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OPTICAL ILLUSIONS

Here are some more great illusions, enjoy  ......

Hey rabbit! Can you pull a Tom out of your hat?

This is the Bunny/Duck illusion. At first glance, what do you see? Now give it some time, but do not focus on one certain area. Then ask yourself – what do I really see? Now look again. You might be surprised. Hint; the duck is looking left, the bunny is looking right.

Do you see some squares or rectangles? Really, this is nothing more than a bunch of lines going in every which direction, but the way our mind interprets these lines is totally different.

This is probably one of the hardest illusions to see. It took over thirty minutes for me to actually see both sides of it the first time, so don't get discouraged if you can't see both sides right away. Give it time. When you first look at it, do you see an old man with ivy leaves around him, or do you see a couple kissing? Be patient and give it some time. You will eventually see it.

This is probably the most famous illusion of all time. Almost everyone has seen it. What do you see at your first glance of this illusion? Do you see an old lady, or do you see a young women? They are both there.

How about this one? Do you see the face of a Native American, or an Eskimo?

Do the sides of the square appear to be bent in? Wait, now that is impossible. Believe it or not, they are as straight as they come. If you don't believe me, take a straight edge and see for yourself.

Just stare at the center of this illusion for several seconds. Be relaxed and try not to blink if possible. If you are not careful your ENTIRE WORLD might start moving. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Do the two vertical lines in this illusion appear to be equal in length? Well they are. If my word is not good enough for you, go and get a ruler to check for yourself. They are exactly the same size.

Where does this triangle end? Man – this one could get ugly.

How about this one?

And then this one?

Will these stairs ever end?

Think you could build this?

This is another famous illusion. At first glance, tell me what you see. Do you see a vase? Or do you see something more? Look Closely.

When you first look at this, how many colors do you see? Some might say they see 3 or even 4 colors, but there are 2 – red and green. People usually think they see 2 shades of red, but there is only 1. Look closely and you will notice on one side that white boxes surround the red boxes, and on the other side, green boxes do. Due to the placement of these boxes you get the "illusion" of different colors. Since white is not considered to be a color (it is the presence of all colors in scientific terms) we can safely say that there are 2 colors present here.

Ask yourself, which circle looks bigger? The one on the left, or the one on the right? No, wait. Look again. They are the same size.

How many ways can you view this cube? Is the blue side outside the box or is it inside? Is it on the back of the box of is it on the side? Keep these questions in mind as you look. Now examine it closely, and let the light blue side guide you. Now, look again.

This illusion is similar to the one above, but it poses a new question. Is the red ball outside the cube, inside the cube near the front, or inside the cube on the side? Where do you think it is?

Which vertical line is longer? The one on the left, or the one on the right? They are the exact same size. Kind of hard to believe isn't it? If you still aren't sure about it, go and get yourself a ruler and measure it.

Which soldier is taller? Neither one. They’re all the same size. Still got your ruler handy?

At first glance, what do you see? Could it be the word "liar" or is it something more? I would definitely give this one a second look.

I thought this illusion was pretty easy the first time I saw it. However, I started asking people what they saw when they looked at it, and they did not see what I saw. They just saw some splotches of black ink, but there is a hidden message here. Can you find it? Let the white part help guide you.

When you look at this you probably see a triangle. There is not one there. The way the circle parts are cut out, makes us think there is a triangle there even though there is not one.

Are the diagonals parallel? You bet they are.

I have heard this illusion called the dancing elephant and several other things. I want you to look at the elephant's feet and legs. How many are actually there?

What is going on here? Is this a man playing a sax, or is it a woman in silhouette? I think I would take a closer look at this.

Is the book looking towards you... or away from you?

Do the two horizontal lines appear to be equal in length? Well, I am sure by now that you know they are. Take a ruler and see for yourself.

When you first read this, what does it say – A Bird In The Bush? If you read this more carefully you will find that it says A Bird In The The Bush. If you caught it the first time, good for you, but I bet you you did not catch it this time.

Stare at the dot inside MY initials for at least 15 seconds, then look up at the ceiling, eyes fixed and count to 15. As you stare at the ceiling, you'll see the magic happen.

Is this a woman looking in a mirror or a skull?

Look at the + in the center.

Are you looking down on the workers from above, or are you looking up at them from below?

For those engineers and computer buffs who would like a complete description (in a new window) of how this masterpiece came into being click here.

Slowly move your nose to almost touch the dot to see the woman move through the ring. Do you notice who the magician is? Hmmm...

Read the Magic Sentence above. Don’t see a sentence? No? That’s okay. It’s a magic sentence. Keep staring at it as you back away from the monitor and the magic will happen. (You may have to get out of your chair.) If you’re like most computer users AND you actually got out of your chair to see this – well, that was magic too!

And last but not least – watch the frog turn into a horse.

These results just show that everybody is different. Everybody is their own self and we may all see things differently. Although we see things differently, these results show that everyone finally does see the illusion. It may take a while, but finally all see the illusion.

Some people just do not see anything, but with a little help they too can see the illusion. Other people see something out of the ordinary. I guess it just depends on you. Illusions are just errors in perception of the illusion. They are differences in the appearance of a measurable aspect of the world such as size, distance, and shape. Sometimes there are hidden things in a picture. There may be another picture or a design inside the original picture. We get used to how things are supposed to be, and sometimes our brains get the clues all wrong. That’s it for now; hope you enjoyed them. Now it’s your turn to be a magician. Click here to bring up a new window and try your hand at it.