The main character in “The Night Face Up” is unable to determine which of his two sets of experiences is reality. Read about a disorder with similar symptoms.
Category Archives: How We See Things
How 3-D Glasses Work
Even the cheesiest 3-D movie effects can be startling. How does a cheap pair of glasses make an image look like it’s coming right at us?
The 12 cognitive biases that prevent you from being rational
We may think we make our decisions in a rational way, based on the facts, but it turns out that our brains have other ideas.
Widely set eyes give hammerhead sharks exceptional binocular vision
The bizarre head shape of the hammerhead shark gives it a distinct advantage in hunting prey.
Mavericks and Heretics
Get an overview of ideas that were once rejected but that we now see as valid.
Leap Seconds
A day is a day long, right? Not so fast. Author Randall Munroe explores the difference between what we perceive and how fast the Earth is turning.
Did Stone Age cavemen talk to each other in symbols?
When we see images of magnificent cave paintings, we tend to focus on the depictions of animals. But interspersed with these figures are symbols that may reveal the beginnings of human language and writing, far earlier than researchers expected.
Emily Dickinson’s Letters
Dickinson’s mentor Thomas Wentworth Higginson shares his impressions of her along with several of her letters to him.
Optical Illusions: When Your Brain Can’t Believe Your Eyes
How do optical illusions fool us? In this article, Cari Nierenberg explores the root cause: a mismatch between what the eyes perceive and how the brain interprets the information.
The Gambler’s Fallacy
This short video, part of a critical thinking series, discusses how we misinterpret patterns and the problems that can result from that error.
Experiments show how quickly we adjust to seeing everything upside-down
Imagine spending every minute of every day seeing everything upside down. Simple tasks like pouring a glass of juice would be far from automatic, but only at first.
The Decline of Violence
We may perceive the world as being increasingly violent, but a look at long-term trends reveals the opposite. Why is our view of violence at odds with reality?
Is Blind Hiring the Best Hiring?
Unconscious bias has been shown to have a striking effect on hiring decisions. Companies that use blind hiring—being unaware of an applicant’s race, gender, age, or disability—wind up with more diverse, capable, and loyal workers.
Auden’s Musée des Beaux Arts
Auden’s poem is only partly about the painting “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus.” In this article, Scott Horton discusses the other source for Auden’s images and provides historical context for both the poem and the art: Breughel’s “The Census at Bethlehem.”
Overlooked but Undeterred, a 101-Year-Old Artist Finally Gets Her Due
Carmen Herrera has been creating innovative paintings and sculptures for decades. Gain insight into her striking vision and why her work went largely unnoticed until she was well past the age at which most people retire.
Where Our Magic Lives: An Introduction to Magical Realism
Author Anna-Marie McLemore argues that magical realism is less a literary genre than a lens through which to view the world.
Vigorous Exercise May Help Prevent Vision Loss
It may seem strange, but giving your muscles a good workout can actually contribute to keeping your eyesight strong as well!
Mathphilic
Physicists of today still build on Albert Einstein’s now century-old theory of general relativity. Learn about the genius of Einstein’s math.
Have Egyptologists found Nefertiti’s long-lost tomb?
It’s all in knowing where and how to look: The long search for the tomb of a legendary Egyptian queen may be nearing its end.
Ada Lovelace, the First Tech Visionary
Nearly two centuries ago, the daughter of the poet Byron pursued a very different line of interest, one that has led to her being called the world’s first computer programmer.