14 DAY TRIAL // Investigators have now turned to analyzing the human eye, in a bid to determine why individuals exhibit different reaction times under the same, tightly-controlled conditions. The team behind the study is puzzled that neural impulses don't necessary trigger an immediate response in all people.
Even today, scientists cannot say for sure why, in constant laboratory conditions, individuals display varied response times to the same stimuli. The speed with which we respond varies in wild margins, and does not exhibit only a small difference. Researchers at the University of Bristol, in the United Kingdom, are determined to find out the answer to this riddle.
The team recently developed a new theory as to response time variability occurs, which they corroborated with a new study of the neural processes and anatomical structures involved. The leader of the team, UB professor Iain Gilchrist, has recently received a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) grant to continue these studies.
“In my research group we focus on the study of the eye movement response. Eye movements are interesting for a number of reasons. First, they are important for visual perception: we only see fine detailed information when the eyes point directly at a location,” says Gilchrist.
“Second, eye movements are ubiquitous: we make more eye movements in a day than heart beats. Third, we have a detailed knowledge of the neurophysiology of eye movements control which allows us to link functional and neural explanations.” he adds. Gilchrist is also the director of Bristol Neuroscience.
The team will conduct its investigations using both functional Magnetic Radiation Imaging (fMRI) and magnetoencephalography (MEG). Both techniques reveal blood flow inside the brain live, as changes take place.
The fMRI investigation will take place at the university's Clinical Research and Imaging Center, which is an innovative facility dedicated especially to such studies. It is the result of a collaboration between the UB and the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation.