Why do people see faces in inanimate objects?

[Still Waters]

People have long seen faces in the Moon, in oddly-shaped vegetables and even burnt toast, but a Berlin-based group is scouring the planet via satellite imagery for human-like features. What's behind our desire to see faces in our surroundings, asks Lauren Everitt.

Most people have never heard of pareidolia. But nearly everyone has experienced it.

Anyone who has looked at the Moon and spotted two eyes, a nose and a mouth has felt the pull of pareidolia.

http://www.bbc.co.uk...gazine-22686500

[Ashotep]

I always felt they did because they were wanting to see a face.

[scowl]

The theory is that we humans are really good at quickly recognizing and evaluating the features of human faces and that ability naturally translates to things that aren't human.

[ReaperS_ParadoX]

I thought it was the brains natural reaction to try and make sense of what the person is seeing, whether it be a cloud or some other object

Also to be honost i think its kind of cool

Edited June 3, 2013 by R4z3rsPar4d0x

[Bendy Demon]

Anyone who has looked at the Moon and spotted two eyes, a nose and a mouth has felt the pull of pareidolia.

I heard that the Japanese often see a rabbit in the moon.....or at least that is what I read somewhere.

Edited June 4, 2013 by Ryu

[Jello]

I think people are always trying to make something familiar out of a pattern. We see faces every day so that's the most common thing in our brains.

Unless you're like me and have some form of prosopagnosia. I can't recognize a face in real life, let alone make one up.