cognitive Sciences Program, University of Central Florida
| | | | | | - Anthony Chemero
- Department of Philosophy and Department of Psychology, University of Cincinnati
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14
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Hamilton-Fletcher G, Wright TD, Ward J. Cross-Modal Correspondences Enhance Performance on a Colour-to-Sound Sensory Substitution Device. Multisens Res 2018; 29:337-63. [PMID: 29384607 DOI: 10.1163/22134808-00002519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Visual sensory substitution devices (SSDs) can represent visual characteristics through distinct patterns of sound, allowing a visually impaired user access to visual information. Previous SSDs have avoided colour and when they do encode colour, have assigned sounds to colour in a largely unprincipled way. This study introduces a new tablet-based SSD termed the ‘Creole’ (so called because it combines tactile scanning with image sonification) and a new algorithm for converting colour to sound that is based on established cross-modal correspondences (intuitive mappings between different sensory dimensions). To test the utility of correspondences, we examined the colour–sound associative memory and object recognition abilities of sighted users who had their device either coded in line with or opposite to sound–colour correspondences. Improved colour memory and reduced colour-errors were made by users who had the correspondence-based mappings. Interestingly, the colour–sound mappings that provided the highest improvements during the associative memory task also saw the greatest gains for recognising realistic objects that also featured these colours, indicating a transfer of abilities from memory to recognition. These users were also marginally better at matching sounds to images varying in luminance, even though luminance was coded identically across the different versions of the device. These findings are discussed with relevance for both colour and correspondences for sensory substitution use.
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15
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Davis N, Hsiao C, Singh KY, Lin B, Magerko B. Quantifying Collaboration with a Co-Creative Drawing Agent. ACM T INTERACT INTEL 2017. [DOI: 10.1145/3009981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
This article describes a new technique for quantifying creative collaboration and applies it to the user study evaluation of a co-creative drawing agent. We present a cognitive framework called
creative sense-making
that provides a new method to visualize and quantify the interaction dynamics of creative collaboration, for example, the rhythm of interaction, style of turn taking, and the manner in which participants are mutually making sense of a situation. The creative sense-making framework includes a qualitative coding technique, interaction coding software, an analysis method, and the cognitive theory behind these applications. This framework and analysis method are applied to empirical studies of the
Drawing Apprentice
collaborative sketching system to compare human collaboration with a co-creative AI agent vs. a Wizard of Oz setup. The analysis demonstrates how the proposed technique can be used to analyze interaction data using continuous functions (e.g., integrations and moving averages) to measure and evaluate how collaborations unfold through time.
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Affiliation(s)
- N. Davis
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA
| | - C. Hsiao
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA
| | - K. Y. Singh
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA
| | - B. Lin
- Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA
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16
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17
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Schumann F, O'Regan JK. Sensory augmentation: integration of an auditory compass signal into human perception of space. Sci Rep 2017; 7:42197. [PMID: 28195187 PMCID: PMC5307328 DOI: 10.1038/srep42197] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2016] [Accepted: 01/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Bio-mimetic approaches to restoring sensory function show great promise in that they rapidly produce perceptual experience, but have the disadvantage of being invasive. In contrast, sensory substitution approaches are non-invasive, but may lead to cognitive rather than perceptual experience. Here we introduce a new non-invasive approach that leads to fast and truly perceptual experience like bio-mimetic techniques. Instead of building on existing circuits at the neural level as done in bio-mimetics, we piggy-back on sensorimotor contingencies at the stimulus level. We convey head orientation to geomagnetic North, a reliable spatial relation not normally sensed by humans, by mimicking sensorimotor contingencies of distal sounds via head-related transfer functions. We demonstrate rapid and long-lasting integration into the perception of self-rotation. Short training with amplified or reduced rotation gain in the magnetic signal can expand or compress the perceived extent of vestibular self-rotation, even with the magnetic signal absent in the test. We argue that it is the reliability of the magnetic signal that allows vestibular spatial recalibration, and the coding scheme mimicking sensorimotor contingencies of distal sounds that permits fast integration. Hence we propose that contingency-mimetic feedback has great potential for creating sensory augmentation devices that achieve fast and genuinely perceptual experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank Schumann
- Laboratoire Psychologie de la Perception - CNRS UMR 8242, Université Paris Descartes, Paris, France
| | - J Kevin O'Regan
- Laboratoire Psychologie de la Perception - CNRS UMR 8242, Université Paris Descartes, Paris, France
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18
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Spiers AJ, Dollar AM. Design and Evaluation of Shape-Changing Haptic Interfaces for Pedestrian Navigation Assistance. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON HAPTICS 2017; 10:17-28. [PMID: 27337726 DOI: 10.1109/toh.2016.2582481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Shape-changing interfaces are a category of device capable of altering their form in order to facilitate communication of information. In this work, we present a shape-changing device that has been designed for navigation assistance. 'The Animotus' (previously, 'The Haptic Sandwich' ), resembles a cube with an articulated upper half that is able to rotate and extend (translate) relative to the bottom half, which is fixed in the user's grasp. This rotation and extension, generally felt via the user's fingers, is used to represent heading and proximity to navigational targets. The device is intended to provide an alternative to screen or audio based interfaces for visually impaired, hearing impaired, deafblind, and sighted pedestrians. The motivation and design of the haptic device is presented, followed by the results of a navigation experiment that aimed to determine the role of each device DOF, in terms of facilitating guidance. An additional device, 'The Haptic Taco', which modulated its volume in response to target proximity (negating directional feedback), was also compared. Results indicate that while the heading (rotational) DOF benefited motion efficiency, the proximity (translational) DOF benefited velocity. Combination of the two DOF improved overall performance. The volumetric Taco performed comparably to the Animotus' extension DOF.
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Wagman JB, Hajnal A. Use your head! Perception of action possibilities by means of an object attached to the head. Exp Brain Res 2015; 234:829-36. [PMID: 26645311 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-015-4509-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2015] [Accepted: 11/18/2015] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Perceiving any environmental property requires spontaneously assembling a smart perceptual instrument-a task-specific measurement device assembled across potentially independent anatomical units. Previous research has shown that to a large degree, perception of a given environmental property is anatomically independent. We attempted to provide stronger evidence for this proposal by investigating perception by an organization of anatomical and inert components that likely requires the spontaneous assembly of a novel smart perceptual instrument-a rod attached to the head. Specifically, we compared cephalic and manual perception of whether an inclined surface affords standing on. In both conditions, perception reflected the action capabilities of the perceiver and not the appendage used to wield the rod. Such results provide stronger evidence for anatomical independence of perception within a given perceptual system and highlight that flexible task-specific detection units can be assembled across units that span the body and inert objects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey B Wagman
- Department of Psychology, Illinois State University, Campus Box 4620, Normal, IL, 61790, USA.
| | - Alen Hajnal
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive #5025, Hattiesburg, MS, 39046, USA
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Abstract
The research described in the present article was implemented to define the locations of two World War II shipwrecks, the German raider Kormoran, and the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney. The paper describes the long and complex trail that led through inefficient oceanographic prediction to ambiguous historical prediction involving a single report and on to precise cognitive prediction based on nine reports from more than 70 survivors, a process that yielded a single target position or "mean" just 2.7 NM (nautical miles) from the wreck of Kormoran. Prediction for the position of the wreck of Sydney opened with wishful thinking that she had somehow reached the coast more than 100 NM away when cognitive analysis of the survivor's reports actually provided the basis for accurate prediction in a position near to the wreck of Kormoran. In the account provided below, the focus on cognitive procedures emerged from, first, a review of a sample of the shipwreck hunts, and, second, growing awareness of the extraordinarily rich database available for this search, and the extent to which it was open to cognitive analysis. This review touches on both the trans-disciplinary and the cognitive or intra-disciplinary issues that so challenged the political entities responsible for supervising of the search for the wrecks of Kormoran and Sydney. One of the theoretical questions that emerged from these debate concerns the model of expertise advanced by Collins (2013). The decomposability of alleged forms of expertise is revealed as a fundamental problem for research projects that might or might not benefit from trans-disciplinary research. Where expertise can be decomposed for operational purposes, the traditional dividing lines between experts and novices, and fools for that matter, are much harder to discern, and require advanced and scientifically informed review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kim Kirsner
- School of Medicine, University of Notre Dame Fremantle, WA, Australia
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Kim Y, Harders M, Gassert R. Identification of Vibrotactile Patterns Encoding Obstacle Distance Information. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON HAPTICS 2015; 8:298-305. [PMID: 25807569 DOI: 10.1109/toh.2015.2415213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Delivering distance information of nearby obstacles from sensors embedded in a white cane-in addition to the intrinsic mechanical feedback from the cane-can aid the visually impaired in ambulating independently. Haptics is a common modality for conveying such information to cane users, typically in the form of vibrotactile signals. In this context, we investigated the effect of tactile rendering methods, tactile feedback configurations and directions of tactile flow on the identification of obstacle distance. Three tactile rendering methods with temporal variation only, spatio-temporal variation and spatial/temporal/intensity variation were investigated for two vibration feedback configurations. Results showed a significant interaction between tactile rendering method and feedback configuration. Spatio-temporal variation generally resulted in high correct identification rates for both feedback configurations. In the case of the four-finger vibration, tactile rendering with spatial/temporal/intensity variation also resulted in high distance identification rate. Further, participants expressed their preference for the four-finger vibration over the single-finger vibration in a survey. Both preferred rendering methods with spatio-temporal variation and spatial/temporal/intensity variation for the four-finger vibration could convey obstacle distance information with low workload. Overall, the presented findings provide valuable insights and guidance for the design of haptic displays for electronic travel aids for the visually impaired.
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Bermejo F, Arias C. Sensory substitution: an approach to the experimental study of perception / Sustitución sensorial: un abordaje para el estudio experimental de la percepción. STUDIES IN PSYCHOLOGY 2015. [DOI: 10.1080/02109395.2015.1026118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022] Open
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Fulkerson M. Rethinking the senses and their interactions: the case for sensory pluralism. Front Psychol 2014; 5:1426. [PMID: 25540630 PMCID: PMC4261717 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.01426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2014] [Accepted: 11/22/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
I argue for sensory pluralism. This is the view that there are many forms of sensory interaction and unity, and no single category that classifies them all. In other words, sensory interactions do not form a single natural kind. This view suggests that how we classify sensory systems (and the experiences they generate) partly depends on our explanatory purposes. I begin with a detailed discussion of the issue as it arises for our understanding of thermal perception, followed by a general account and defense of sensory pluralism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Fulkerson
- Department of Philosophy, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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Bio-machine Hybrid Technology: A Theoretical Assessment and Some Suggestions for Improved Future Design. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s13347-013-0130-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Buhrmann T, Di Paolo EA, Barandiaran X. A dynamical systems account of sensorimotor contingencies. Front Psychol 2013; 4:285. [PMID: 23750143 PMCID: PMC3664438 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2013] [Accepted: 05/03/2013] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
According to the sensorimotor approach, perception is a form of embodied know-how, constituted by lawful regularities in the sensorimotor flow or in sensorimotor contingencies (SMCs) in an active and situated agent. Despite the attention that this approach has attracted, there have been few attempts to define its core concepts formally. In this paper, we examine the idea of SMCs and argue that its use involves notions that need to be distinguished. We introduce four distinct kinds of SMCs, which we define operationally. These are the notions of sensorimotor environment (open-loop motor-induced sensory variations), sensorimotor habitat (closed-loop sensorimotor trajectories), sensorimotor coordination (reliable sensorimotor patterns playing a functional role), and sensorimotor strategy (normative organization of sensorimotor coordinations). We make use of a minimal dynamical model of visually guided categorization to test the explanatory value of the different kinds of SMCs. Finally, we discuss the impact of our definitions on the conceptual development and empirical as well as model-based testing of the claims of the sensorimotor approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Buhrmann
- IAS-Research Centre for Life, Mind, and Society, UPV/EHU, University of the Basque Country, San Sebastian, Spain
| | - Ezequiel Alejandro Di Paolo
- IAS-Research Centre for Life, Mind, and Society, UPV/EHU, University of the Basque Country, San Sebastian, Spain
- Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
- Centre for Computational Neuroscience and Robotics, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK
| | - Xabier Barandiaran
- IAS-Research Centre for Life, Mind, and Society, UPV/EHU, University of the Basque Country, San Sebastian, Spain
- Department of Philosophy, UPV/EHU, University of the Basque Country, San Sebastian, Spain
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Using Human–Computer Interfaces to Investigate ‘Mind-As-It-Could-Be’ from the First-Person Perspective. Cognit Comput 2012. [DOI: 10.1007/s12559-012-9153-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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