Have you ever seen an optical illusion? Just as people learn how to read, they can learn how to make sense out of the rays of light that hit the eyes. The brain learns ‘rules’ of seeing; for example, the further things are away from you, the smaller they appear. But when an object or drawing breaks the rules, or when it could be interpreted in different ways, your brain tends to apply the ‘rules’ and may give you wrong information or one perception of the information that makes most sense. Perception refers to the interpretation of what we take in through our eyes. Optical illusions can use colour, light and patterns to create images that can be deceptive or misleading to our brains. They simply trick our brains into seeing things which may or may not be real. Try out some of these illusions and discover just how tricky it can be for your brain to accurately interpret the images from your eyes.
