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Adaptation to rotated visual feedback: a re-examination of motor interference

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Abstract

We have tested human visuo-motor adaptation in rotated-feedback tasks in which subjects first learn to move a cursor to visual targets with a rotational perturbation between joystick and cursor, and are then challenged with the opposing rotation. We then retest the subjects in the original adaptation task, to measure retention of a short-term memory of its earlier learning. Others have used similar tasks and report retrograde interference between one task and the short-term motor memory of the preceding task, such that later performance is impaired. However, we show that in the short-term conditions tested here, these effects can be considered as anterograde interference effects between the two tasks and we find no evidence of retrograde interference.

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Acknowledgements.

This work was supported by a Wellcome Trust Senior Research Fellowship held by R.C.M. We thank Narender Ramnani for initial discussion of these ideas.

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Correspondence to R. Christopher Miall.

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Miall, R.C., Jenkinson, N. & Kulkarni, K. Adaptation to rotated visual feedback: a re-examination of motor interference. Exp Brain Res 154, 201–210 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-003-1630-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-003-1630-2

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