Periodic Reporting for period 3 - PUPILTRAITS (Biomarkers of individual differences in human cortical visual processing)
Reporting period: 2022-03-01 to 2023-08-31
We substantiated the main novel concept of the project, that pupil diameter reflects the way we process information. We demonstrated this in a variety of domains: perception, attention, and cognition. We were able to show a tight relationship between performance and Autistic Traits, supporting the notion that individual styles of information-processing can be indexed through pupil-size: a simple, objective, and quantitative measure. The area of applicability of this technique is rapidly growing, as we (and other teams) expose the normed relationship between changes in pupil diameter and information processing in the brain. Using neuroimaging, we are gaining insight into mechanisms through which sensory signals are evaluated against their context, which is variable across individuals and over time. We also gathered initial evidence that the metabolic state (long-term, like obesity) impacts basic functions of the visual system.
The work we performed in the first half of the project has been reported in 22 peer-reviewed publications (14 from studies that directly stemmed from the project, 4 of which in journals with IF > 8, and an additional eight related publications). Our research was presented to the scientific community at the main international conferences of the field (including The Vision Sciences Society annual meeting, the European Conference of Visual Perception, International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine). It was disseminated in public events, including the Researchers’ Bright Night 2020 and a speech at the opening ceremony of the 2021-22 Academic Year of the University of Pisa, in the presence of the President of the Republic and the Ministry of University and Research.