World of the Bizarre

Train track illusion is baffling the Internet

By T.K. Randall
April 9, 2016

Image: AI-generated (Midjourney) When are two identical wooden track pieces not identical ? That is the question that has been freaking out the Internet this week thanks to a mind-bending new Twitter video.

Posted by Marc Blank-Settle, the footage shows two seemingly identical track parts being stacked on top of one another and then laid out side-by-side. While stacked up the parts appear to be the same, but when shown side-by-side one suddenly appears to be much larger than the other.

My toddler's train track is freaking me out right now. What is going on here?! pic.twitter.com/9o8bVWF5KO

— marc blank-settle (@MarcSettle) 6 April 2016

Far from being a magic trick however, the phenomenon is actually a well known optical illusion first described by psychologist Joseph Jastrow more than 100 years ago.

The two track pieces are of course identical, but when placed side-by-side the longer side of one contrasts with the shorter side of the other to make them look as though they are different sizes.

Source: Huffington Post

Tags: Optical Illusion