A new scientific study suggests that certain individuals may have a predisposition to being more sensitive to higher framerates and refresh rates. Enabling them to perceive more images per second.
Conducted by Trinity College Dublin and published in the journal Plos One. The study reveals that some people exhibit greater sensitivity to perceiving more images per second than others. It examined 88 participants aged between 18 and 35, assessing their “Critical Flicker Fusion” (CFF) threshold—a method for quantifying Visual Temporal Resolution, which denotes the fastest rate at which a person’s visual system can discern visual signals.
The research aimed to ascertain the variation in CFF thresholds among participants. To measure their response to flashes of light, researchers designed an apparatus resembling goggles attached to a screen.
120 hz monitor
Participants differed significantly in their ability to perceive flashes of light. Some reported perceiving a continuous light when it flashed only 35 times per second. While others could discern fast flashes of light at rates exceeding 60 times per second. Such sensitivity aligns with the demands of gaming, where users can set their PS5’s display to refresh up to 120 times per second. Provided they have a compatible display.
Clinton Haarlem, a PhD candidate at Trinity College Dublin, explained to The Guardian: “We believe that individuals who perceive flicker at higher rates essentially have access to a slightly larger amount of visual information per unit of time than those at the lower end of the spectrum.”
Furthermore, the study found minimal disparity in CFF thresholds between sexes, indicating no inherent superiority of one over the other. This revelation holds significant implications for professional sports and competitive gaming.
Professor Kevin Mitchell, the supervising researcher, remarked to The Guardian: “We speculate that discrepancies in perception speed may manifest in high-speed scenarios where individuals must locate or track fast