Date: Tuesday, October 7st, 2025
Time: 11:00 - 18:00
Location: Aula am Campus, Hof 1 (Map)
We kindly ask you for a non-binding registration at medialab.philkult@univie.ac.at - Thank you!
The event is free of charge!
Program:
11:00-13:00 Hands On Eye Tracking Workshop
13:00-14:00 Lunch time
14:00-14:15 Welcome words
14:15-14:45 Theresa Matzinger: From the ears to the eyes: using pupil size to explore the perceived appeal of languages
Are some languages more appealing than others? And do specific linguistic features, such as phonetic or prosodic characteristics, contribute to this perceived beauty? Previous studies have been inconclusive, mostly because they primarily relied on subjective ratings prone to social desirability biases. In the hope to overcome this limitation, we explore a novel approach: using listeners’ pupil size as a proxy for perceived linguistic appeal. In this talk, I will share my experiences from running this experiment with an Eyelink 100 Plus eye-tracker.
Theresa Matzinger is a linguist and cognitive biologist, currently working as a postdoc at the Department of English and American Studies. Her research interests include language evolution, phonaesthetics, and the interplay between language and prosocial behavior.
14:45-15:15 Marik Roos: Measuring Activity in the Locus Coeruleus- Norepinephrine-System with Eye Tracking
The Locus Coeruleus is located in the brainstem, produces 95% of our brain’s norepinephrine and regulates not only arousal, but also both selectivity and intensity of attention. Due to the importance of the Locus Coeruleus for controlling dilation and constriction of the pupils those cognitive processes correlate with tonic and phasic activities of pupillary dilation which can be observed using standard eye tracking techniques.
Marik Roos is currently researching cognitive and predictive processing of music at the department of Musicology.
15:15-15:30 Coffee Break Networking
15:30-16:00 Xingyu Long: Watching in the Rhythm: Pupillary Dynamics and Ambient–Focal Oscillations in Aesthetic Perception
The distinction between ambient and focal viewing is well established: viewers typically begin with global scanning and shift to detailed inspection. However, aesthetic experiences often unfold over extended periods (minutes or even hours), unlike everyday viewing. Does this attentional shift follow the same pattern over time? This ongoing dissertation project explores that question by operationalizing the K-coefficient and pupillary time series to investigate potentially rhythmic attentional dynamics during sustained engagement with artworks.
Xingyu Long is a PhD candidate in the Cognitive Research in Art History (CReA) Lab, affiliated with the Department of Art History at the University of Vienna.