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While Dr. Herbert (or Dr. Dot as some refer to him) has studied various types of
symmetry detection, our current focus is bilateral symmetry. We see bilateral symmetry everywhere
we look. In fact, most of the time we prefer looking at things that are bilaterally
symmetric. It is pretty well known that the salience of bilateral symmetry varies depending on the
orientation of the symmetry axis. It is not clear why this orientation anisotropy exists, although
it has been suggested the structure of the visual system might underly the effect (see Mach and Braitenberg for a discussion of this idea).
We have been conducting a series of experiments using dot patterns
(hence, Dr. Dot) that are either bilaterally symmetric or asymmetric.
Using behavioral and electrophysiological measures (ERPs), we are investigating how the amount of
practice, the sequencing of this practice, and the ordering of the distribution of orientations
affect bilateral symmetry detection.
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