Every illusion has a backstage crew. New research shows the brain’s own “puppet strings”—special neurons that quietly tug our perception—help us see edges and shapes that don’t actually exist. When ...

Your brain is lying to you right now. Not maliciously, and not because something’s wrong with it. It’s doing exactly what evolution designed it to do, making split-second decisions about the world ...

Optical illusions have long fascinated scientists, artists, and everyday viewers. These visual puzzles can make stationary objects appear to move, straight lines look bent, or colours seem to change ...

Most people use the terms “optical illusion” and “visual illusion” interchangeably, much like “fluid” and “liquid” or “sofa” and “couch” are synonyms. At first glance, this might be seemingly pedantic ...

An optical illusion is dividing the internet over whether the picture is of pink slime or three forks laid out on a hot pink dish towel — and it’s making people’s brains hurt. Deemed as the “black and ...

The study of visual illusions in animals provides a compelling window into both the evolutionary continuity and diversity of perceptual processes. Research indicates that many species, from domestic ...

Duping a guppy is easier than duping a ring dove — at least when it comes to a classic optical illusion. In the Ebbinghaus illusion, two identical circles placed side by side are each framed by a set ...