You’re walking upstairs You step onto the dark blue bottom step and begin to climb Halfway up you look down and realize the steps are no longer beneath you They’re over your head There’s air below you and you’re falling fast This can’t be real It has to be an illusion and it is
Do you get the picture You’ve been climbing Schroeder’s Staircase And you’ve just descended into the artful world of optical illusions How did this happen There are geometry books and other science books which describe how optical illusions fool the eye But the basic ideas don’t have to be homework Your brain naturally tries to see the big picture Your brain tries to fit any puzzle pieces into the big picture Your brain wants your eyes to make sense of what they see Your brain tries to make even impossible things make sense Your brain likes to see the impossible so you get this book
In a broad sense if you see something which looks different from its actual measurements it’s an optical illusion Illusions use contrast A shirt with up-and down stripes can make you look taller and thinner Illusions use motion Circles within circles within circles make you feel like you’re falling And even if you know the pictures in the book are on flat paper ancient rules of perspective and color help you imagine some are 3-D We all accept those rules but they can be broken and that’s how you find yourself on a flipping staircase
Artful means tricky The illusions in this book are crafty and they’re art too Some may be familiar to you All of them are designed to open your eyes to the different kinds of illusions you can encounter Looking at illusions may take time Look and then look again Watch your first impressions change And don’t worry if you don’t see the trick We all see things differently and your mind may refuse to be fooled As you move through the pages you’ll learn which types of tricks affect you most Then put down the book and look into the real world They’re out there too You’ll see
