A stunning optical illusion that appears to show horses on top of a mountain has sparked a dispute between painters and scientists, but who’s right?
Optical illusions tend to cause a stir online, but a recent image said to show several horses on top of a mountain has sparked a dispute between its creator and a group of scientists, but how many can you see?
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How many horses can you see? Credit: Bev Doolitte/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Bev Doolitte’s portrait of five patchy-skinned horses standing together on a snowy ledge has been a mainstay on the National Institute for Environmental Health Services (NIEHS) website for some time.
In it, what appear to be four white and brown horses and a foal are grouped together and blend with the brown background of rock and snow, giving the image an optical illusion.
But scholars say Doolitte’s painting actually has seven horses, not five as its creator claims.
According to the group, the painting is made of seven horses, including some partial horses, such as the horse’s head and rump.
If you can’t see seven, perhaps this clever note from one of the NIEHS scientists could help.
“I see one on the left side looking out, and in the middle four faces come together – in that group, the brown nose of one (the second from the left) covers the right side of the face of the lower one.
“To the right is a little horse standing on its side, and above is the last part of the seventh. Unless I’m hallucinating.”
If you still don’t see seven, rest assured that you are among the many who believe that the actual number pictured is five.
An optical illusion was published in December that made straight lines appear curved and caused people to feel “dizzy.”
The bizarre visual puzzle, shared by genomics researcher Laurel Coons, features a checkered pattern with green lines outlining gray squares.
He went on to challenge the public to spot where curved lines meet among various straight equivalents.
But the illusion quickly went viral on social media after users were confused by the “trippy” image with the task appearing to be more difficult than it first appeared.
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Dev Doolitte claims there are five horses, but scientists say there are sevenCredit: Bev Doolitte/National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
Categories: Optical Illusion
Source: newstars.edu.vn