The Ability to See the World at a Higher 'Frame Rate' Could Give Some Gamers an Edge

Some lucky humans are capable of seeing the world at a higher "frame rate" than others, according to the results of a new study. The authors believe that the trait could even give those people an edge when it comes to competitive gaming and sports, though further research is needed to prove it.

The human eye is a miraculous organ that allows us to perceive the universe by converting light into electrical signals using cells known as photoreceptors, which are then transmitted through the optic nerve to a region of the brain known as the visual cortex, where an image is formed. The frequency at which this process occurs during each waking second is known as temporal resolution.

According to the results of a new study published in the journal PLOS ONE, some people see the world around us at a higher temporal resolution when compared to other humans. Whatsmore, the researchers believe that this ability to form more images per second could give these individuals an edge in competitive gaming, and other high-speed activities.

“Because we only have access to our own subjective experience, we might naively expect that everyone else perceives the world in the same way we do,” said Trinity College Dublin associate professor in developmental neurobiology Kevin Mitchell, who co-authored the paper.

“Examples like colour blindness show that isn’t always true, but there are many less well-known ways that perception can vary too,” continued Mitchell. “This study characterises one such difference – in the ‘frame rate’ of our visual systems. Some people really do seem to see the world faster than others.”

During the study, the researchers asked a group of 88 volunteers to observe an LED light through a pair of goggles, which they manipulated to flash at different speeds. This test, known as the "critical flicker fusion threshold," allowed the scientists to keep track of the number of flashes per minute, or frequency, at which a person was no longer able to discern the flickering, and instead saw a continuous source of light.

It was discovered that the flicker threshold varied significantly amongst different volunteers, allowing some to see a frequency of up to 60 flashes per second, while others were unable to perceive breaks in a light flashing at just 35 times per second. Furthermore, it was found that each individual’s critical flicker threshold changed relatively little over multiple sessions conducted at the same time on subsequent days.

“We don’t yet know how this variation in visual temporal resolution might affect our day-to-day lives,” said study co-author and PhD candidate Clinton Haarlem, also of Trinity College Dublin. “But we believe that individual differences in perception speed might become apparent in high-speed situations where one might need to locate or track fast-moving objects, such as in ball sports, or in situations where visual scenes change rapidly, such as in competitive gaming.”

The variation in images per second detected by the human volunteers is somewhat similar to those seen in the eyes of closely related members of the animal kingdom, wherein one of the species has developed separately to hunt faster-moving prey compared to the other.

“This suggests that some people may have an advantage over others before they have even picked up a racquet and hit a tennis ball, or grabbed a controller and jumped into some fantasy world online," concluded Haarlem.

In the wake of the study, a number of gamers - and some experts on the subject matter - took to social media to share their thoughts on the research into temporal resolution, and how it could affect a person's ability to detect/deal with different frame rates.

Moving forward, the researchers have suggested that it would be interesting to test whether temporal resolution does indeed have a bearing on a person's athletic performance, and gaming prowess.