The change in that study was dramatically different: they had half the screen black and half white and were flipping which side was which at that rate. Yes, most people could perceive that. The study included 10 participants, all in their 20s. They didn't ask about headaches other observed effects afterward.
The purpose of that study was to show that the traditional fusion frequency, which is in the range of 50 to 90 Hz for most people, is valid only for what it was initially measured, i.e. the threshold where a sequence of complete static images is perceived to consist of continuous movements.
But when some new display technology is based on showing various image fragments at moments shifted in time, expecting that the eye will integrate them over time to form complete images and continuous movements, that may require higher sampling frequencies, up to 10 times higher, due to the interaction with the fast subconscious eye movements.
The study results are not surprising at all, and this is an effect that should be kept in mind by anyone who designs displays.
But when some new display technology is based on showing various image fragments at moments shifted in time, expecting that the eye will integrate them over time to form complete images and continuous movements, that may require higher sampling frequencies, up to 10 times higher, due to the interaction with the fast subconscious eye movements.
The study results are not surprising at all, and this is an effect that should be kept in mind by anyone who designs displays.