WHAT ARE COGNITIVE ILLUSIONS?
Cognitive illusions occur when your perspective is distorted due to assumptions about the world (also referred to as unconscious inferences). These types of illusions are the most common of the three.
Checkered Shadow Illusion
On the checkerboard, tile A looks darker than tile B, however they are actually the same colour. If you place your finger between the tiles, this will become more obvious.
This illusion was created in 1995 by Edward Adelson, a visual science professor at MIT. The reason why the two tiles look like they are different colours is because when we see something with a shadow, our brain knows that it looks darker than it really is. The brain makes up for this by interpreting shadowy surface as being lighter than they really are. So in this illusion, since tile B is in a shadow, the brain perceives it as being lighter.
This illusion was created in 1995 by Edward Adelson, a visual science professor at MIT. The reason why the two tiles look like they are different colours is because when we see something with a shadow, our brain knows that it looks darker than it really is. The brain makes up for this by interpreting shadowy surface as being lighter than they really are. So in this illusion, since tile B is in a shadow, the brain perceives it as being lighter.
Ponzo Illusion
The two green lines appear to be different sizes, but they are actually the same.
This illusion was created in 1911 by an Italian psychologist named Mario Ponzo. The reason why the lines look like they are different sizes is because our brain judges the size of an object based on the background. The brain perceives the two vertical lines as being parallel lines that are receding into the distance. Due to this, the brain thinks that the upper green line is further away, and this leads it to perceive the line as being larger than it really is.
This illusion was created in 1911 by an Italian psychologist named Mario Ponzo. The reason why the lines look like they are different sizes is because our brain judges the size of an object based on the background. The brain perceives the two vertical lines as being parallel lines that are receding into the distance. Due to this, the brain thinks that the upper green line is further away, and this leads it to perceive the line as being larger than it really is.
Hering Illusion
The two red lines appear to be slightly bent, however they are actually straight and parallel.
This illusion was created in 1861 by the German physiologist Ewald Hering. Hering's theory was that the effect is caused because our brains overestimate the angles of intersection between the red and blue lines. A researcher from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute named Mark Changizi believes that the effect is caused because we tend to visually predict the near future. Since it takes a short period of time for the brain to perceive light after it hits the retina, Changizi thinks that the human brain adapted to these delays by generating an image that will occur within less than a second. He says that since the blue lines are converging, your brain thinks that you're moving forward, and this causes it to make the red lines bend it seems like you're going to move through them.
This illusion was created in 1861 by the German physiologist Ewald Hering. Hering's theory was that the effect is caused because our brains overestimate the angles of intersection between the red and blue lines. A researcher from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute named Mark Changizi believes that the effect is caused because we tend to visually predict the near future. Since it takes a short period of time for the brain to perceive light after it hits the retina, Changizi thinks that the human brain adapted to these delays by generating an image that will occur within less than a second. He says that since the blue lines are converging, your brain thinks that you're moving forward, and this causes it to make the red lines bend it seems like you're going to move through them.