Can't Visualize An Apple? Try This Apple Illusion to Experience What Others See

The Apple Illusion: A Glimpse into Visualization

For many, picturing a red apple in their mind's eye comes naturally. Yet, for those who can't visualize (aphantasia), this seemingly simple task is an enigma. How can one explain the experience of visualization to someone who has never experienced it before? Enter the apple illusion.

This optical illusion offers a brief window into the world of visualization. By staring at an object for an extended period, one can experience a fleeting "image" even when the object is no longer present.

Key points about the apple illusion: Provides a visualization experience for people who can't visualize through visual perception

Creates a temporary "mental image" when the object disappears

Offers insight for people with aphantasia into what visualization might feel like

This illusion has more to do with visual perception than imagination. Still, it provides a useful example for those who can't visualize to grasp what visualization might be like for some visualizers.

How Does the Afterimage Illusion Work?

The magic behind the illusion lies in a phenomenon known as an afterimage.

The science behind afterimages: Step 1: Fixate on an object without moving your eyes for about 30 seconds or more

Step 2: Receptor cells in your eyes start to tire out and deplete their photopigments

Step 3: Your brain adjusts, interpreting the decreasing signal level as the new norm

Step 4: When the object is removed, the least exhausted cells spring into action

Step 5: This creates a negative image of the original, even in its absence

This experience is like visualizing something in its absence. Just as the afterimage allows you to "see" an object that isn't physically there, visualization involves creating a mental image without the presence of the actual object. It's a similar process of the mind filling in the gaps, conjuring up an image where there is none.

What's It Like To Visualize?

Try the apple illusion experiment:

Experiment with the apple illusion to see for yourself. Keep your gaze focused on the centre point without moving your eyes for about 30 seconds, then turn your gaze to the blank white space and blink several times. You'll briefly see an afterimage of a red apple.

Expected results: Red apple shape appears briefly

Lasts 5-15 seconds typically

Demonstrates perception-based "visualization."

What is Visualization, Perception, and Aphantasia?

In the vast realm of human cognition, the lines between perception, visualization, and aphantasia can sometimes blur. While the apple illusion offers a glimpse into visualization, it's essential to differentiate between these three concepts:

Perception

Definition: The process of recognizing and interpreting sensory stimuli

Characteristics: Grounded in the present moment, relying on immediate sensory inputs

Example: When you physically see an apple with your own eyes

Visualization

Definition: The ability to form a mental image using imagination and memory

Characteristics:

Aphantasia

Definition: A unique phenomenon where individuals lack the ability to voluntarily form mental images

Characteristics:

Hyperphantasia and the Spectrum of Imagination

Aphantasia represents one end of what is commonly referred to as the visual imagination spectrum. At the complete opposite end lies hyperphantasia.

The visualization spectrum: Aphantasia: No voluntary mental imagery

Typical visualization: Moderate, less detailed mental images (most common)

Hyperphantasia: Exceptionally vivid and "perception-like" mental images

What is Hyperphantasia?

Individuals with hyperphantasia possess an exceptionally vivid ability to visualize images in their mind. Imagine not just seeing an apple but being able to visualize its every detail—from the shiny reflection on its skin to the tiny imperfections and blemishes. For someone with hyperphantasia, the mental image of an apple can be as crisp as seeing a red apple in front of them.

Important note:

Contrary to what is often portrayed in movies and popular culture, most people do not experience visualization in such a highly detailed manner. For the vast majority, their ability to visualize is only moderately vivid.

Associators vs. Projectors: The Modes of Phantasia

Beyond vividness and clarity, there's another dimension to consider: the mode in which individuals experience mental images. This brings us to the distinction between associators and projectors, as articulated by D. Samuel Schwarzkopf in this 2023 editorial entitled "What is the true range of mental imagery?"

Projectors

Experience: Perceive their mental images as if superimposed onto their actual visual experience

Characteristics: Imagination and reality merge, with imagined images potentially interfering with actual perception

Example: Visualizing an apple might mean "seeing" it appear in the space in front of them as if it were really there

Associators

Experience: Have a different experience while still having clear visual representations

Characteristics: Example: Strong sense of an apple, but it doesn't interfere with their actual visual field

Understanding these distinctions is crucial in grasping the vast landscape of human imagination and its impacts. It emphasizes that imagination is not a one-size-fits-all phenomenon. Instead, it's a rich tapestry of experiences, with each individual having their unique way of "imagining things," shaping their perceptions and interactions with the world around them.

Key Insights From the Apple Illusion

The apple illusion, while a product of perception, serves as a bridge to understanding visualization.

Main takeaways: For those who can't visualize, it's a rare opportunity to "see" what visualization might feel like

While no analogy can perfectly capture the essence of visualization and all its varieties, the apple illusion brings us one step closer to understanding the cognitive diversity of human imagination

It demonstrates the spectrum of human visual experiences and promotes understanding of neurodiversity

Questions For Reflection

How does your internal experience compare to this illusion?

Are you more of a projector or associator type?

Share your experience! Did the apple illusion work for you? How did it compare to your usual mental imagery experience? Leave a comment below to share what you discovered.

We also invite you to share this apple illusion graphic with friends and family to spark a conversation about our invisible differences and delve deeper into the many wonders of human imagination.

Enjoyed This Illusion? Here Are Other Experiments to Try

Other Aphantasia Assessments and Experiments: - The standard assessment for measuring visualization vividness

- Interactive tool to explore different dimensions of your visualization capacity and compare with others

- Distinguishes between visual and conceptual imagination

- Scientific method for measuring mental imagery strength

- Tests your ability to manipulate objects in your mind's eye

Each of these experiments offers unique insights into your personal imagination profile and helps map where you might fall on the fascinating spectrum of human imagination.

Sort comments by

MICHAEL DORFMAN•recently

I saw the apple but only in B & W.

Bob Zenhausern•recently

Negative afterimages are a function of the sensory process of seeing. I am an aphant, and I see very well. Aphantasia is the inability to recall a memory in visual form, even though you can recall all the information about the person

Karen Murphy•recently

That's astonishing! I can see a faint red apple with a white dot floating off in the white area, it looks surreal, like a poor 3d image or hologram. I'll go back to this again and again I'm sure. How though are people not distracted by the images-it blows my mind. Can it be switched on and off like a tap-isn't it dangerous if your driving? I can't wait for science to figure out how I can experience the other senses. 66 and marvelling at other people's minds.

Cindy D•recently

Wow. That was amazing. If I had any doubts that I have aphantasia, they are gone now.

Sarah Forde•recently

Thank you for this! I was just talking to a friend about this the other day. Glorious.

Space Anarchist•recently

I have visual hypophantasia and spatial aphantasia. I am a pure projector. I can make images like simple drawings come up but they appear to be floating in front of my face rather than inside or behind my head. What I find really strange and hard to believe is the idea of having a "second screen" inside one's head that can even contain three-dimensional space. How would the geometry even work? It seems that it must involve more than three dimensions or perhaps curved spacetime like in a black hole. I think it would be very interesting if "inner space" could be scientifically analyzed in terms of physics and mathematics. It must have some kind of shape and structure which could be modeled with mathematical equations, yet I have never seen any experiments along these lines so far. And if the scientific and mathematical principles were discovered, then it might be possible to simulate it in a way that people like me could experience.

Christine Caulfield•recently

I have to say - that optical illusion is freaky as hell! I now don't understand how people who can see images aren't constantly distracted...