Perception, Sensation, Cognition and Action in Humans

Description

Background: When people see and hear, the brain changes signals from the eyes and ears into perceptions and thoughts. No one fully understands how this happens. Researchers want to explore how healthy brains process sights and sounds. Objectives: To explore how people understand what they see and hear when the brain processes sights and sounds. Eligibility: Participants aged 13-65 who have at least 20/40 vision in at least one eye and do not use a hearing aid. Design: Some participants will take tests online anonymously. They will do computer tasks related to colors and behavior. In-person participants will be screened with medical history and physical exam. They will complete questionnaires and vision and hearing tests. Participants will plan how many testing sessions they will have and when. Sessions last 2-5 hours. They may include: * Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Magnets and radio waves to take pictures of the brain. Participants will lie on a table that slides in and out of a tube. They will do a task during the scan. * Magnetoencephalography: Records magnetic field changes from brain activity. Participants will sit or lie down. A cone will be lowered onto their head. They may do a task during the test. * Electromyography: Electrodes attached to the skin will measure the electrical activity of muscles. * Electroencephalogram: Electrodes on the scalp will record brain waves. * Electrocardiography: Electrodes on the chest will record heart electrical activity. * Tests of memory, attention, thinking, vision, and hearing. * Eye Tracking: Cameras will follow participants eye movements. They may wear a cap with infrared cameras in front of their eyes. During the sessions, participants vital signs may be monitored.

Conditions

Normal Physiology

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Study Overview

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Study Details

Study overview

Background: When people see and hear, the brain changes signals from the eyes and ears into perceptions and thoughts. No one fully understands how this happens. Researchers want to explore how healthy brains process sights and sounds. Objectives: To explore how people understand what they see and hear when the brain processes sights and sounds. Eligibility: Participants aged 13-65 who have at least 20/40 vision in at least one eye and do not use a hearing aid. Design: Some participants will take tests online anonymously. They will do computer tasks related to colors and behavior. In-person participants will be screened with medical history and physical exam. They will complete questionnaires and vision and hearing tests. Participants will plan how many testing sessions they will have and when. Sessions last 2-5 hours. They may include: * Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Magnets and radio waves to take pictures of the brain. Participants will lie on a table that slides in and out of a tube. They will do a task during the scan. * Magnetoencephalography: Records magnetic field changes from brain activity. Participants will sit or lie down. A cone will be lowered onto their head. They may do a task during the test. * Electromyography: Electrodes attached to the skin will measure the electrical activity of muscles. * Electroencephalogram: Electrodes on the scalp will record brain waves. * Electrocardiography: Electrodes on the chest will record heart electrical activity. * Tests of memory, attention, thinking, vision, and hearing. * Eye Tracking: Cameras will follow participants eye movements. They may wear a cap with infrared cameras in front of their eyes. During the sessions, participants vital signs may be monitored.

Perception, Sensation, Cognition and Action in Humans

Perception, Sensation, Cognition and Action in Humans

Condition
Normal Physiology
Intervention / Treatment

-

Contacts and Locations

Bethesda

National Eye Institute (NEI), Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892

Bethesda

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

For general information about clinical research, read Learn About Studies.

Eligibility Criteria

  • * is in good general health;
  • * is between 18 and 65 years old;
  • * has visual acuity of 20/40 in at least one eye (corrected with contact lenses is okay);
  • * has no hearing impairment requiring a hearing aid.
  • * is capable of understanding the procedures and requirements of this study;
  • * is willing and able to provide his/her own informed consent.
  • * is in good general health;
  • * is between 18 and 65 years old;
  • * is capable of understanding the procedures and requirements of this study;
  • * is willing and able to provide his/her own informed consent.
  • * is between 13 and 65 years old;
  • * is in general good health;
  • * is capable of understanding the procedures and requirements of this study;
  • * is willing and able to provide his/her own informed consent.
  • * Participant has serious vision or hearing problems; for some sub-studies focused on mechanisms of normal color vision, subjects who are colorblind will also be excluded;
  • * Participants without consent capacity will not be enrolled;
  • * Participant has a debilitating neurological disorder (examples include, but are not limited to: brain tumor, epilepsy, Alzheimer s Disease, Parkinson s Disease, multiple sclerosis) or a psychiatric disorder (examples include, but are not limited to: schizophrenia, clinical anxiety, severe depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), schizophrenia). Patients with non-debilitating conditions such as prosopagnosia, prosopometamorphosia (PMO), or aphantasia will have their conditions noted but will not be excluded);
  • * Participant has had a serious head injury or has a history of brain surgery. Head injury is defined as an injury to the brain from some external force resulting in loss of consciousness of 30 minutes or more;
  • * Participant has psychoactive drug or alcohol abuse or dependence in the past three months, as determined by the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST), except nicotine and caffeine. A score of 6 or greater on the DAST will be considered exclusionary. The effects of nicotine and caffeine in neuroimaging are attenuated if participants do not smoke or consume caffeine 2-3 hours before the scan session (Duncan and Northoff, 2013); Over-the-counter medication/herbals will not be a criterion for exclusion;
  • * Participant is an NEI employee within the Perception, Cognition and Action section.
  • * Do not have access to compatible equipment. For example, smartphone screens are too small to be used. Amazon MTurk will outline which devices may be used.
  • * Are unwilling to allow permission for JavaScript to run on the site and disable any script blockers.
  • * Are unwilling to agree to Amazon MTurk's terms and conditions.

Ages Eligible for Study

13 Years to 65 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Collaborators and Investigators

National Eye Institute (NEI),

Bevil Conway, Ph.D., PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR, National Eye Institute (NEI)

Study Record Dates

2027-12-31