Very interesting optical illusion (?) (1 Viewer)

[mark alan]

Either that or I can really stop time. Whichever it is, it is pretty neat.
Stop time

 

[Andrew Pratt]

Cool!

 

[Scott McGillivray]

Takes a few tries for me to get it, but when it works, it is really strange. Like the instructions indicate, the second hand does not adjust ahead for the several seconds I see it stop. It simply picks up again at that spot.

I am sure some of our more educated scientific minds here will have a good explanation.

Looking forward to the analysis!

 

[Bryan X]

This website has all kinds of neat optical illusions.

http://www.michaelbach.de/ot/index.html

 

[Lucia Duran]

I can't do it at all. I must be defective.

 

[Steve Felix]

There's some explanation at the "Why did time stop?!" link at the bottom of the page. I can't get it to work at all, either, though.

 

[mark alan]

Well don't get around me, I can now freeze time.

 

[MarkHastings]

I got it to work, but it's so stupid. It's an optical illusion. You 'think' it picks up where it leaves off, but that's because when you focus back on it (and see the second hand move again), you're tricked into thinking it's picking up where it stopped.

Mind games! It's all mind games.

 

[DaveF]

I'm not sure what's supposed to happen. I note the clock, look away for a few seconds, and look back. The second hand is a few seconds farther than it was.

Those of you who can "stop time", do it but first mentally note what time the second hand was on before looking away. Does the second hand really pause if you know its start and stop time?

 

[MarkHastings]

Dave, that's the thing about the illusion...when the supposed "time stop" occurs, you really can't focus on the actual time. You think you can, but you really aren't - it's a blur.

Unless someone can stop the second hand for more than a minute, I ain't buying it.

 

[Linda Thompson]

I just got in from work, and I knew it had seemed like the night just dragged on and on... Now I find out it's because YOU GUYS have been piddling around in here and STOPPING TIME all day... Sheesh! Thanks a LOT, guys... How about do it on one of my DAYS OFF?!?

Also...I just tried it, and couldn't get it to work. Oh, well...

 

[Inspector Hammer!]

Great Scott!! I tried it and something rather alarming happened, my cat was walking across the floor and then he just froze, is that normal?



To take what Mark said further, it's all bulls**t, just a trick for the eyes and nothing more. It's fun, though.

 

[SethH]

From your description I don't think you did what the directions said. You don't look away from the clock. You are supposed to look at the other side of the clock so that you can still see the second hand, but are not focusing on it. It's a pretty cool optical illusion.

 

[BrianW]

I'm pretty sure this is simple retinal fatigue.

Have you ever watched the scrolling credits at the end of a movie, and when they stop scrolling up at the very end, it looks as if the words are scrolling down when they're actually stationary? Your retina gets used to the upward movement, and when it stops, your retina (or maybe it occurs in the brain) is still processing things as if they were scrolling up, so stationary text, which doesn't comply with that, appears to scroll down

The clock illusion is, I believe, the same thing. Staring at the second hand induces retinal fatigue. Then by looking 15 to 20 seconds ahead of the second hand off the clock's face, you're focusing the second hand in a position on the retina that causes it to "cancell out" further movement of the second hand while you overcome retinal fatigue.

Just as in the move theater, the effect is temporary, but it can be quite disorienting.



Ether that, or we all have the ability to manipulate time.

 

[MarkHastings]

And to take that even further...Once the credits "Stop", they actually aren't stopped at all.

24 frames are whizzing by your eyes so fast, it creates the illusion of standing still.

Just like a helicopters blades will appear to go one direction...slow up, then go in reverse direction.

 

[Jason Pancake]

Webmaster for the site:

 

[MarkHastings]

Is that photo supposed to be moving?????

 

[mark alan]

I got curious so I found a downloadable clock with a sweep hand, so I can make the clock larger and center on a white background. It is definitely an alteration of how you sense time passing. I can make the clock appear to stop and when the second starts moving it starts from the same place.

It really is a weird feeling. It's like you are mentally stopping the second hand, but as soon as you realize it, you lose it and it goes back to normal. If anyone else wants to try it, you can find the clock here

 

[Chu Gai]

What happens with digital clocks and what about basketball players with great peripheral vision?

 

[Lucia Duran]

Still can't do it....then again I still don't see those pictures in those magic eye pictures everyone else seems to see.

defective I tell ya!