In this dissertation, I examine binocular 3D motion processing through a series of psychophysical and neuroimaging experiments aimed at uncovering the neural computations involved and their interaction with the known hierarchy of visual motion processing. Two primary binocular cues could be used to compute 3D motion: one based on changing disparities over time (CD), the other based on interocular velocity differences (IOVD). Under normal viewing conditions, both cues coexist and (potentially) provide the same 3D direction information, yet whether CD, IOVD, or both mechanisms exist has distinct implications for how 3D motion is processed along the visual stream. First, I measured 3D direction discrimination sensitivity is measured for isolated binocular cues under a range of 3D motion speeds and visual eccentricities. Comparison of isolated-cue sensitivity to corresponding combined cue sensitivity (i.e. concurrent IOVD & CD cue stimuli) provided an estimate of relative cue contributions under normal viewing conditions. Second, I conducted a series of motion adaptation experiments to differentiate the neural representation of 2D and 3D directions of motion, and examine the degree to which IOVD or CD mechanisms can account for 3D motion adaptation. Third, I examined the neural locus of 3D motion processing by measuring 3D direction- selectivity throughout a range of visual cortical areas using functional neuroimaging in an event-related paradigm that parallels psychophysical adaptation experiments. Finally, I discuss the broader implications for the neural mechanisms of binocular 3D motion processing and future experimental directions. Together, these results reveal that: (1) the IOVD cue is the dominant cue to 3D motion processing across the majority of natural speeds & eccentricities, (2) neural tuning for 3D motion is distinct from 2D motion and can be fully explained by an IOVD mechanism, and (3) the IOVD cue is computed relatively late in the visual processing stream, in areas MT & MST— cortical areas primarily associated with 2D/retinal motion and thought to be beyond the point of binocular combination. The significance of IOVD —but not CD—cues to 3D motion perception motivates a drastic modification to canonical models of motion processing to include the late-stage comparison of eye- specific motion signals. / text

This thesis investigates the use of binocular information for motion-in-depth (MID) perception. There are at least two different types of binocular information available to the visual system from which to derive a perception of MID: changing disparity (CD) and inter-ocular velocity differences (IOVD). In the following experiments, we manipulate the availability of CD and IOVD information in order to assess the relative influence of each on MID judgements. In the first experiment, we assessed the relative effectiveness of CD and IOVD information for MID detection, and whether the two types of binocular information are processed by separate mechanisms with differing characteristics. Our results suggest that, both CD and IOVD information can be utilised for MID detection, yet, the relative dependence on either of these types of MID information varies between observers. We then went on to explore the contribution of CD and IOVD information to time-to-contact (TTC) perception, whereby an observer judges the time at which an approaching stimulus will contact them. We confirmed that the addition of congruent binocular information to looming stimuli can influence TTC judgements, but that there is no influence from binocular information indicating no motion. Further to this, we found that observers could utilise both CD and IOVD for TTC judgements, although once again, individual receptiveness to CD and/or IOVD information varied. Thus, we demonstrate that the human visual system is able to process both CD and IOVD information, but the influence of either (or both) of these cues on an individual’s perception has been shown to be mutually independent.