Rubber Hand Illusion

Growing up watching medical shows, like Grey's Anatomy, I thought that I was well-versed in understanding how basic human functions go. However, with each psychology class I take, it is evident that I am still learning new things that the human body can do, particularly the brain.

The rubber hand illusion is when an experimenter places a rubber hand in front of a participant (where his/her hand would normally be) on a table in front of him/her. The experimenter will begin to stroke the rubber hand with something like a paint brush in synchronized motions. After some time, the subject will begin to feel as if the rubber hand is their hand, and will report feeling the motions of the paint brush. However, I feel as if I would need to actually partake in this experiment to really understand the illusion, but nonetheless, it is amazing what the brain can do. Because the participant is perceiving the hand as their own, they will actually begin to feel as if the paint brush is stroking his/her hand!