BRAIN BUSTER
Amazing optical illusion looks like it’s moving – even though it’s completely still
A MIND-BOGGLING optical illusion has surfaced on Twitter and it's almost impossible to see it for what it really is.
The illusion features a simple 2D orange silhouette that isn't actually moving but the rapidly changing shades of the background look like it's wandering around in the direction of superimposed arrows.
Covering the arrows with your hand doesn't make a difference to the movement your brain thinks it's seeing because the trick relies on the colour contrast surrounding the edges of the shape.
Twitter user Jagarikin the video that shows the outline of a Japanese mascot character seemingly moving.
However, if you look at the tip of the character's antenna or bottom of its feet then you might be able to show your brain that it's not moving at all.
This is a take on the 'perpetual diamond' illusion that was created by Arthur Shapiro and Oliver Flynn in 2018.
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Professor Shapiro recently posted the mind-bending illusion alongside a challenge for the public.
He tweeted: "The Perpetual Diamond: The diamond remains fixed in one place but appears to move up, down, left or right.
"See how far away you can be from your screen before the effect goes away."
This trick is often used in basic computer animation to make stationary objects look like they're moving.
The science behind optical illusions
This brief explanation may help to unscramble your brain...
- Optical illusions make a little bit more sense when you learn that our eyes have very little to do with what we see and it is our brains that play the key role in creating images and trying to protect us from the potential threats around us
- Our brain is constantly trying to make sense of the world at the quickest pace it can despite the world being in 3D and the images on our retinas being in 2D
- It can be really difficult for your brain to interpret everything at once so it will often take shortcuts and give you a simplified version of what you see so you can have quicker reaction times if the object you're looking at looks dangerous
- When you look at an object what you're really seeing is the light that bounced off of it and entered your eye, which is converted into electrical impulses that your brain then turns into an image
- Our brains can warp straight lines if an object in the middle of them looks like it's drawing closer as it wants to emphasize the potential threat
- Different colours and light and dark can make the same sized objects look different or make patterned images look like they're spinning
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Did you work out how the optical illusion works? Let us know in the comments...
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