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Different Visual Illustrations in Perception Essay

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Different Visual Illustrations in Perception How can visual illusions illustrate top down processes in perception? Contrast this with a visual illusion that can be explained through bottom up processes.

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Figure 1 Muller Lyer illusion

There are many suggestions to explain how visual illusions can be perceived. These suggestions include physical illusions, bottom up illusions and top down illusions. An example of a physical illusion is …show more content…

In this illusion the lines in both A and B are the same length however the arrows pointing inwards in A make the line appear longer than when the arrows point outwards as in B. Gregory explained this illusion in 1970 by suggesting that the lines are perceived as being three dimensional rather than two-dimensional. This is shown in figure 2 where A is shown as the inside of the room and B shown as the outside. By perceiving the objects in this way A becomes further away than B. However given that the lines are of the same size by applying the principle of size constancy it can be concluded that A is perceived as being longer than B. For this to be perceived knowledge about what the outside and inside of a building looks like must be taken into account. This therefore shows how prior knowledge is used when the image is perceived and so shows how the Muller Lyer illusion is perceived through top down processing.

Similarly the ‘Necker Cube’ illusion (figure 3) can also be explained through top down processing. In this illusion the cube flips between two different interpretations of the picture whereby one of the faces of the cube can appear to be at the front of the cube but also can appear to be at the back of the cube. Work carried out by Wheatstone

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