Time perception

About: Time perception is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 1918 publications have been published within this topic receiving 87020 citations.

A Population-Based Model of the Temporal Memory in the Hippocampus.

Abstract: Spatial and temporal dimensions are fundamental for orientation, adaptation, and survival of organisms. Hippocampus has been identified as the main neuroanatomical structure involved both in space and time perception and their internal representation. Dorsal hippocampus lesions showed a leftward shift (toward shorter durations) in peak-interval procedures, whereas ventral lesions shifted the peak time toward longer durations. We previously explained hippocampus lesion experimental findings by assuming a topological map model of the hippocampus with shorter durations memorized ventrally and longer durations more dorsal. Here we suggested a possible connection between the abstract topological maps model of the hippocampus that stored reinforcement times in a spatially ordered memory register and the "time cells" of the hippocampus. In this new model, the time cells provide a uniformly distributed time basis that covers the entire to-be-learned temporal duration. We hypothesized that the topological map of the hippocampus stores the weights that reflect the contribution of each time cell to the average temporal field that determines the behavioral response. The temporal distance between the to-be-learned criterion time and the time of the peak activity of each time cell provides the error signal that determines the corresponding weight correction. Long-term potentiation/depression could enhance/weaken the weights associated to the time cells that peak closer/farther to the criterion time. A coincidence detector mechanism, possibly under the control of the dopaminergic system, could be involved in our suggested error minimization and learning algorithm.

Is there a time quantum in duration experience

Abstract: Modem psychological theory states that the transmission of sensory information, as well as several aspects of motor behavior, shows periodic characteristics between 20 and 200 msec. In many cases, these time constants are derived from multimodal distributions of, for example, reaction times (Lansing, 1957), visual scanning times (Augenstine, 1955), and eye movements (Latour, 1966). The findings are interpreted as evidence for a sensory and/or motor integration period, which is considered a psychological time constant and described in terms of one of three specific theories: the discrete nonoverlapping moment (Stroud, 1955), the discrete overlapping time unit (Robinson, 1966), and the continuous running-average sampling period (Uttal, 1970). Generally speaking, psychological time is not viewed as an infinitely divisible factor, but it bears the character of a finite integration period or is built up on the basis of some final quantum. The 'quantum' theories also penetrated time perception as a more or less separate field of research. Within the framework of Treisman's model, it is assumed that the apparent duration of an interval arises from the integration of finite, nonoverlapping periods generated by an internal clock ('pulse generator'). The accelerations and decelerations of subjective time with respect to physical time are caused by speed fluctuations of the pulse generator as a function of arousal level (Treisman, 1963; see also Vroon and Van Boxtel, 1972). Creelman (1962) used the concept of a time quantum in a model describing the ability to discriminate between short intervals, and Michon (1965, 1967) directly demonstrated the existence of it in time perception.

Context-Dependent Neural Modulations in the Perception of Duration.

Abstract: Recent neuroimaging studies have revealed that distinct brain networks are recruited in the perception of sub- and supra-second timescales, whereas psychophysical studies have suggested that there are common or continuous mechanisms for perceiving these two durations. The present study aimed to elucidate the neural implementation of such continuity by examining the neural correlates of peri-second timing. We measured neural activity during a duration reproduction task using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Our results replicate the findings of previous studies in showing that separate neural networks are recruited for sub-versus supra-second time perception: motor systems including the motor cortex and the supplementary motor area for sub-second perception, and the frontal, parietal, and auditory cortical areas for supra-second perception. We further found that the peri-second perception activated both the sub- and supra-second networks, and that the timing system that processed duration perception in previous trials was more involved in subsequent peri-second processing. These results indicate that the sub- and supra-second timing systems overlap at around 1 s, and cooperate to optimally encode duration based on the hysteresis of previous trials.

An Evaluation of the Effect of Auditory Emotional Stimuli on Interval Timing

Abstract: Emotions modulate cognitive processes, including those involved in the perception of time. A number of studies have demonstrated that the emotional modulation of interval timing can be described in terms of an attentional or an arousal-based mechanism, depending on the exact task setup. In this paper, two temporal generalization experiments with auditory emotional stimuli as distractors are presented. These experiments are modeled after the work by Lui et al. ( PLoS One , 2011, 6 , e218292011) who, using visual distractors, provided evidence for an attentional account of emotion-regulated modulation of the perception of time. Experiment 1 replicates the findings of Lui et al., and thus generalizes their work to auditory stimuli. However, Experiment 2, in setup highly similar to Experiment 1, failed to find any effects of emotional modulation on interval timing. These results indicate that emotional effects on interval timing, although often reported, might not be as ubiquitous as earlier research has (implicitly) suggested.