Science+Project

How do Optical Illusions affect your Brain?

**Problem Statement:** What causes your Brain to react to optical illusions?
 * Hypothesis:**The researcher belives optical illusion affect the brain by resulting physical symptoms within the human body.

Research (page1) What we see doesn’t always depend on our eyes. It also relies on how our brains interpret the images our eyes pick up. What we see in optical illusions is actually our brain’s translation of what it believes is to be there. This is why we sometimes think we’re seeing one thing when the reality it’s not as it seems - our brains have been hoodwinked. Vision. Where does it come from how do we see what we see? Our sight comes from beams of light bouncing off objects into our eyes. Rays of light enter our eye through the cornea. The cornea is a transparent, protective layer on the top surface of our eyes. The ray of light then continues through the pupil, the dark circle in the very center of your eye and into the lens. As the light goes though you pupil, a muscle called the iris makes the size of the pupil change based on the amount of light that is available. The more light that is available, the more you pupil will shrink. On the other hand, the less light available the more your pupil will expand. Directly behind the pupil is the lens and it focuses the image that you are trying to look at through a jelly-like substance called the Vitreous Humor onto the back surface of the eyeball, called the retina. The retina is filled with exactly 150 million light-sensitive cells called rods and cones. Rods allow you to identify shape and they tend to work best in dim light. Cones, being the counterpart, allow you to tell colors and tend to work best in bright light. Both cells will send the information to the brain through the optic nerve. Interesting fact, everything we view is upside down. Our brain takes on the job of flipping the images around so we can see them. The brain does this in the visual cortex. (Page 2) So now that we know how our vision works what causes us the confusion of optical illusions? The way our brain interprets the images sent from retina determines all of this.Optical illusions often occur because of mistaken judgments or errors in vision. For instance, bright colored objects appear larger than darker objects; even those of the dimensions. When objects of contrasting colors are placed in close vicinity, it plays tricks of movement and color definition on the eyes. By sending mixed signals to your brain, optical illusions affect your body as well. Many optical illusions operate by changing how you focus on the image. Changing the focus of your eyes requires some very fine muscle movement. This can result in headaches. Headaches are one of the few symptoms caused by optical illusions. An optical illusion works by presenting dual images in contrasting colors The illusion is made by using the negative space of a picture to create positive space for another picture. These images trick your brains because of the way they are wired. Normally, we will attempt to make sense out of anything that we see visually. This is why a drawing of a stick figure, which doesn't like anything like a real person, will look to us like a human being, and becomes a replacement for the image of a person as far as our brain is concerned on the matter. Because of this, when we look at an image, we first pick out what we feel is the most useful part that will help with picture interpretation. Regardless of what someone notices first, something is then set off in the brain. This can be intentional or subconscious. By subconscious I mean that something will jump out at you that’s not right about the picture. At some point, the image will switch in the brain. What we see as the negative; or unoccupied space is swapped around, and seen as the occupied space. The image 'flips' the in our brain, creating the illusion.

-Luckiesh,M.(1922)Visual Illusions: Their Causes, Characteristics and Applications.(Chapter 2&3)Retrived May 4,2012,from [] -[] -[](Your sense of sight) -[] -Kessman,S(2007)What is an optical illusion and How does it work?Retrived May 4,2012,from:[]
 * Bibliography:**

-Laptop -3 samples of optical illusions -sample subjects(15 people) -Data reording sheet/Journal -Timer -Chair -Library corner -Writing utensil -Observer -Graphing chart -Calculator -Chair
 * Experimentation:**
 * Materials:**

1.Gather all materials 2.Have all sample subjects come to a secure corner in the library 3.Set laptop on a table inside the library 4.Pull up chair to the table in front of the laptop 5.Pull up the 3 different optical illusion slides under 3 different tabs on the laptop 6.One at a time have the sample subjects sit in the chair and view the laptop screen 7.Set the timmer at 30 sec 8.Pull up the first slide 9.Start the timmer 10.Have the subject watch the 1st illusion until the timmer stops 11.have the observer watch the subjects with the journal writing all changes in the subject such as,exesive blinking,rubbing ones eyes,twitcking,ect 12.Reset timmer when it stops 13.repeat step 10 with the second illusion 14.have the observer repeat step 11 15.repeat step 12 16.repeat step 10 with the 3rd illusion 17.Have the observer repeat step 11 18.repeat steps 7-17 for the rest of the sample subjects 19.record all data on the data chart and journal 20.use the calculator to calculate the percentages of each result 21.use the data to set up graphs 22.record the graphs 23.pack up all items 24.return to class!!!!!
 * Procedures:**

Line Graph data based on the time in which the sample subjects experienced symptoms caused by optical illusions.

The results of my experiments were intresting.The brain is affected by opical illusions through multiple outlets.Outlets such as the eyes and head.While watching and observing the sample subject their brains all reacted to the illusions in different ways.Some experienced Headaces or irritated eyes.Others experienced exessive blinking or nothing at all.Most of the symptoms occured within the first fifteen seconds of exposure to the illusion.This leads me to belive that after the brain could not interpret the pictue corectly the result was either head or eye symptoms or none at all. Basically the way the brain reacts in either phsyical or no effects.
 * Results:**

To conclude my project,my hypothesis was both correct and not.The brain when affected by optical illusions do resut in physcal symptoms but,in some cases it does nothing at all but confuse the mind.Optical illusions can be a fun and or challenging pass time,but the results may very.Through my research I've found that it is highly probably that you will experience a physical symptom as i side effect.I have also learned how sight itself works and how it ties to your brain.I've learned that the main culpret for optical illusions and its effects on the brain are mainly the brain of course,rods,and cones. Over all I belive my project was a success.I have increased my knowledge of optical illusions and how they affect your brain.I have also increased my skills on conducting and peicing together and that is an outstanding lesson unto itself.
 * Conclusion:**

In the real world optical illusions are used in eveyday life by just looking at the world around you.Here are a few places where you might see them. -meusems -book covers -on computers -in paintings
 * Application:**

My recomendation for this project is -more trials -increased time limits -a wider variety of illusions
 * Recomendations/Revisions:**