The Effect of Varying the Time Interval Between Equal and Opposite Coriolis Accelerations

The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the effect of varying the time interval between two equal and opposite Coriolis accelerations upon the duration of the subjective responses evoked by the second stimulus. It was also designed to evaluate certain predictions generated from a ‘torsion pendulum’ model of the neural events mediating these subjective phenomena. Theoretical curves derived from the torsion pendulum model approximated fairly closely the way in which the reported durations of the subjective phenomena increased as a function of the time interval between the two Coriolis accelerations. This result supported the a priori assumption that the neural events underlying the subjective phenomena are closely linked to mechanical events occurring within the cupula‐endolymph system. However, an explanation resting entirely upon peripheral phenomena would be inadequate to account for two additional findings: (1) the estimated time constants of signal decay were shorter than those expected on the basis of the known mechanics of the semicircular canal system, and (2) the persistence of the Coriolis sensation (feelings of apparent whole body motion without visual reference) was greater at all intervals than the Coriolis oculogyral illusion. Adequate explanation of these findings requires the postulation of additional central mechanisms

Classical mechanics · Cognitive psychology · Illusion · Interval (graph theory) · Mechanics · Perception · Physics · Quantum mechanics · Sensation · Stimulus (psychology) · Time perception · Torsion pendulum clock · Mathematics · Neuroscience · Psychology · Tactile and Sensory Interactions · Vestibular and auditory disorders · Visual perception and processing mechanisms