vendredi 18 août 2017
This Optical Illusion Is Blowing the Internet's Collective Mind
Terrific optical illusion by Victoria Skye. @RichardWiseman @chriscfrench http://pic.twitter.com/IeSFupAcfU
- Martin S Taylor (@martinstaylor) August 7, 2017
From a brick wall to the dress, we may be the most technologically advanced generation, but there's nothing we enjoy more than a good mental magic trick. It should come as no surprise, then, that any time someone spots one of these gems in the wild, it immediately makes its way to social media - and immediately goes viral. The latest example of our enduring love for optical mind-trickery, which made its way to the internet this week, comes in the form of a magician's brand new take on a classic optical illusion.
Fifty-eight-year-old Roswell, GA, resident Victoria Skye bills herself as a magical entertainer and illusion artist, and her personal website is chock-full of reasons why that's the perfect way to describe her work. But it took Martin S. Taylor posting one of her artworks to Twitter on Aug. 7 to make her truly go viral - and to spark a fierce debate over whether or not the many lines in the image are bent or, as many claim, are parallel and straight.
The "café wall" illusion is traditionally "an optical illusion produced by a black and white rectangular tessellation when the tiles are shifted in a zigzag pattern," according to Wolfram Alpha, which also confirms that "While the pattern seems to diverge towards the upper and lower right corners in the upper figure, the gray lines are actually parallel." In other words, it's all about the combination of math and colors, which Skye excellently illustrated in her image.
Don't worry, though, if you don't really see what you think you're supposed to - you're not alone. The internet is awash with individuals speculating on whether they had just fallen victim to a hoax, or if there was something wrong with a large percentage of the population's brains. Fortunately, thanks to mathematicians over the past couple of centuries, we can unequivocally say that the lines are in fact straight. You just have to convince your mind to see what it's supposed to.
Real talk: When you do actually see it correctly after staring at it for hours, boy is it a satisfying feeling. Spend some time with a full-size version of Skye's photo, below.
Related Posts:
What I Wish People Understood About My Choice to Wear the Hijab Eight months ago, I woke up one day and decided to start wearing the hijab. I understood that the decision would inevitably affect almost every aspect of my life - but I didn't care. I told my family that I was "just practic… Read More
What the "Syrian Malala," Muzoon Almellehan, Wants You to Know About Refugees Muzoon Almellehan was 13 years old when a civil war forced her to stop going to school in her hometown of Daraa, Syria. Fast forward six years and Almellehan, 19, is one of the lucky ones. She now lives in Newcastle, UK with… Read More
A Gay Cafe Owner Had the Perfect Facebook Response to a Homophobic Couple We've updated this story with comments from Horne. Homophobia, despite progress toward equality, unfortunately remains alive and rampant. A gay cafe owner in Cairns, Australia, named Jay Horne posted his tale of prejudice (a… Read More
Sen. Tammy Duckworth - Who Lost Her Legs in Iraq - Obliterates Trump's Transgender Ban As an experienced veteran who nearly lost her life in Iraq, Sen. Tammy Duckworth might be one of the members of the Senate best equipped to analyze Donald Trump's military transgender ban. And the Democrat from Illinois did … Read More
Would Ellen DeGeneres Have Donald Trump on Her Show? Simply Put, Hell No Ellen DeGeneres recently spoke with Megyn Kelly about her new eponymous morning talk show on NBC. During the interview, DeGeneres asked Kelly if she would have Donald Trump on her show. "Definitely," Kelly said. "I mean, I w… Read More
0 comments:
Enregistrer un commentaire