Trying to think creatively – Part One
Which horizontal line is longer than the other?
In this famous illusion, devised by psychologist Mario Ponzo, the upper horizontal line looks longer than the lower one, even though both are actually the same length. (Look at the picture upside down). Recent theories of how the brain works say the perception that the lines are different in length comes from our life experiences. In our world, lines that converge at the top are generally parallel but are receding into the distance. Railroad tracks and roads look like this. Because our brain has become accustomed to transforming such converging lines into parallels it gets confused looking at this picture.
What does having our brain being tricked have to do with thinking creatively?
Stay tuned for Part Two.