It’s a weird phenomenon. If targets A and B are presented 100 ms apart, both are likely to be correctly identified. If targets A and B are presented 700 ms apart, both are likely to be correctly identified. But if targets A and B are presented ~300 ms apart, only A is likely to be correctly identified.
It’s called “attentional blink” because there is a reliable duration after an initial stimulus is presented at which you likely can’t focus your attention well enough to identify a new target. Targets presented before or after the blink are easier to identify than targets presented during the blink window.
A caveat: vision science is not my area of expertise, so I would defer to an expert if one offered a clearer explanation of the phenomenon.
It’s a weird phenomenon. If targets A and B are presented 100 ms apart, both are likely to be correctly identified. If targets A and B are presented 700 ms apart, both are likely to be correctly identified. But if targets A and B are presented ~300 ms apart, only A is likely to be correctly identified.
It’s called “attentional blink” because there is a reliable duration after an initial stimulus is presented at which you likely can’t focus your attention well enough to identify a new target. Targets presented before or after the blink are easier to identify than targets presented during the blink window.
A caveat: vision science is not my area of expertise, so I would defer to an expert if one offered a clearer explanation of the phenomenon.