How many black dots can you see in this optical illusion?

Virgin Radio

15 Jul 2022, 09:06

Remember when Magic Eye pictures were all the rage? You were either the kind of person who could work them out pretty quickly or you would frustratedly spend ages staring at the pesky things seeing absolutely nothing but a selection of random shapes. 

Another optical illusion which is causing people to see different things is one that was created by game developer Will Kerslake. In the picture, grey lines intersect on a white background, and there are a number of black dots in the image. But how many are there?

Take a look below at the picture, which actually contains 12 black dots, but the chances are that you won’t be able to see them all at the same time.

When you looked at the picture, the dots probably blinked in and out, depending on which part of the picture you were focusing on, and you likely only saw three or four at one time, rather than all 12, right?

If you’re wondering why, when looking at the picture, the black dot in the centre of your vision was solid, but the ones around it seemed to appear and disappear, it’s because humans don’t have especially good peripheral vision. So, as explained by The Verge, when you stare at one black dot, your visual system actually fills in what’s going on around it. Because the pattern of grey lines is regular, your brain guesses that it will just continue in the same manner, missing the intermittent black dots. The dots disappear and reappear as your eye moves around.

So there you go. If you can see all 12 at once, then your peripheral vision is incredibly impressive, and if you can only see a few at a time, with the dots seemingly appearing and disappearing, then you’re just a regular human-being like the rest of us!