Phantasia
Aristotle coins the term phantasia in De Amina (On the Soul), Part III, to describe a distinct capacity between perception and thought — a sort of ‘sixth sense.’ Phantasia is commonly translated to imagination and is often explained in the context of visualizing and dreaming.
Ekphrasis: The Ancient Art of Evoking Vivid Mental Images
Did the ancient Greeks know some people can’t create mental images? The forgotten history of ekphrasis challenges our assumptions about imagination and offers surprising insights into our image-saturated world.
Aphantasia and Hyperphantasia: What We Know After a Decade of Research
Since 2015, "aphantasia" has reshaped our understanding of imagination, revealing that not everyone visualizes mentally. This discovery, along with "hyperphantasia," highlights the diverse nature of human imagination.
Rethinking Hyperphantasia: Why "Extreme" Mental Imagery Might Be Two Different Phenomena
A neuroscientist's research reveals that people with hyperphantasia may actually experience fundamentally different types of "extreme" mental imagery - challenging our understanding of vivid visualization.
Can't Visualize An Apple? Try This Apple Illusion to Experience What Others See
This optical afterimage experiment allows people who can't visualize to temporarily 'see' an image that isn't there—using visual perception to demonstrate what others experience through imagination.
Are You a Visualizer or Conceptualizer? The Ball on a Table Test
The Ball on a Table experiment is a simple visualization test that reveals whether you think in pictures (visualizer) or concepts (conceptualizer). This revealing experiment, originally credited to u/Caaaarrrl, takes less than a minute but provides profound insights into how your mind processes information.
The Visualizer’s Fallacy
Understanding the hidden assumptions that lead to biases against aphantasics’ cognitive abilities.
Meta-Imagination in Aphantasia and the Language Game of Visualising with Researcher Chris Scholoz
Discover how individuals with aphantasia engage in imaginative exercises using language and how this experience differs from visualizers. Christian Scholz presents a new theoretical concept called meta-imagination.
What is normal imagination??
What does it mean to truly imagine? Exploring the differences in mental imagery experiences can reveal unexpected insights.
What do typical visualizers experience?
What do you "see" in your mind when visualizing? Share your experiences and help clarify this intriguing phenomenon!
Visualizing the Invisible
What do typical visualizers experience? How does my imaginative experience compare? Designer Melanie Scheer introduces a new way to visualize the visual imagination spectrum.
The Spectrum of Visual Imagination and its Relevance to Design
What do typical visualizers experience? How do hyperphantasics experience visual imagery? Melanie Scheer presents a new way to depict the visual imagination spectrum.
Is phantasia, the ability to visualize at will, similar to experiencing hypnogogic imagery?
Can non-aphants maintain hypnogogic imagery without losing it to conscious focus? How do these experiences compare?
When I “picture” something I’m recalling a real life image
Do you recall real-life images instead of creating new ones in your mind? Share your experiences with memory and visualization!
What if we redefined “vivid” and “clear as real” on the spectrum?
How do we define "vivid" imagery? Is there a clear line between imagination and reality, or is it all subjective experience?
Use of visualisation
Vivid dreams and strong visualization skills shape my teaching in microbiology, yet I struggle to translate these visions into drawings.
Shocking Insights: What Electrical Stimulation Tells Us About How We Visualize
Why might your mind's eye be blind while your friend can picture crystal-clear images? Shocking insights into the known neurodifferences in imagery vividness.
History of Aphantasia
Aphantasia, the inability to voluntarily form mental images, was first described by Francis Galton in 1880 but largely remained unstudied until 2015, when Professor Adam Zeman of the University of Exeter coined the term and began his research, bringing renewed scientific and public attention to this fascinating aspect of human cognition. The concept traces back to Aristotle's "phantasia" from 340 BC, establishing a rich historical foundation for understanding individual differences in mental imagery.
3 Things I Learned Dating an Aphantasic
What do you mean you can't picture a horse? For visualizers, it's hard to imagine what it's like not to visualize.
Francis Galton's Breakfast Study: The Discovery of Non-Imagers (Aphantasia)
When it comes to visualizing things in the mind's eye, our experience varies widely. Francis Galton's groundbreaking Breakfast Study revealed this phenomenon over 140 years ago, fundamentally changing how we understand visual imagery and its assessment.
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