Abstract:
When deciding what images we prefer, our brain must weigh many aesthetic variables, such as symmetry and complexity. To date, aesthetic research has mainly focused on investigating one variable at a time. In this article, we use symmetry and complexity to study the problem of multi aesthetic-variable interactions. For symmetry and complexity, there are two simple interaction hypotheses. The independence hypothesis proposes that the evaluation of aesthetic variables is mutually independent. Meanwhile, Birkhoff\'s aesthetic-measure hypothesis predicts that people prefer images high in symmetry and low in complexity, and dislike the opposite. To test these hypotheses, we generated images that systematically varied in levels of symmetry and complexity. We then compared the subjects\' preference maps to identify regions of likes and dislikes. Unlike the predictions from these hypotheses, we found that most, but not all subjects, formed two distinct natural clusters, termed \"islands,\" in terms of likes and dislikes. We also found that people with more art exposure were less likely to belong to an island. If someone did belong to an island, their gender influenced which cluster they belonged to. We discuss alternate hypotheses, possible mechanisms for the occurrence of islands, and their possible social implications.
摘要:
在决定我们喜欢什么图像时,我们的大脑必须权衡许多美学变量,比如对称性和复杂性。迄今为止,美学研究主要集中在一次调查一个变量。在这篇文章中,我们使用对称性和复杂性来研究多审美变量相互作用的问题。对于对称性和复杂性,有两个简单的相互作用假设。独立性假设提出审美变量的评价是相互独立的。同时,伯克霍夫的审美测量假设预测,人们更喜欢高对称性和低复杂性的图像,不喜欢相反的。为了测试这些假设,我们生成的图像在对称性和复杂性水平上有系统地变化。然后,我们比较了主题的偏好图,以确定喜欢和不喜欢的区域。与这些假设的预测不同,我们发现,但不是所有的科目,形成了两个不同的自然集群,被称为“岛屿”,“就喜欢和不喜欢而言。我们还发现,艺术接触更多的人不太可能属于一个岛屿。如果有人确实属于一个岛,他们的性别影响了他们属于哪个集群。我们讨论替代假设,岛屿发生的可能机制,以及它们可能的社会影响。