Latest

optical illusions

·September 15, 2025·5 min read

Illusion-Making Neurons Show How the Brain Constructs Reality

Scientists have discovered specialized IC-encoder neurons that make the brain “see” illusions, such as squares or triangles that aren’t truly there. These neurons receive top-down instructions from higher brain areas and then fill in missing contours in the visual cortex, actively constructing what we perceive.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·June 13, 2024·5 min read

Illusory Faces Trigger Same Biases as Real Faces

Our brains assign the same biases to faces seen in inanimate objects as they do to human faces. Known as face pareidolia, this phenomenon includes seeing faces in objects like the moon or toast. The study found that feminine-looking illusory faces are perceived as happy faster, while masculine-looking ones are seen as angry quicker. These findings suggest that face-like patterns activate similar socio-cognitive processes as real faces.

This shows a large black hole surrounded by small black dots on a white background

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Visual Neuroscience

·May 31, 2022·4 min read

This Illusion, New to Science, Is Strong Enough to Trick Our Reflexes

The highly dynamic, new "expanding hole" optical illusion can be perceived by 86% of people. The illusion is so good at deceiving the brain, it causes pupillary dilation as though we are walking into a darkened room.

Featured Neuroscience

·July 8, 2021·5 min read

There’s a ‘Man in the Moon’: Why Our Brains See Human Faces Everywhere

Face pareidolia, a phenomenon where the brain is tricked into seeing human faces in inanimate objects, may occur as a result of the brain processing the perceived facial expression in the same sequential way it perceives a human face.

This shows the starburst optical illusion

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Visual Neuroscience

·June 29, 2021·3 min read

A New Kind of Visual Illusion Uncovers How Our Brains Connect the Dots

A newly designed optical illusion is helping researchers better understand visual processing and perception. The illusion creates a subjective reality in what we see, highlighting the constructive nature of perception.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·December 20, 2020·5 min read

Visual Illusion That May Help Explain Consciousness

A new visual illusion sheds light on redundancy masking and how we perceive our visual environment. The findings provide new insight into human consciousness.

This shows a swirling ring optical illusion

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·August 24, 2020·4 min read

Optical Illusions Explained in a Fly’s Eyes

It seems that flies are as susceptible to optical illusions as humans. Turning on and off some neurons that govern motion detection in flies, researchers were able to alter the insects' perception of illusory motion.

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·August 14, 2020·6 min read

Why the Brain Is Programmed to See Faces in Everyday Objects

Face pareidolia, the phenomenon of seeing facelike structures in inanimate objects, is a perceptual phenomenon that occurs when sensory input is processed by visual mechanisms that have evolved to extract social content from human faces.

This shows two dots against a monochrome gradient background

Featured Neuroscience Visual Neuroscience

·June 17, 2020·7 min read

Study sheds light on a classic visual illusion

A new study sheds light on why we get tricked by a classic optical illusion. Researchers found brightness estimations occur before visual information reaches the visual cortex, probably originating in the retina.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·July 27, 2019·3 min read

The case against reality

A new theory argues consciousness creates neural activity, and humans have evolved to see what is needed for survival. Perception, it is argued, is a user interface which may not necessarily be real.