Mind-Bending Optical Illusions

Optical illusions are images or pictures that we perceive differently than they really are. Plato (vegetarian) believed the source of vision was the soul, and that light emanated from our eyes and illuminated objects. About a thousand years later, Hasan Ibn al-Haytham, known today as “the father of modern optics,” was the first to correctly explain the theory of vision. To prove this, let’s take a look at some optical illusions. Whichever image you see, you’re correct. However, you can’t see the two images at the same time. Why do we initially see one image first, and the other maybe after some time, or not at all? One possible theory is called top-down processing, created by British psychologist Dr. Richard Gregory. This theory states that our brains form an idea of a big picture first from previous knowledge, and then breaks it down to more specific information. The Ponzo illusion, developed by Mario Ponzo in 1913, suggests the human mind judges an object’s size based on its background.

The Ames Room was invented by Adelbert Ames Jr. in 1946. Due to the room’s shape and uneven floor, as people move about the area, they appear larger or smaller based on where they’re standing. So, this is the Ames Room. This is the room where it makes one person really tall, and me, very small. I’m 5 (foot) 3, (160 centimeters) and I’ve never been this tall in my life. This room is an exhibit at the Museum of Illusions, which features 40 locations across 25 countries on four continents. Recently, a new category of optical illusion has appeared: the accidental illusion. These photographs are captured at just the right moment and from the right perspective to make you question whether they’re real. These images provoke many questions, truly making us wonder what’s real within the physical reality we live in.