The gestalt principles of perception - how do they explain how we not only sometimes perceive strange things, but also how we can appreciate works of art? In this episode I take a close look at why people see a lot of strange things around them - including me. We’ll see images on lemon slices, floor panels, building tops, etc. Why do we perceive these things?

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Resources for this Podcast

• Perceptual Set Experiment: go here to do the "Man on a horse" experiment I created. You can run this experiment on your friends, or even use it for a project in class. Have fun with it and let me know if you’ve got any feedback/suggestions. NOTE: The control condition is the "condition 1" button (random pictures which are unrelated to the man on the horse). The experimental condition is the "condition 2" button (pictures of animals which should help the viewer more easily see the man on the horse).

Here are a few sites which further explain some of the Gestalt principles of organization:

• You can learn how psychological gestalt principles apply to web design at the Web Design for Instruction site
• And more about psychological gestalt principles from the Spokane Falls Community College Graphic Design website.
• Here’s the NASA site where you’ll find the "Face On Mars" pictures.
• Here’s a good site which describes the gestalt principles. It’s from the Interaction Design website.

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 Episode 31: Lemon Slices and a New Face on Mars! Gestalt Principles at Work [19:10m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Perhaps you’ve heard about the Texas police officer who saw the face of the Virgin Mary in a lemon slice. If you haven’t heard about the story or seen the pictures, click here to learn more.

I’ve been holding onto a photo for a while which I believe, if you look at it just right, looks like another familiar biblical figure. Take a look and see if you see what I see. Of course, what I also see is the power of the Gestalt principle of “closure” - our tendency to complete incomplete images and to see patterns where they do - and often do not - exist. What do you think? Click on the images to see a larger version of each.

Here’s a close up of the same image:

In case you’re having trouble seeing it, here’s the same image with an outline around the robed figure:

Coming up on the next episode of The Psych Files: the Gestalt principles (in everyday life of course).

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Popularity: 45% [?]

Popularity: 45% [?]