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LIGHTBULB MOMENT

Optical illusion asks people what image appears after staring at a lightbulb for 25 seconds

AN OPTICAL illusion is asking people to stare at a black and white image of a lightbulb to try and fool the brain. 

You need to look at the image for 25 seconds, before immediately staring at a blank white wall for a mysterious illusion to appear. 

What do you see after staring at this lightbulb image for 25 seconds
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What do you see after staring at this lightbulb image for 25 secondsCredit: Optics4kids

The baffling brain teaser was shared on Optics4Kids but has been entertaining adults and youngsters alike. 

So what do you see when you try it out?

After you’ve glanced at the lightbulb for a period of time, you should see a glowing lightbulb when you stare at paper or the wall. 

According to illusions.org, “Our brains decipher negative and positive images in an interesting way.”

A similar illusion occurs when you stare at this black and white image of the Queen
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A similar illusion occurs when you stare at this black and white image of the QueenCredit: Illusions.org
Try the same process with this image of Jesus
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Try the same process with this image of JesusCredit: Illusions.org

A similar process is seen in the optical illusions of the black and white faces of Jesus and the Queen. 

The site continues: “As with The Face of Jesus and The Queen’s face, we reverse the negative image and turn it into positive. 

“With the light bulb illusion, the glass of the bulb is a large area of black, so that when we look away, the reversal results in a dazzling bulb.”

The science behind optical illusions

  • Optical illusions make a little bit more sense when you learn that our eyes have very little to do with what we see and it is our brains that play the key role in creating images and trying to protect us from the potential threats around us
  • Our brain is constantly trying to make sense of the world at the quickest pace it can despite the world being in 3D and the images on our retinas being in 2D
  • It can be really difficult for your brain to interpret everything at once so it will often take shortcuts and give you a simplified version of what you see so you can have quicker reaction times if the object you're looking at looks dangerous
  • When you look at an object what you're really seeing is the light that bounced off of it and entered your eye, which is converted into electrical impulses that your brain then turns into an image
  • Our brains can warp straight lines if an object in the middle of them looks like it's drawing closer as it wants to emphasize the potential threat
  • Different colours and light and dark can make the same sized objects look different or make patterned images look like they're spinning

Meanwhile, these optical illusions will REALLY confuse you – so can you tell what’s actually going on in them?

And these mind-bending optical illusions that ‘break’ your brain – from gravity-defying tourist to a car-sized cat.

Naked woman covered in body paint is only recognisable as a butterfly in this optical illusion
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