70s Window Illusion That Seems To Pass Through Objects Continues To Fool Minds
Image via Shutterstock
The mind boggles as to how far optical illusions can trick the brain. You’d think nothing surprises people anymore, but one decades-old trick, the ‘Ames Window’, has resurfaced to baffle a new generation of viewers.
Demonstrated in a 70s Australian television show called The Curiosity Show, the baffling party trick centers around a “window” that is really a trapezoid, creating the appearance of one side of the window being closer to you. The window appears to oscillate when it is actually making 360-degree turns.
However, the real kicker is when the host inserts a pen into the picture, causing it to look as if it is permeating through the window— just as how one would run into the wall to get to Platform 9¾ in Harry Potter.
“This illusion broke my brain,” wrote Twitter user @DrewCoffman, who shared the clip. It has since amassed over 2.1 million views.
Named after Adelbert Ames, Jr, who discovered the phenomenon in 1947, the ‘Ames Window’ illusion starts with an odd-shaped window to play with the viewer’s perception. Since you already have an idea of what a window looks like, changing its shape and spinning it might do weird tricks to your brain.
You’d have to see this multi-layered illusion to not believe it.
this illusion broke my brain 🤯 pic.twitter.com/BvgO2TcwFE
— drewcoffman.eth 𝕚𝕤 𝕠𝕟𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕖 🟢 (@DrewCoffman) June 14, 2021
[via NDTV, cover image via Shutterstock]
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