Temporal summation in an acuity task at different energy levels. A study of the determinants of summation.

In experiment 1, the visibility of Landolt C's was studied for equal-energy presentations of different durations at six levels of energy. The reciprocity law applies to this task. Critical durations (tc) decrease from about 200 msec at the lowest energy level to about 50 msec, then increase again to values of 350–1000 msec. Control experiments 2 and 3 establish that the variation of ttc is not to be explained solely in stimulus terms such as luminance, target size or retinal location. Acuity performance must be considered among the determinants of temporal summation. Implications of the findings for theories of acuity and reciprocity are discussed.

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