Perception of Time influences Spatial Orientation
Research spotlight (text reproduced from the BCCN Newsletter, June 2007)
Scientists from Munich examined the role that perception of time plays in estimating distances.
There is no doubt that visual stimuli play an important role in spatial orientation: We find our way in a city, because we recognise houses and roads. But what is the role of the perception of time? Do we memorise distances based on the time we need to cover them? From everyday life we are familiar with the phenomenon that we think we must have passed an exit “ages ago”. Recently, scientists from the group of Stefan Glasauer from the Munich Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience and the University Hospital Munich Grosshadern, together with colleagues from Rome, have been able to demonstrate that our perception of time indeed influences spatial estimates.
When we talk to each other or concentrate on doing something, time seems to pass faster than when we wait at a bus stop. The fact that our own activity influences the perception of time is not only a daily experience, but also scientifically proven. When subjects solve mathematical problems while trying to keep track of the passage of time, the act of calculating disturbs their sense of time. When they subsequently are asked to reproduce the time which has passed without calculating, the reproduced duration is too short. Scientists in Glasauer’s group exploited this phenomenon to examine the role of subjective time in the reproduction of movement.
To begin with, Glasauer and his colleagues tested the ability of subjects to reproduce different movements. They were given three different tasks: to reproduce as accurately as possible 1) a previously walked distance while being blindfolded, 2) a passive turn on a swivel chair, or 3) an active locomotor movement on a treadmill. They managed this very well in most cases.
The situation was quite different, when the subjects’ perception of time was disturbed because they were simultaneously solving a mathematical task. They were asked to count aloud backwards in sevens, either while experiencing the movements or while trying to reproduce them. In all tests, it was shown that not only the perceived time, but also the perceived space became distorted, when the subjects calculated while performing the tasks. If the subjects calculated while learning the task, the reproduced movement was too short both in duration and distance. In contrast, if they only calculated while repeating the task, subjects walked or turned longer and further than they should.
In the different experiments the subjects used different cues to evaluate their movements. During rotation on the swivel chair, their sense of balance and visual stimuli played a role; while they walked on the treadmill or on ground with eyes closed, the knowledge and perception of self-generated movement was important. Since the perception of space changed in the same way in all the experiments, the scientists concluded that a general timing mechanism underlies their findings. Not only does time pass subjectively more quickly when we are busy, but the altered perception of time also affects our orientation in space.
Original publication:
Glasauer S., Schneider E., Grasso R., Ivanenko Y.P. (2007) - Space-time relativity in self-motion reproduction. J Neurophysiol. 97:451-61.
There is no doubt that visual stimuli play an important role in spatial orientation: We find our way in a city, because we recognise houses and roads. But what is the role of the perception of time? Do we memorise distances based on the time we need to cover them? From everyday life we are familiar with the phenomenon that we think we must have passed an exit “ages ago”. Recently, scientists from the group of Stefan Glasauer from the Munich Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience and the University Hospital Munich Grosshadern, together with colleagues from Rome, have been able to demonstrate that our perception of time indeed influences spatial estimates.
When we talk to each other or concentrate on doing something, time seems to pass faster than when we wait at a bus stop. The fact that our own activity influences the perception of time is not only a daily experience, but also scientifically proven. When subjects solve mathematical problems while trying to keep track of the passage of time, the act of calculating disturbs their sense of time. When they subsequently are asked to reproduce the time which has passed without calculating, the reproduced duration is too short. Scientists in Glasauer’s group exploited this phenomenon to examine the role of subjective time in the reproduction of movement.
To begin with, Glasauer and his colleagues tested the ability of subjects to reproduce different movements. They were given three different tasks: to reproduce as accurately as possible 1) a previously walked distance while being blindfolded, 2) a passive turn on a swivel chair, or 3) an active locomotor movement on a treadmill. They managed this very well in most cases.
The situation was quite different, when the subjects’ perception of time was disturbed because they were simultaneously solving a mathematical task. They were asked to count aloud backwards in sevens, either while experiencing the movements or while trying to reproduce them. In all tests, it was shown that not only the perceived time, but also the perceived space became distorted, when the subjects calculated while performing the tasks. If the subjects calculated while learning the task, the reproduced movement was too short both in duration and distance. In contrast, if they only calculated while repeating the task, subjects walked or turned longer and further than they should.
In the different experiments the subjects used different cues to evaluate their movements. During rotation on the swivel chair, their sense of balance and visual stimuli played a role; while they walked on the treadmill or on ground with eyes closed, the knowledge and perception of self-generated movement was important. Since the perception of space changed in the same way in all the experiments, the scientists concluded that a general timing mechanism underlies their findings. Not only does time pass subjectively more quickly when we are busy, but the altered perception of time also affects our orientation in space.
Original publication:
Glasauer S., Schneider E., Grasso R., Ivanenko Y.P. (2007) - Space-time relativity in self-motion reproduction. J Neurophysiol. 97:451-61.
Contact:
Dr. S. Glasauer
Center for Sensorimotor Research
Department of Neurology
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Marchioninistraße 23
81377 München