Recognizing Facial Slivers
Name
jocn_a_01265.pdf
Description
Published version
Size
4.23 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
1d054740f37e2ad245f01f53e9188535
Author(s)
Gilad-Gutnick, Sharon
Harmatz, Elia Samuel
Tsourides, Kleovoulos
Yovel, Galit
Sinha, Pawan
Date Issued
May 2018
Journal
Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience
Publisher
MIT Press - Journals
Citation
Gilad-Gutnick, Sharon et al. "Recognizing Facial Slivers." Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 30, 7 (July 2018): 951-962 © 2018 Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
We report here an unexpectedly robust ability of healthy human individuals (n = 40) to recognize extremely distorted needle-like facial images, challenging the well-entrenched notion that veridical spatial configuration is necessary for extracting facial identity. In face identification tasks of parametrically compressed internal and external features, we found that the sum of performances on each cue falls significantly short of performance on full faces, despite the equal visual information available from both measures (with full faces essentially being a superposition of internal and external features). We hypothesize that this large deficit stems from the use of positional information about how the internal features are positioned relative to the external features. To test this, we systematically changed the relations between internal and external features and found preferential encoding of vertical but not horizontal spatial relationships in facial representations (n = 20). Finally, we employ magnetoencephalography imaging (n = 20) to demonstrate a close mapping between the behavioral psychometric curve and the amplitude of the M250 face familiarity, but not M170 face-sensitive evoked response field component, providing evidence that the M250 can be modulated by faces that are perceptually identifiable, irrespective of extreme distortions to the face’s veridical configuration. We theorize that the tolerance to compressive distortions has evolved from the need to recognize faces across varying viewpoints. Our findings help clarify the important, but poorly defined, concept of facial configuration and also enable an association between behavioral performance and previously reported neural correlates of face perception.
Subjects
Cognitive Neuroscience
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences
Terms of Use
Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use.
Persistent DSpace Link
DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn_a_01265
