2B). Rewards depended upon saccadic reaction time (SRT), according to an exponential discounting function; Fig. 3C). Saccades made before green onset were penalized with a small, flat penalty. Because saccades take ∼200 msec to initiate, any highly rewarded responses (latencies < 200 msec) have to be programmed before green onset. selleck Thus to maximize outcome, subjects needed to make a decision about whether to initiate a response before the green light – and potentially obtain a high reward, but risk a penalty – or simply wait for the green light when they will receive a low reward. Participants were instructed to make as much money as possible. They performed ten blocks of fifty trials.

Reward (in pence) was calculated from acquiring the target using a decay function: R=ae−(t−t0k1)a = 150, k1 = 100 and t − t0 represents RT from green onset (msec). Saccades made in advance of “GO!” were punished by a fixed fine of 10p. Rewards were displayed at the target site on each trial and a cumulative total was

shown below this. Aural feedback was also given with a ‘ping’ for rewards of 0–19p, and a ‘ker-ching’ for rewards of 20p or more. An error trial was accompanied by a low pitched ‘beep’ in addition to a visual cue: “STOP Police! Fine £0.10”. Eye position was recorded using an EyeLink 1000 Hz eye tracker (SR Research Ltd, Ontario, Canada). Stimuli were displayed on a 22ʺ CRT monitor (150 Hz) at 60 cm. It is not possible to establish definitively for any individual saccade whether it arose from an anticipatory or a reactive process. Because humans take ∼200 msec to Cyclopamine manufacturer plan and execute saccades, ‘reactive’ saccades – those made in response to green onset – are expected to Hydroxychloroquine concentration have latencies of this order. Very early saccades (say < 50 msec after green onset) are likely to have been ‘anticipatory’, planned prior to green onset. However, there is a grey zone between these extremes. We used an established method to decide how many of the saccades were statistically most likely to arise from each distribution,

modelled by a linear rise-to-threshold process ( Carpenter and Williams, 1995). We assumed two processes, one triggered by the amber light and the other by the green. Thus, the distribution of reactive saccades is described by a rapid rise-to-threshold process elicited by green onset. Whereas anticipatory saccades are described by a slower and independent rise-to-threshold process triggered by amber onset. A saccade is generated by whichever process reaches threshold first ( Adam et al., 2012). Maximum likelihood estimation provided best-fitting mean and variance parameters for each distribution. For controls, the model estimated a mean for the reactive distribution of 299 msec, SD 31 msec. We used a ‘cut off’ maximum saccadic RT of 200 msec, >3 SDs from this mean, to delineate anticipatory saccades. We also employed a second paradigm (Fig.