Every day sees a new mind puzzle trending on social media; sending many of us cross-eyed and even a little crazy if the illusion can’t be seen or solved.
The trick of these visual illusions is the relationship between our eyes and brain.
According to Inside Science, the way some people notice an image in an illusion quicker than others, boils down to picture “fooling” the brain and taking advantage of “shortcuts.”
“When you look at something, what you’re really seeing is the light that bounced off of it and entered your eye, which converts the light into electrical impulses that your brain can turn into an image you can use,” science filmmaker Kirk Zamieroski wrote.
“This process takes about a tenth of a second, but your eyes receive a constant stream of light, an incredible amount of information, so it’s really difficult for your brain to try to focus on everything at once.
“It would be like trying to take a sip of water from a fire hose. So your brain takes shortcuts, simplifying what you see to help you concentrate on what’s important, which helps compensate for your brain’s tenth-of-a-second processing lag.
“Optical illusions fool our brains by taking advantage of these kinds of shortcuts,” he added.
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