Figure 4.

a, Two example trials of the delayed estimation used in Experiment 2: on each trial, participants fixated the central dot for 500 ms (not shown) and then saw a 200 ms teardrop. After a 1300 ms delay period, a second teardrop was presented at a different random location, and the participant used a mouse to adjust this second teardrop's orientation so that it matched the remembered orientation of the first teardrop. b, Definition of θ_L (the angular location of the teardrop tip) and θ_O (the orientation of the teardrop): θ_L was defined by the location (in polar coordinates) of the tip of the teardrop object relative to an invisible circle with a radius of 2.17°, centered on the fixation dot. θ_O was defined by the orientation of the tip of the teardrop relative to the center of the teardrop. c, Independence of θ_L and θ_O. The tip of a teardrop with a given θ_O could be presented at any of the 16 θ_L values, and a teardrop with a given θ_L could have any of the 16 θ_O values. d, Probability distribution of response errors collapsed across all participants.