Intuitive physics in vision and action, by Dawei Bai
Intuitive physics in vision and action
Abstract If you open any textbook on visual perception, you will find chapters on color, edge, motion, and other lower-level features. However, recent work has demonstrated that vision is far more sophisticated, incorporating higher-level representations. In this talk, I will explore these representations, and furthermore how they support our interactions with the environment. I will first demonstrate — with a novel illusion — that visual processing is sensitive to the physics of our world. Second, I will present a theoretical view (‘core perception’), where I argue that these high-level perceptual representations are deeply rooted in the human mind and may even be innate. Finally, I will explore the important downstream consequences of ‘seeing physics’ on other aspects of the mind such as action. Specifically, I will show that visually inferred forces (e.g. wind) directly alter motor programs.