Introduction

Over the last several decades, random-dot kinematograms (RDKs) have emerged as an effective psychophysical stimulus to evaluate low-level motion processing [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. While different versions of this type of stimulus have been created across several software platforms (e.g., MATLAB [6] and PsychoPy [7, 8]), currently, no implementation of this stimulus exists for public use in web-based experiments where the subjects complete the experimental task using web browsers. Recently, our research group developed an RDK in JavaScript to be used for presentation in standard web browsers. This RDK incorporates several distinct features that have emerged in different versions used by researchers, and allows users to customize noise types and other parameters for different paradigms. In this short article, we explain a few important elements of this stimulus and provide links to both code and web-based examples to guide implementation for vision scientists in future experiments.

Implementation and architecture

In RDKs, a certain percentage of dots are designated as “signal” to move in one coherent direction, and the remaining percentage of dots are designated as “noise” to move in random directions. However, as noted by [9], several options exist regarding how signal and noise can be drawn in frame-by-frame presentations. To create the “signal,” dots can either move in the direction of coherent motion in all frames (referred to as the “same” rule), or move in the direction of coherent motion in only a specified proportion of frames (referred to as the “different” rule). To create the “noise,” dots can either be drawn in a random position in the aperture on each frame (“random position”), move to an adjacent position in a random direction in each frame (“random walk”), or have a consistent direction of motion, designated randomly at the beginning of the trial (“random direction”). Modelling our stimulus after the random-dot kinematogram from the software PsychoPy [7, 8], we parameterized these different combinations of signal and noise to yield six different display options.

Additionally, dots in RDKs have a “dot lifespan,” which determines the number of frames that pass before a dot disappears and reappears somewhere else within the aperture. However, if a dot reaches the end of the aperture and its dot lifespan has not ended, then a dot can either reappear randomly in the aperture, or be reinserted from an opposite edge. We include features to customize dot lifespan length, the reinsertion rule, as well as the number of dot sets to cycle through (with each set being presented in one frame), adapting procedures from established RDK versions in MATLAB [10].

Finally, we also include links to code that integrates this RDK as a plugin with jsPsych, a library for creating and running experiments in web browsers [11]. This code can be found in the “Software location” section of this article (see below). We include parameters to control motion direction, coherence level, the total number of dots, dot size, dot color, background color, aperture shape, aperture size, the location of the aperture on the screen, the fixation cross, and how far dots move from one frame to the next. While our raw code can be implemented on any platform that uses JavaScript, incorporating our plugin with the jsPsych library may be particularly advantageous for researchers looking to use this RDK in experiments assessing reaction times; a comparison of reaction times assessed with jsPsych and a standard software package (e.g., PsychToolbox in MATLAB), revealed that while reaction times measured by jsPsych tended to be slightly slower than PsychToolbox, response time variability was quite comparable between both software packages [12]. This indicates that response time measurements in jsPsych are sensitive enough to detect differences caused by experimental manipulations.

Quality control

One primary concern in conducting visual psychophysical experiments on the web is that timing issues in the display could arise due to differences in internet connectivity speeds, monitor types (i.e., liquid crystal displays vs. cathode ray tubes), hardware, or web browsers used by participants. In testing our software, we have found that running the exact same code for our RDK in different browsers yields slightly different results. For example, we have identified small differences in the average frames per second when testing our RDK using Google Chrome, Firefox, and Safari on the same computer (Figure 1A). In a test of 10,000 presentations of the RDK in each browser, Chrome was the most consistent (mean: 16.632 milliseconds, sd: 0.364) in presenting the stimuli at the intended frame rate (16.667 milliseconds), followed by Firefox (mean: 17.217, sd: 0.898) and Safari (mean: 17.757, sd: 1.796).

What is needed to ensure accuracy and precision when conducting web-based psychophysics are not only real-time measures of the average frame rate of the display, but also the number of frames that are actually presented on each trial. Our RDK records the number of frames used in each presentation, which serves as a valid index of presentation clarity and coherence (Figure 1B). We recommend that users analyze this data in one of two ways: offline, to exclude particular trials from relevant analyses, or online, to re-present trials with missed frames to ensure balanced numbers of trials across conditions. In our tests of this stimulus, Chrome had the most consistent presentation (mean: 11.937, sd: 0.258), followed by Firefox (mean: 11.448, sd: 0.594) and Safari (mean: 11.136, sd: 0.902). We did not notice visible differences between trials when 11 or 12 frames were used, but a visible stutter was apparent when the number of frames was 10 or lower. Quality checks on other aspects of our stimulus (e.g., the locations where dots were re-drawn after disappearing, the number of dots drawn in the stimulus, whether the colors were rendered properly) demonstrated its viability, but we welcome feedback from users if issues arise.

Finally, we also recommend that users give explicit instructions to subjects to only have one browser window open when participating in experiments with this stimulus and to close other programs while it is being used, as we have noticed slight timing idiosyncrasies that emerge when other browser tabs and programs are running in the background.

Operating system

This plugin is functional in the most recent versions of Safari, Firefox, and Chrome (i.e., the most up-to-date versions available for use in November, 2017). However, based on our tests, Chrome appears to be the most reliable browser in presenting an equal number of frames across trials for this stimulus. We welcome feedback from users if compatibility issues exist in older web browsers.

Programming language

JavaScript/CSS/HTML.

Additional system requirements

None.

Dependencies

The code for the RDK posted on CodePen works without any additional frameworks or libraries. The jsPsych RDK plugin requires the jsPsych library, jQuery, and a jsPsych CSS stylesheet to work properly. These scripts and links for the jsPsych version are added in the header of the main experiment file (see the identifier of (3) under ‘Software location’ below).

List of contributors

• Sivananda Rajananda – Development & Design.
• Hakwan Lau – Design.
• Brian Odegaard – Design & Code Review.

Software location

(1) Demonstration of the RDK stimulus with modifiable parameters

Language

JavaScript/CSS/HTML