COGNITIVE TRAINING USING VISUAL STIMULI

• US 20070166675A1
• Filed: 12/15/2006
• Published: 07/19/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Posit Science Corp.
• Original Assignee: Posit Science Corp.
• Inventors: Chan, Samuel, Richards, Donald, Merzenich, Michael, Bird, Dylan, Lisberger, Stephen, Mahncke, Henry, Delahunt, Peter, Hardy, Joseph, Atkins, Sharona, Gangadhar, Shruti
• Application Number:
  US11/611,291
• Publication Number:
  US 20070166675A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 434/236
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/06 with both visual and audible presentation of the material to be studied
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/00 Electrically-operated teaching apparatus or devices working with questions and answers mechanically operated G09B3/00; computing arrangements G06F
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/04 characterised by modifying the teaching programme in response to a wrong answer, e.g. repeating the question, supplying a further explanation

Abstract

A computer-implemented method for enhancing cognition, e.g., for improving cognitive ability of a participant using visual stimuli. A set (or sets) of visual stimuli is provided for visual presentation to the participant. A visual stimulus from the set is visually presented to the participant. The participant is required to respond to the visual stimulus. A determination is made regarding whether the participant responded correctly. The stimulus intensity of the visual stimuli presented may be adjusted based on the correctness/incorrectness of the participant'"'"'s response according to a single-stair maximum likelihood (e.g., ZEST) or N-up/M-down procedure. The visually presenting, requiring, and determining are repeated one or more times in an iterative manner to improve the participant'"'"'s cognition, e.g., ability to process visual information, memory, etc. Assessments may be performed during the repeating according to a dual-stair maximum likelihood (e.g., ZEST) or N-up/M-down procedure. The repeating may include performing multiple exercises using visual stimuli.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for enhancing cognition in a participant, utilizing a computing device to present visual stimuli and to receive responses from the participant, the method comprising:

providing a set of visual stimuli for presentation to the participant, the set comprising a plurality of visual stimuli of varying difficulty;

presenting a visual stimulus from the set of visual stimuli to the participant;

requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus;

determining if the participant responded correctly to the visual stimulus;

selecting another visual stimulus for future presentation from the set based on said determining;

repeating said presenting, said requiring, said determining, and said selecting in an iterative manner to improve the cognition of the participant.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

indicating whether the participant responded correctly, wherein said indicating is performed audibly and/or graphically.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

recording the participant'"'"'s response; and

/or

recording whether the participant responded correctly.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein said repeating occurs a number of times each day, for a number of days.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said presenting, said requiring, said determining, and said selecting composes performing a trial, and wherein said repeating comprises performing a plurality of trials using a plurality of visual stimuli from the set.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising:

performing trials in one or more practice sessions.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein said selecting comprises:

selecting a visual stimulus of greater difficulty if the participant achieves a specified level of success; and

/or

selecting a visual stimulus of lesser difficulty if the participant does not achieve the specified level of success;

8. The method of claim 7, wherein said selecting comprises:

selecting a more difficult visual stimulus if the participant responded correctly a first specified number of times in a row; and

/or

selecting a less difficult visual stimulus if the participant responded incorrectly a second specified number of times in a row.

9. The method of claim 7,

wherein said achieving a specified level of success comprises responding correctly in a specified percentage of trials.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein said presenting the visual stimulus comprises presenting the visual stimulus at a specified stimulus intensity, wherein increased stimulus intensity corresponds to decreased difficulty of the visual stimulus, and wherein decreased stimulus intensity corresponds to increased difficulty of the visual stimulus.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises one or more attributes of the visual stimulus, comprising one or more of:

one or more attributes of said presenting the visual stimulus; and

/or one or more graphical attributes of the visual stimulus.

12. The method of claim 11,

wherein the one or more attributes of said presenting the visual stimulus comprise one or more of:

duration of said presenting, comprising a presentation time of the visual stimulus;

position of the visual stimulus;

motion of the visual stimulus; and

/or

flashing of the visual stimulus; and

wherein the one or more graphical attributes of the visual stimulus comprise one or more of;

size;

orientation;

color;

color contrast;

luminance;

luminance contrast;

spatial frequency;

texture;

object type shown in the visual stimulus;

complexity; and

/or

visual distinction between foreground and background of the visual stmulus.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein said selecting comprises:

adjusting the stimulus intensity for said presenting the visual stimulus;

wherein said adjusting is performed using an N-up/M-down procedure, comprising;

increasing stimulus intensity if the participant incorrectly performs N trials consecutively; and

decreasing stimulus intensity if the participant correctly performs M trials consecutively.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the N-up/M-down procedure comprises a 1-up/3-down procedure.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises one or more of:

selecting a visual stimulus with a specified value of stimulus intensity from the set of visual stimuli; and

/or

modifying the stimulus intensity of a selected visual stimulus from the set of visual stimuli.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

adjusting the stimulus intensity to approach and substantially maintain a specified success rate for the participant.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity to approach and substantially maintain a specified success rate for the participant is performed for each of a plurality conditions.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity to approach and substantially maintain a specified success rate for the participant is performed using a single stair N-up/M-down procedure.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein said repeating comprises:

performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of conditions, wherein each condition specifies one or more attributes of the visual stimulus.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein said repeating comprises:

assessing the participant'"'"'s performance a plurality of times during said repeating.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein said assessing the participant'"'"'s performance a plurality of times is performed according to the N-up/M-down procedure.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein said assessing the participant'"'"'s performance a plurality of times is performed using a 2-stair N-up/M-down procedure.

Renumber

23. The method of claim 10, wherein said selecting comprises:

adjusting the stimulus intensity for said presenting the visual stimulus;

wherein said adjusting is performed using a maximum likelihood procedure.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises one or more of:

selecting a visual stimulus with a specified value of stimulus intensity from the set of visual stimuli; and

/or

modifying the stimulus intensity of a selected visual stimulus from the set of visual stimuli.

25. The method as recited in claim 23, wherein the maximum likelihood procedure comprises one or more of:

a QUEST (quick estimation by sequential testing) threshold procedure;

or

a ZEST (zippy estimation by sequential testing) threshold procedure.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

adjusting the stimulus intensity to approach and substantially maintain a specified success rate for the participant.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity to approach and substantially maintain a specified success rate for the participant is performed for each of a plurality conditions.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity to approach and substantially maintain a specified success rate for the participant uses a single stair maximum likelihood procedure.

29. The method of claim 23, wherein said repeating comprises:

performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of conditions, wherein each condition specifies one or more attributes of the visual stimulus.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein said repeating comprises:

assessing the participant'"'"'s performance a plurality of times during said repeating.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein said assessing the participant'"'"'s performance a plurality of times is performed according to the maximum likelihood procedure.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein said assessing the participant'"'"'s performance a plurality of times is performed using a 2-stair maximum likelihood procedure.

Visual Emphasia

33. The method of claim 1,

wherein said providing a set of visual stimuli comprises providing one or more scenes, each having a background and at least one foreground object, wherein the one or more scenes are available for visual presentation to the participant;

and

wherein said visually presenting a visual stimulus comprises visually presenting a scene from the one or more scenes to the participant, wherein said visually presenting comprises visually presenting the at least one foreground object and/or the background with a specified visual emphasis that visually distinguishes the at least one foreground object with respect to the background.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein said visually presenting the at least one foreground object and/or the background with a specified visual emphasis comprises one or more of:

modifying the visual emphasis of the at least one foreground object and/or the background to achieve the specified visual emphasis;

or

selecting the at least one foreground object and/or the background in accordance with the specified visual emphasis.

35. The method of claim 33, wherein the specified visual emphasis specifies one or more of:

luminance contrast of the at least one foreground object and/or the background;

chromatic contrast of the at least one foreground object and/or the background;

spatial frequency of the at least one foreground object and/or the background;

size of the at least one foreground object and/or features in the background;

flashing the at least one foreground object;

moving the at least one foreground object with respect to the background;

texture of the at least one foreground object and/or the background;

opacity of the at least one foreground object and/or the background;

distance of the at least one foreground object from one or more other foreground objects and/or one or more features of the background; and

/or

distracting effects of one or more features in the background.

36. The method of claim 35,

wherein increasing the visual emphasis comprises:

increasing one or more others of the luminance contrast the color contrast, the spatial frequency, the size, the flashing, the involving, the texture, the opacity, the distance, or the distracting effects of one or more features in the background; and

wherein decreasing the visual emphasis comprises;

decreasing or ceasing to modify at least one of said one or more of the luminance contrast, the color contrast, the spatial frequency, the size, the flashing, the moving, the texture, the opacity, the distance, or the distracting effects of one or more features in the background.

37. The method of claim 33, further comprising:

modifying the specified visual emphasis based on said determining.

38. The method of claim 37, wherein said modifying the specified visual emphasis comprises one or more of:

modifying the visual emphasis of the at least one foreground object and/or the background to modify the visual emphasis;

or

selecting a different at least one foreground object and/or a different background for the scene to modify the visual emphasis.

39. The method of claim 37, wherein said modifying the specified visual emphasis comprises adjusting the degree of visual emphasis according to one or more visual emphasis techniques.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein each of the one or more visual emphasis techniques specifies a corresponding attribute, wherein said adjusting the degree of visual emphasis comprises increasing the visual emphasis of the scene, and wherein said increasing the visual emphasis of the scene comprises one or more of:

increasing the attribute for the at least one foreground object according to a first visual emphasis technique;

decreasing the attribute for the background according to the first visual emphasis technique;

increasing the attribute for the at least one foreground object according to the first visual emphasis technique, and decreasing the attribute for the background according to the first visual emphasis technique; and

/or

increasing the attribute for the at least one foreground object according to the first visual emphasis technique, and decreasing the attribute for the background according to a second visual emphasis technique.

41. The method of claim 40, wherein each of the one or more visual emphasis techniques specifies a corresponding attribute, wherein said adjusting the degree of visual emphasis comprises decreasing the visual emphasis of the scene, and wherein said decreasing the visual emphasis of the scene comprises one or more of:

decreasing the attribute for the at least one foreground object according to a first visual emphasis technique;

increasing the attribute for the background according to the first visual emphasis technique;

decreasing the attribute for the at least one foreground object according to the first visual emphasis technique, and increasing the attribute for the background according to the first visual emphasis technique; and

/or

decreasing the attribute for the at least one foreground object according to the first visual emphasis technique, and increasing the attribute for the background according to a second visual emphasis technique.

42. The method of claim 33, wherein said repeating comprises beginning with scenes of higher visual emphasis, wherein said modifying the specified visual emphasis comprises:

decreasing the visual emphasis if the participant responds correctly a specified number of times.

43. The method of claim 33, wherein said repeating comprises:

progressing through a plurality of levels, with each successive level specifying lower visual emphasis.

Multiple Congnitve Training Exercises with Visual Stimuli

44. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of visual stimuli comprises two or more sets of visual stimuli for respective use in two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli, wherein said repeating comprises:

performing trials in each of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli.

45. The method of claim 44, wherein said performing trials in each of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli comprises one or more of:

performing trials in the two or more cognitive training exercises in serial fashion; and

/or

performing trials in the two or more cognitive training exercises in interleaved fashion.

Visual Sweeps

46. The method of claim 44, wherein, for at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli:

said providing a set of visual stimuli comprises providing first and second visual sweeps, wherein the first and second visual sweeps are available for visual presentation to the participant;

said visually presenting a visual stimulus comprises visually presenting at least two visual sweeps to the participant utilizing either the first visual sweep, the second visual sweep, or a combination of the first and second visual sweeps;

said requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus comprises requiring the participant to indicate an order in which the at least two visual sweeps were presented; and

said determining whether the participant responded correctly comprises determining whether the participant indicated the order of the at least two visual sweeps correctly.

47. The method of claim 46, wherein the at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises comprises:

associating the first visual sweep with a first icon; and

associating the second visual sweep with a second icon;

wherein said requiring the participant to indicate the order in which the at least two visual sweeps were presented comprises requiring the participant to select one or more of the icons one or more times to indicate the order of the at least two visual sweeps.

48. The method of claim 46, wherein the first and second frequency sweeps are each of a specified duration, and wherein said visually presenting separates the at least two frequency sweeps by a specified inter-stimulus-interval (ISI);

49. The method of claim 48, wherein said visually presenting at least two visual sweeps comprises visually presenting at least two visual sweeps at a specified stimulus intensity, the method further comprising:

adjusting the stimulus intensity based on said determining, wherein said adjusting is performed in accordance with one or more of;

a maximum likelihood procedure;

or

an N-up/M-down procedure.

50. The method of claim 49,

wherein the stimulus intensity comprises a presentation time for each visual sweep, comprising the duration and/or the ISI;

wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises;

if the participant correctly indicates the order in which the at least two frequency sweeps were presented a first specified number of times in a row, shortening the duration and/or the ISI; and

if the participant incorrectly indicates the order in which the at least two frequency sweeps were presented a second specified number of times in a row, lengthening the duration and/or the ISI.

Renumber

51. The method of claim 46, wherein said visually presenting, said requiring, and said determining composes performing a trial, and wherein said repeating comprises performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of visual sweep conditions, including performing a plurality of trials for each of one or more visual sweep tasks, wherein the one or more visual sweep tasks comprise one or more of:

a spatial frequency sweep task;

or

an orientation sweep task.

52. The method of claim 51, wherein, in the spatial frequency sweep task, the first visual sweep comprises a first spatial frequency sweep in which the spatial frequency of a sweep pattern increases in frequency over time, and wherein the second visual sweep comprises a second spatial frequency sweep in which the spatial frequency of the sweep pattern decreases in frequency over time.

53. The method of claim 51, wherein, in the spatial frequency sweep task, both the first visual sweep and the second visual sweep comprise:

a spatial frequency sweep in which the spatial frequency of a sweep pattern increases in frequency over time;

or

a spatial frequency sweep in which the spatial frequency of the sweep pattern decreases in frequency over time.

Renumber

54. The method of claim 51, wherein, in the orientation sweep task, the first visual sweep comprises a first orientation sweep which rotates counter-clockwise over time, and wherein the second visual sweep comprises a second orientation sweep which rotates clockwise over time.

55. The method of claim 51, wherein, in the orientation sweep task, both the first visual sweep and the second visual sweep comprise:

an orientation sweep which rotates counter-clockwise over time;

or

an orientation sweep which rotates clockwise over time.

Renumber

56. The method of claim 46, wherein the first and second visual sweeps use a Gabor sweep pattern.

Visual Search

57. The method of claim 44, wherein, for at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli:

said providing a set of visual stimuli comprises providing a target image and one or more distracter images, wherein the target image and the one or more distracter images differ in appearance, and wherein the target image and the one or more distracter images are available for visual presentation to the participant;

said visually presenting a visual stimulus comprises visually presenting a plurality of images at respective locations in a visual field to the participant for a specified presentation time, including the target image and a plurality of distracter images based on the one or more distracter images, wherein at the end of the specified presentation time said visually presenting is ceased;

said requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus comprises requiring the participant to select the location of the target image from among a plurality of locations in the visual field; and

said determining whether the participant responded correctly comprises determining whether the participant selected the location of the target.

58. The method of claim 57, further comprising:

prior to said visually presenting the plurality of images, presenting the target image, then removing the target image.

59. The method of claim 57, wherein said visually presenting the plurality of image comprises visually presenting the plurality of images at a specified stimulus intensity, the method further comprising:

adjusting the stimulus intensity based on said determining, wherein said adjusting is performed in accordance with one or more of;

a maximum likelihood procedure;

or

an N-up/M-down procedure.

60. The method of claim 59, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises the presentation time for said visually presenting, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

if the participant correctly selected the location of the target image a first specified number of times in a row, shortening the presentation time; and

if the participant incorrectly selected the location of the target image a second specified number of times in a row, lengthening the presentation time.

61. The method of claim 57, wherein said visually presenting, said requiring, and said determining composes performing a trial, and wherein said repeating comprises:

performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of visual search conditions, wherein each visual search condition specifies one or more attributes of the plurality of images.

62. The method of claim 61, wherein the target image differs from the one or more distracter images in one or more of:

color;

texture;

shape;

size;

orientation;

or

object type shown by the image.

63. The method of claim 62, wherein each of the visual search conditions specifies one or more of:

colors of the target image and the distracter images;

textures of the target image and the distracter images;

shapes of the target image and the distracter images;

sizes of the target image and the distracter images;

orientations of objects shown respectively by the target image and the distracter images;

object types shown respectively by the target image and the distracter images;

number of distracter images;

location of the target image;

background; and

/or

visual emphasis of the target image, distracter images, and/or the background.

64. The method of claim 61, wherein the visual field is partitioned into a plurality of graphically indicated regions, wherein the location of the target image comprises a specified region of the plurality of regions in the visual field, and wherein selection of a location of an image is performed by the participant placing a cursor over a region containing the image and clicking a mouse.

65. The method of claim 61, wherein said performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of visual search conditions comprises performing a plurality of trials for each of one or more visual search tasks, wherein the one or more visual search tasks comprise one or more of:

a single attention visual search task;

or

a dual attention visual search task.

66. The method of claim 65,

wherein said performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of visual search conditions comprises performing a plurality of trials for the dual attention visual search task;

wherein said providing a target image comprises providing at least two potential target images, wherein the at least two potential target images differ by a specified attribute, and wherein one of the at least two potential target images is the target image;

wherein said visually presenting the plurality of images in the visual field to the participant comprises;

visually presenting the plurality of distracter images;

visually presenting the at least two potential target images; and

visually presenting an indication of the specified attribute corresponding to a first potential target image of the at least two potential target images, wherein the first potential target image is the target image; and

wherein said requiring the participant to select a location of the target image from among a plurality of locations in the visual field further comprises;

requiring the participant to select a location of the first potential target image from among the locations of the at least two potential target images based on the visually presented indication.

67. The method of claim 66, wherein said visually presenting an indication of the specified attribute corresponding to a first potential target image comprises:

visually presenting the indication substantially at the center of the visual field.

68. The method of claim 66, wherein the specified attribute comprises a direction of tilt of an object shown in the target image.

69. The method of claim 65, wherein said performing a plurality of trials for each of one or more visual search tasks comprises performing a plurality of trials for each of the single attention search task and the dual attention search task.

MOT

70. The method of claim 44, wherein, for at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli:

said providing a set of visual stimuli comprises providing one or more images, wherein the one or more images are available for visual presentation to the participant;

said visually presenting a visual stimulus comprises visually presenting a plurality of images based on the one or more images in a visual field to the participant, wherein the plurality of images comprises a plurality of target images and a plurality of distracter images, and wherein said visually presenting the plurality of images comprises;

graphically indicating each of the plurality of target images for a first time period;

moving each of the plurality of images in the visual field for a second time period, wherein during the second time period said graphically indicating is not performed;

said requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus comprises requiring the participant to select the target images from the plurality of images; and

said determining whether the participant responded correctly comprises determining whether the participant selected the target images correctly.

71. The method of claim 70, wherein said requiring the participant to select the target images comprises:

allowing the participant to make a number of selections, wherein the number of selections is equal to the number of target images.

72. The method of claim 70, wherein said visually presenting the plurality of images comprises visually presenting the plurality of images at a specified stimulus intensity, the method further comprising:

adjusting the stimulus intensity based on said determining, wherein said adjusting is performed in accordance with one or more of;

a maximum likelihood procedure;

or

an N-up/M-down procedure.

73. The method of claim 72, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises the number of target images visually presented.

74. The method of claim 73, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

if the participant correctly selects the target images a first specified number of times in a row, increasing the number of target images; and

if the participant incorrectly selects the target images a second specified number of times in a row, decreasing the number of target images.

75. The method of claim 72, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises the presentation time of the visually presented images, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

if the participant correctly selects the target images a first specified number of times in a row, decreasing the presentation time of the images; and

if the participant incorrectly selects the target images a second specified number of times in a row, increasing the presentation time of the images.

76. The method of claim 72, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises the speed of the images during said moving, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

if the participant correctly selects the target images a first specified number of times in a row, increasing the speed of the images during said moving; and

if the participant incorrectly selects the target images a second specified number of times in a row, decreasing the speed of the images during said moving.

77. The method of claim 72, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises one or more of:

speed of the target images and the distracter images;

size of the target images and the distracter images;

presentation time of the target images and the distracter images, wherein said presentation time comprises the first time period and/or the second time period;

eccentricity of initial locations of the target images;

number of occluders in the visual field, wherein each occluder is operable to occlude target images and distracter images that move behind the occluder;

size of the visual field;

or

visual appearance of the images.

78. The method of claim 72, wherein said visually presenting, said requiring, and said determining composes performing a trial.

79. The method of claim 78, wherein said repeating comprises:

performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of conditions, wherein each condition specifies one or more attributes of the plurality of images or their presentation.

80. The method of claim 79, wherein each of the plurality of conditions specifies one or more of:

movement of the target images and the distracter images;

size of the target images and the distracter images;

presentation time of the target images and the distracter images, wherein said presentation time comprises the first time period and/or the second time period;

eccentricity of initial locations of the target images;

number of occluders in the visual field, wherein each occluder is operable to occlude target images and distracter images that move behind the occluder;

size of the visual field;

or

visual appearance of the images.

81. The method of claim 79, wherein said specifying movement of the target images and the distracter images comprises specifying one or more of:

speed of the target images and the distracter images;

or

whether or not the target images and the distracter images can overlap.

Eye Movement

82. The method of claim 44, wherein, for at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli:

said providing a set of visual stimuli comprises providing multiple graphical elements, wherein each graphical element has a value, and wherein the multiple graphical elements are available for visual presentation to the participant;

said visually presenting a visual stimulus comprises visually presenting a temporal sequence of at least two of the graphical elements at a specified stimulus intensity, including displaying the value of each of the at least two graphical elements at a respective position in a visual field for a specified duration, then ceasing to display the value;

said requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus comprises requiring the participant to respond to the displayed values;

the method further comprising;

modifying the stimulus intensity based on said determining.

83. The method of claim 82, wherein said visually presenting, said requiring, and said determining compose performing a trial, and wherein said repeating comprises performing a plurality of trials under each of a plurality of conditions, wherein each condition specifies one or more attributes of the at least two graphical elements or their presentation.

84. The method of claim 83, wherein the respective positions of the at least two graphical elements are determined randomly, wherein a first graphical element of the at least two graphical elements has a first position with a first azimuth, and wherein each subsequent graphical element of the at least two graphical elements has an azimuth differing from that of the previous graphical element by a respective angle.

85. The method of claim 83, wherein said requiring the participant to respond to the displayed values comprises:

requiring the participant to indicate the sequence of the displayed values.

86. The method of claim 83, wherein the displayed values comprise one or more of:

objects;

numbers;

letters;

colors; and

/or

shapes.

87. The method of claim 83, wherein said visually presenting the temporal sequence of at least two of the graphical elements comprises:

visually presenting a first plurality of the graphical elements in a spatial arrangement in the visual field, wherein each graphical element in the first plurality of graphical elements has a respective position;

wherein the at least two graphical elements are comprised in the first plurality of graphical elements.

88. The method of claim 87, wherein the visual field has a fixation point in the center of the visual field, and wherein said visually presenting a first plurality of the graphical elements in a spatial arrangement in the visual field comprises:

displaying each of the first plurality of the graphical elements within a specified range of the fixation point.

89. The method of claim 88, wherein the specified range comprises one of:

a first range, comprising a first minimum distance from the fixation point, and a first maximum distance from the fixation point; and

a second range, comprising a second minimum distance from the fixation point, and a second maximum distance from the fixation point;

wherein the second minimum distance is greater than the first minimum distance; and

wherein the second maximum distance is greater than the second maximum distance.

90. The method of claim 83, wherein each of the plurality conditions specifies one or more of:

range of distances from a fixation point in the visual field for the first plurality of graphical elements;

number of graphical elements in the first plurality of graphical elements;

number of graphical elements in the presented sequence of the at least two graphical elements;

whether the durations of the visually presenting overlap;

complexity of the graphical elements; and

distinguishability of the graphical elements from a background displayed in the visual field.

91. The method of claim 83, wherein said modifying comprises:

adjusting the stimulus intensity based on said determining, wherein said adjusting is performed in accordance with one or more of;

a maximum likelihood procedure;

or

an N-up/M-down procedure.

92. The method of claim 91, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises the duration of the stimulus, wherein said adjusting the stimulus intensity comprises:

if the participant responds correctly a first specified number of times in a row, decreasing the duration; and

/or

if the participant responds incorrectly a second specified number of times in a row, increasing the duration.

93. The method of claim 91, wherein the stimulus intensity comprises one or more of:

eccentricity of the respective positions of the least two graphical elements in the visual field;

number of graphical elements in the temporal sequence;

appearance of the graphical elements; and

/or

visual emphasis of the graphical elements.

Face/Name

94. The method of claim 44, wherein, for at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises using visual stimuli:

said providing a set of visual stimuli comprises providing a plurality of facial images of people, each person having a name, wherein the plurality of facial images are each available for visual presentation to the participant;

wherein the at least one of the two or more cognitive training exercises comprises;

performing a learning phase, comprising;

presenting a first facial image of a person from the plurality of facial images; and

presenting the name of the person concurrently with said presenting the first facial image; and

performing a testing phase, wherein the testing phase comprises said visually presenting, said requiring, and said determining, wherein;

said visually presenting a visual stimulus comprises;

presenting a second facial image of the person from the plurality of facial images; and

displaying a plurality of names, including the name of the person and one or more distracter names;

said requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus comprises requiring the participant to select the name of the person from the plurality of names; and

said determining whether the participant responded correctly comprises determining whether the participant selected the name correctly; and

wherein said repeating comprises repeating said performing the learning phase and said performing the testing phase one or more times in an iterative manner to improve the participant'"'"'s cognition.

95. The method of claim 94, wherein the plurality of facial images comprises a plurality of groups of facial images, wherein said repeating comprises:

for each group, performing the learning phase and performing the testing phase for each facial image in the group.

96. The method of claim 95, wherein said performing the testing phase for each facial image in the group comprises:

for each facial image in the group, wherein the group comprises a first group,

for each facial image in a second group comprising the facial image, previously presented facial images from the first group, and zero or more previously presented facial images from an immediately previous group,

a) presenting a randomly selected facial image of a person from the second group;

b) displaying a second plurality of names, including the name for each facial image in the second group, and one or more distracter names;

c) requiring the participant to select the name of the person for the randomly selected facial image from the plurality of names; and

d) determining whether the participant correctly selected the name of the person for the randomly selected facial image.

97. The method of claim 96, wherein the second group comprises the facial image, previously presented facial images from the first group, and zero previously re-presented facial images from the immediately previous group.

98. The method of claim 96, wherein the second group comprises the facial image, previously presented facial images from the first group, and one or more previously presented facial image from the immediately previous group.

99. The method of claim 96, wherein the second group comprises the facial image, previously presented facial images from the first group, and two or more previously presented facial image from the immediately previous group.

100. The method of claim 96, wherein said repeating further comprises:

if the participant incorrectly selected the name of the person for the randomly selected facial image,

performing the learning phase again for the randomly selected facial image; and

performing a)-d) for each facial image in the second group.

101. The method of claim 95, wherein the second facial image is the same image as the first facial image.

102. The method of claim 95, wherein the second facial image and the first facial image differ in one or more of:

view;

or

expression.

103. The method of claim 95, wherein the plurality of facial images comprises one or more stimulus categories, each stimulus category specifying a relationship between the first and second facial images in the stimulus category, and wherein said repeating comprises progressing through groups of facial images in each of the one or more stimulus categories.

104. The method of claim 103, where the one or more stimulus categories comprise one or more of:

a single view category, wherein the first and second facial images have the same view;

a multiple view category, wherein the first and second facial images have different views; and

a multiple expression category, wherein the first and second facial images have different expressions.

105. The method of claim 103, wherein each category has a respective plurality of subcategories further specifying the relationship between first and second facial images in the category.

106. The method of claim 105, where the subcategories comprise two or more of:

an age and gender independent subcategory, wherein the person of the first and second facial images is unconstrained with respect to age and gender;

a gender specific subcategory, wherein the person of the first and second facial images is constrained with respect to gender; and

an age specific subcategory, wherein the person of the first and second facial images is constrained with respect to age.

107. The method of claim 95, wherein the plurality of facial images of people comprises facial images of people that are familiar to the participant.

108. The method of claim 107, further comprising:

assessing the participant'"'"'s face-name associations before and/or after said repeating, using the facial images of people that are familiar to the participant.

109. The method of claim 95, wherein the plurality of facial images of people comprises facial images of people that are unfamiliar to the participant.

110. The method of claim 109, further comprising:

assessing the participant'"'"'s face-name associations before and/or after said repeating, using facial images of people that are unfamiliar to the participant, and that are not included in the plurality of facial images.

111. The method of claim 94, wherein each of the plurality of facial images is standardized with respect to one or more of:

aspect ratio;

frame;

size;

luminosity; and

contrast.

112. The method of claim 94, wherein said presenting the name comprises one or more of:

textually presenting the name; and

/or

auditorily presenting the name.

113. The method of claim 112, wherein said auditorily presenting the name comprises:

a synchronous-onset presentation of the name with said presenting the facial image.

114. The method of claim 94, wherein said presenting the facial image comprises:

flashing the facial image at a specified rate.

115. The method of claim 94, wherein said presenting the name of the person comprises:

repeating the name at a specified rate.

116. A computer accessible memory medium comprising program instructions for enhancing cognition in a participant, utilizing a computing device to present visual stimuli and to receive responses from the participant, wherein the program instructions are executable by a processor to perform:

providing a set of visual stimuli for presentation to the participant, the set comprising a plurality of visual stimuli of varying difficulty;

presenting a visual stimulus from the set of visual stimuli to the participant;

requiring the participant to respond to the visual stimulus;

determining if the participant responded correctly to the visual stimulus;

selecting another visual stimulus for future presentation from the set based on said determining;

repeating said presenting, said requiring, said determining, and said selecting in an iterative manner to improve the cognition of the participant.