Thursday, April 25, 2024
Contact    |    RSS icon Twitter icon Facebook icon  
Unexplained Mysteries
You are viewing: Home > News > Science & Technology > News story
Welcome Guest ( Login or Register )  
All ▾
Search Submit

Science & Technology

Optical illusion can determine how old you are

By T.K. Randall
September 23, 2018 · Comment icon 22 comments

Do you see a young or an old woman ? Image Credit: PD - William Ely Hill
According to researchers, your age group can be determined by how you initially interpret this image.
One of the world's best known optical illusions, this age-old drawing is what's known as a 'double image' because your brain can interpret it in two very different ways.

In a recent study, two psychology professors at Flinders University, Australia, showed this picture to 393 participants between the ages of 16 and 68 and asked them what they could see.

Surprisingly, the results indicated that the younger the observer, the more likely the chance of seeing a young woman in the image. The older the observer, the greater the tendency to see an old woman.

While it is possible to see both if you look at the image long enough, the study focused on which of the two interpretations each participant saw within the first half-second of viewing the picture.
The study aimed to determine if the own-age biases of the participants affected what they could see.

"What we found was that young people tended to see the young lady in the image, whereas with older people they tended to see the old lady," said Professor Mike Nicholls.

What did you see when you first viewed the picture ? Can you see both interpretations ?



Source: Lad Bible | Comments (22)




Other news and articles
Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #13 Posted by OverSword 6 years ago
When I saw the cropped image on the front page I thought it was an ol woman. When I clicked in and saw the entire picture it was clearly young. Too bad I saw the cropped version now I’ll never know.
Comment icon #14 Posted by tcgram 6 years ago
I saw the young lady first, then the older lady and I'm old enough to have a 30 yr old.   
Comment icon #15 Posted by carolinacottontail 6 years ago
Saw both! Girl and Crone. 69 years young!
Comment icon #16 Posted by kobolds 6 years ago
I don't get it , I only see young women , where's the old women ? and i 50
Comment icon #17 Posted by Calibeliever 6 years ago
Same here. I came to the comments hoping someone could point the old woman out to me. I can't see it... and I'm oooold.
Comment icon #18 Posted by TripGun 6 years ago
I see them both at the same time. What's happening to me!!
Comment icon #19 Posted by Calibeliever 6 years ago
Finally saw it. The necklace is the old woman's mouth and the bottom of the neckline is her chin. hth
Comment icon #20 Posted by LucidElement 6 years ago
So many of these great optical illusions . I�m 33 saw the younger then older, but I�ve seem that picture years ago. Those are always fun. Remember those magic eye books?
Comment icon #21 Posted by GoldenRabbit 6 years ago
I seen the old woman first but i can also see the younger lady as well but it seems my brain wants to see the old lady if i focus on looking at the young lady i keep reverting back to only seeing the old lady. Very interesting optical illusion im 45 years old
Comment icon #22 Posted by Blizno 6 years ago
I saw the young woman first and the old woman a bit later. I'm 63.


Please Login or Register to post a comment.


Our new book is out now!
Book cover

The Unexplained Mysteries
Book of Weird News

 AVAILABLE NOW 

Take a walk on the weird side with this compilation of some of the weirdest stories ever to grace the pages of a newspaper.

Click here to learn more

We need your help!
Patreon logo

Support us on Patreon

 BONUS CONTENT 

For less than the cost of a cup of coffee, you can gain access to a wide range of exclusive perks including our popular 'Lost Ghost Stories' series.

Click here to learn more

Recent news and articles