Ksander de Winkel

Project leader

I am the project leader for the research group.

In our group, we conduct both fundamental and applied research on self-motion. The aim of our fundamental research is a comprehensive understanding of the perceptual and cognitive processes underlying self-motion. We perform experimental studies to measure perceptual thresholds, to untangle the mechanisms behind motion sickness, and to develop and validate models of the processes by which the brain constructs percepts of self-motion. Also, we apply knowledge of self-motion perception in the development of motion cueing algorithms, we assess the fidelity of motion cueing solutions, we investigate potential side-effects of autonomous driving on passengers, and we develop solutions to these problems.

Background

In 2008, I graduated cum laude from Utrecht University, the Netherlands, with a Master’s degree in Applied Cognitive Psychology. For my Master’s thesis, I studied whether perception of a is reflected in modulation of activity in the brain’s visual cortex by tactile stimulation. This work kindled my interest in how our perceptions result from the flood of information about our environment provided by our sensory systems. I subsequently started a research project on as a PhD-student at Utrecht University and the Netherlands Institute for Applied Scientic Research (TNO). I completed this project with a doctorate in 2013.

After a brief foray into industry as a data scientist, during which I worked on statistical models to guide decision making, I returned to research on self-motion perception here at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in 2014. As of March 2017, I am project leader at the Motion Perception and Simulation research group.

Selected publications

• Causal Inference in the Perception of Verticality Scientific Reports (2018)
• Effects of visual stimulus characteristics and individual differences in heading estimation Journal of Vision (2018)
• Causal Inference in Multisensory Heading Estimation PLoS ONE (2017)

Causal Inference in the Perception of Self-Motion

When we move through our surroundings, the information that our visual system and other sensory systems provide on self-motion is generally in agreement. When multiple sources provide the same information, this information can be combined to form the most reliable estimate of our motion. However, in motion simulators the information that is presented to the different sensory systems does not have to be in agreement. Hence, in this case the brain can be faced with a problem of Causal Inference: do different sensory signals share a common cause or not? Should the information be combined or not? In my research I investigate how large discrepancies between stimuli presented to different sensory modalities may become before they are noticed, and how our perceptions are affected by detection of a discrepancy.

The knowledge that we gain from this research finds applications in the work of my group, the group. Knowledge of discrepancy-detection thresholds can for instance be incorporated in algorithms that translate vehicle motion into simulator motion, in order to make optimal use of a motion simulator’s capabilities.

Student projects

I am supervising/have supervised the following students in research projects:

• Joost Zijlstra, Master student at University of Twente
• Max Kurtz, Master student at University of Twente (graduated Cum Laude)
• Marten Bloch, Master student at University of Twente (graduated Cum Laude)
• Sophia Nestmann, PhD student at University of Tübingen
• Enrico Mion, PhD student at University of Padova
• Ellen Edel, voluntary internship
• Victor Vasilopoulos, Master student at Delft University of Technology