Reading with rods: the superiority of central vision for rapid reading.

PURPOSE To investigate why the central portion of the visual field is normally the optimal region for pattern recognition. METHOD The study uses a reading paradigm in which the text can only be seen with rod vision. Reading rates were measured as the text was positioned in different parts of the visual field. RESULTS Observers obtained the highest reading rates when rod-generated images were viewed at or near the fovea. CONCLUSION The superiority of the central field for reading is neither linked to some exclusive property of the cone visual system, nor is it primarily related to visual sensitivity or spatiotemporal resolution. The superiority of reading in the central field is associated with some aspect of the visual cortical processes.

[1]  R. Hess,et al.  Regional variation of contrast sensitivity across the retina of the achromat: sensitivity of human rod vision. , 1987, The Journal of physiology.

[2]  D. J. Brown,et al.  Peripheral visual acuity. , 1966, Archives of ophthalmology.

[3]  E Peli,et al.  Reading with a macular scotoma. II. Retinal locus for scanning text. , 1987, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[4]  J. Robson,et al.  Application of fourier analysis to the visibility of gratings , 1968, The Journal of physiology.

[5]  L. Arend,et al.  Reading with a macular scotoma. I. Retinal location of scotoma and fixation area. , 1986, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[6]  P. Lennie,et al.  Shared pathways for rod and cone vision , 1986, Vision Research.

[7]  Ralph J. Jensen,et al.  Rod pathways in mammalian retinae , 1990, Trends in Neurosciences.

[8]  A. Hendrickson,et al.  Human photoreceptor topography , 1990, The Journal of comparative neurology.

[9]  A. Stockman,et al.  Slow and fast pathways in the human rod visual system: electrophysiology and psychophysics. , 1991, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics and image science.

[10]  D. G. Green,et al.  Optical and retinal factors affecting visual resolution. , 1965, The Journal of physiology.

[11]  B. Boycott,et al.  Cortical magnification factor and the ganglion cell density of the primate retina , 1989, Nature.

[12]  Ivar Lie,et al.  Visual detection and resolution as a function of retinal locus , 1980, Vision Research.

[13]  G. Legge,et al.  The importance of eye movements in the analysis of simple patterns , 1986, Vision Research.

[14]  Gordon E. Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading—II. Low vision , 1985, Vision Research.

[15]  S. Whittaker,et al.  Scanning characters and reading with a central scotoma. , 1985, American journal of optometry and physiological optics.

[16]  P. Lennie,et al.  Spatial frequency analysis in the visual system. , 1985, Annual review of neuroscience.

[17]  D. Macleod,et al.  Rod photoreceptors detect rapid flicker. , 1977, Science.

[18]  G E Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading. IV. Wavelength effects in normal and low vision. , 1986, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics and image science.

[19]  John Wilson Black.  The Use of words in context : the vocabulary of college students , 1988 .

[20]  J J Koenderink,et al.  Perimetry of contrast detection thresholds of moving spatial sine wave patterns. IV. The influence of the mean retinal illuminance. , 1978, Journal of the Optical Society of America.

[21]  A. Chaparro,et al.  Reading with the rod visual system. , 1989, Applied optics.

[22]  G Wald,et al.  HUMAN VISION AND THE SPECTRUM. , 1945, Science.

[23]  K. Mullen,et al.  Colour vision as a post-receptoral specialization of the central visual field , 1991, Vision Research.

[24]  L L SLOAN,et al.  Peripheral visual acuity with special reference to scotopic illumination. , 1947, American journal of ophthalmology.