In this study, the authors combined the cross-modal dynamic capture task (involving the horizontal apparent movement of visual and auditory stimuli) with spatial cuing in the vertical dimension to investigate the role of spatial attention in cross-modal interactions during motion perception. Spatial attention was manipulated endogenously, either…

The self-motion of an ester boat is investigated depending on the physicochemical properties of the surface-active substance. The results show that the ester boat moves towards the higher surface tension generating as the driving force.

Motion information available to different sensory modalities can interact at both perceptual and post-perceptual (i.e., decisional) stages of processing. However, to date, researchers have only been able to demonstrate the influence of one of these components at any given time, hence the relationship between them remains uncertain. We addressed…

Do we view the world differently if it is described to us in figurative rather than literal terms? An answer to this question would reveal something about both the conceptual representation of figurative language and the scope of top-down influences on scene perception. Previous work has shown that participants will look longer at a path region of…

The widely used PASCO laboratory equipment is an excellent way to introduce students to many topics in physics. In one case, PASCO's equipment may be too good! Various experiments exist for calculating the kinetic coefficient of friction by measuring the acceleration of a sliding object under some constant force. With ever more accurate equipment,…

A pair of fine tweezers and a steady hand may well be enough to pick up a grain of sand, but what would you use to hold something hundreds of times smaller still, the size of only one micron? The answer is to use a device that is not mechanical in nature but that relies instead on the tiny forces that light exerts on small particles: "optical…

Mounting clinical evidence suggests that abnormalities of social engagement in children with autism are present even during infancy. However, direct experimental documentation of these abnormalities is still limited. In this case report of a 15-month-old infant with autism, we measured visual fixation patterns to both naturalistic and ambiguous…

Forty toddlers aged 20 to 24 months were presented with 32 pairs of images with the auditory stimulus Look followed by the name of the target image (e.g. "Look...tree") in an intermodal preferential looking (IPL) paradigm. The same series of 16 items was presented first with one image as target and then with the other member of the pair as target.…

Human walking is a complicated motion. Movement scientists have developed various research methods to study gait. This article describes how a high school student collected and analysed high quality gait data in much the same way that movement scientists do, via the recording and measurement of motions with a video analysis tool and via…

Silos and bunkers have been allies in the development of kinesiology for nearly 50 years. Silos of specialization allow us to go toe-to-toe with researchers in parent disciplines, compete for grants, and otherwise spread our academic wings. The bunkers of utility and generic movement provide an important degree of legitimacy for a subject matter…

An inexpensive and easily implemented device to measure wind velocity is proposed. This prototype has the advantage of being able to measure both the speed and the direction of the wind in two dimensions. The device utilizes a computational interface commonly referred to as a "mouse." The mouse proposed for this prototype contains an…

We present a case study of the physical principles necessary to model the high altitude parachute jump made by Colonel Joseph Kittinger, USAF, in 1960, in order to determine the maximum speed attained and to calculate whether this speed was sufficient to exceed the speed of sound at that altitude. There is considerable discrepancy in the value of…

This article describes an activity that can be performed with an inexpensive plastic toy popper. The activity builds skill at analysing motion and results in the calculation of a surprisingly extreme acceleration. (Contains 1 figure.)

A discussion of the possibilities computers offer for the production of animated films. (LS)