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November 8, 2011
Best optical illusion ever?
Wrote Kathryn Schulz, "Maybe the best optical illusion I've ever seen; definitely the one most likely to make you queasy."
I won't argue.
Note that it's not an animated GIF; whatever appears to be happening on the screen is, in fact, happening inside your head.
Gives pause for thought about whether there is, in fact, a world outside the one each of us creates for ourselves.
[via @bengoldacre]
November 8, 2011 at 04:01 PM | Permalink
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Comments
I'm with Flautist. Try as I may, I can't see movement. Does that make me slow or fast?
Posted by: Bert | Nov 19, 2011 5:53:53 PM
I'm starting to see that this illusion has a few requirements to work.
Type of display, possibly refresh rate but most importantly,
Your mental state (yea, we can all larf now).
I noticed when I am very relaxed (natural or wine induced) the effects are great, however
when I am focused, alert, agitated or concentrate on one part of the illusion,
it doesn't work or slightly works.
Posted by: Joe Peach | Nov 9, 2011 7:11:09 PM
The image moves on my desktop, but not on the laptop.
Posted by: Kay | Nov 9, 2011 4:39:59 PM
Tamra,
The "Mandelbrot" is the French mathematician http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benoit_Mandelbrot
He coined the term "fractal" and defined one set - and the equation used to creat this image is from his set. The dark black rounded center object is the classic form of his set.
Posted by: 6.02*10^23 | Nov 9, 2011 1:48:08 PM
Nah, if I was all that in touch I'd be rich or something.
The only "creative" thing I've got is maybe a Roz-Chast-like (how's that for a dead giveaway of zero originality) volume of optical illusions, none of which work. Call it maybe, Optical Disillusions, or something.
Actually, seriously, I think something's wrong with my visual wiring-up. I've shown this to some friends and they've all squealed with delight, and that started an illusion-swapping, none of which work for me. Strange.
Posted by: Flautist | Nov 9, 2011 12:43:18 PM
Wow, flautist! How can it not move for you??? You are so deeply creative and in touch with a higher muse??? Does this mean it only works for lower life forms? Call me a Neanderthal, 'cuz it melts all over the page and strobes when I blink. By the way, what does mandelbrot (the hard biscuit my grandma used to make) have to do with fractals? I'm confused. http://www.fractalartcontests.com/2009/entries.php
Posted by: tamra | Nov 9, 2011 11:52:20 AM
Looks like a flow chart of my life.
Mandelbrot has a coa.
Posted by: 6.02*10^23 | Nov 9, 2011 1:08:37 AM
This one is much better. I don't know why our brains are wired this way, but I thought it was really cool. Comments are not necessarily SFW, but it's worth looking at the picture and then blinking like it says.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Vi0J7
Posted by: Michael | Nov 8, 2011 8:27:25 PM
Wow....it works for me. It a squirming mess.
Posted by: Joan | Nov 8, 2011 8:20:54 PM
Fooey! What the hell? What's it supposed to do? I was all excited, looking forward to a swirly-whirly quease-fest, and all I see is a static image of some slightly nauseating colors around what looks like an aerial view of a hairy, bent-over chubby person. Are you supposed to put yourself through some other gyrations before staring at it?
Evidently, nothing at all is happening inside my head.
Posted by: Flautist | Nov 8, 2011 6:37:12 PM
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