Illusion

Encyclopedia : I : IL : ILL : Illusion

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''This article is about the phenomenon known as an illusion. For the novel by Richard Bach, please see Illusions (novel). Musical groups: For the English band see Illusion (UK band), for the group from Poland see Illusion (band). For the Japanese software company, see Illusion Soft.

An illusion is a distortion of a sensory perception. Each of the human senses can be deceived by illusions, but visual illusions are the most well known. Some illusions are subjective; different people may experience an illusion differently, or not at all.

• Optical illusions, such the use of false perspective, exploit "assumptions" made by the human visual system. Such include motion illusion, grid illusions, etc.''
• Mirages are optical distortions through the atmosphere that may be photographed. While the perceived reality (such as water in the desert) is illusory, the visual image (of a reflective surface) is real.
• Auditory illusions, such as the Shepard tone, exploit our hearing.
• Touch illusions exploit the human sense of touch.
• Stage magic is a popular form of entertainment based on illusion. Magicians use tricks to give their audiences the impression that seemingly impossible events have occurred. See magic (illusion).

In psychiatry the term illusion refers to a specific form of sensory distortion. Unlike an hallucination, which is a sensory experience in the absence of a stimulus, an illusion describes a misinterpretation of a true sensation so it is perceived in a distorted manner. For example, hearing voices regardless of the environment would be an hallucination, whereas hearing voices in the sound of running water (or other auditory source) would be an illusion.

See also

• Trompe l'oeil
• Delusion
• Hallucination
• Helmholtz, Hermann von
• Augmented Reality for a more radical approach to the possibility of illusion
• Maya (Hinduism)

External links

• [Optical Illusion]
• http://www.grand-illusions.com/ Grand Illusions : Check out the Dragon!!

 

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