Motion processing, adaptation and aftereffects: A review

Abstract

The ability to extract motion is one of the most persistent properties of visual systems throughout the animal kingdom. From the retina to higher cortical areas, cells showing motion dependent responses have been identified. When faced with prolonged stimulation of the same motion signal, most of these cells can change their response properties, an effect know as adaptation. This review focuses on adaptation to motion and its perceptual consequence: the motion aftereffect. How do different motion sensitive areas adapt and how does adaptation change responses over time are the two major themes of this manuscript. The studies reviewed will be used to evaluate current theories on the motion aftereffect. We argue that the motion aftereffect may rely on different mechanisms for different motion sensitive brain areas with a possible role for feedback between these areas. Also, we will argue that adaptation is a continuous process serving to equate sensitivity to different motion signal to keep overall sensitivity maximal, in effect, continuously recalibrating the visual system to the current visual environment.