The Muller-Lyer Illusion
Stop and put yourself in the picture to the left. Pretend you are the photographer and observe the corner line closest to the ticket window, as well as the corner line next to the doorway where a father and his child are passing through. What can you infer about these two lines? Which one is longer? Shorter? Why? How can they be different if congruency is required for a sturdy building? You are probably wondering how the previous questions are even valid. Lets take a closer look at the picture and figure out the misleading views of "different" sized lines (on corners).
The picture shown above is a perfect model for describing the Muller-Lyer Illusion. Obviously, the line on the corner closest to the ticket window seems much larger than the line next to the doorway. However,this misconception of size is explained by Richard Gregory in 1966 through "misapplied size constancy scaling". Gregory explains that size constancy can easily change if distance is not taken into consideration. It is imperative for someone to always remember this because if this aspect is overlooked, everything may become distorted. Gregory had one concern, which pertained to viewing objects in three-dimensional versus two-dimensional. It was believed that when someone viewed objects on a two-dimensional scale, illusions would be created.
The next time you're standing on a street corner with surrounding buildings, stop and take in the view. You will most likely be able to identify the Muller-Lyer Illusion by taking your view of the buildings and glancing over the corners of each structure. You run a great risk of thinking that one line of the corner is longer than another, when in reality they are exactly the same and it's your perception playing tricks on you.
Below is a video clip that explicitly explains the Muller-Lyer Illusion step by step so you can have a greater understanding of what this theory specifically identifies.
The picture shown above is a perfect model for describing the Muller-Lyer Illusion. Obviously, the line on the corner closest to the ticket window seems much larger than the line next to the doorway. However,this misconception of size is explained by Richard Gregory in 1966 through "misapplied size constancy scaling". Gregory explains that size constancy can easily change if distance is not taken into consideration. It is imperative for someone to always remember this because if this aspect is overlooked, everything may become distorted. Gregory had one concern, which pertained to viewing objects in three-dimensional versus two-dimensional. It was believed that when someone viewed objects on a two-dimensional scale, illusions would be created.
The next time you're standing on a street corner with surrounding buildings, stop and take in the view. You will most likely be able to identify the Muller-Lyer Illusion by taking your view of the buildings and glancing over the corners of each structure. You run a great risk of thinking that one line of the corner is longer than another, when in reality they are exactly the same and it's your perception playing tricks on you.
Below is a video clip that explicitly explains the Muller-Lyer Illusion step by step so you can have a greater understanding of what this theory specifically identifies.
I have always wondered about our perception of stores, and why some look bigger than others, when really they are all the same size. When glancing at your picture, I was amazed that the line for "Tickets" was the same size as the line in the corner, they look so different from one another. Like you stated, Gregory made a good point when he stated that when distance is not taken into consideration, size can definitely change. Now, after watching your video, I will start to look at the environment around me and see if I can spot something similar to this illusion!
ReplyDeleteI too find this amazing, I never knew that the perception was just an illusion. It's crazy how are eyes see things just because of the way they are laid out and how far they are away from you.
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