You will need:
- Your eyes
- 4 images
Find out how a simple optical illusion indicates the level evolvement and
advancement of the human brain.
INSTRUCTIONS
- Carefully study the images given in Section 1. Do they look normal? Note down what you may find different about the images.
- Have a look at the faces in Section 2. They are the exact same images as in Section 1. But how do they look?
RESULT
While the faces may be upside down, the eyes and the mouth are arranged in a manner which seems to be correct. However, only once the image is turned, do we realize how disproportionate the eyes and the mouth are? This is known as the ‘Thatcher Illusion’. Based on an image of Margaret Thatcher, a scientist by the name of Peter Thompson first discovered this effect in 1980. Scientists believe that our medial prefrontal cortex and posterior cingulated, which are responsible for processing social cues, are not developed or evolved enough to identify and read facial expressions when a face is upside down. Many studies are still being conducted so as to understand why our brain cannot comprehend emotional signs when the facial image is upside down.
