The Illusion of Depth Perception

[Null Simplex]

Here is a realization I had while studying geometry a decade ago, as well as a spiritual recontextualization of the realization that I’ve added recently.  The realization is that depth perception is an illusion.   For many of you this is obvious.  For others though, I am willing to bet that some believe that the visual field is 3-Dimensional, the dimensions being left-right, up-down, and forward-back.  The issue is that forward-back doesn’t exist on the visual level, but rather it is an elaborate illusion your brain creates in order to survive.  The brain uses binocular vision (two eyes), objects overlapping one another, parallax, shading, and other things to create this elaborate illusion. 

To prove that depth perception is an illusion, I will create a scenario where your brain isn’t able to utilize any of the tools mentioned above.  Next time you look up at the stars, choose one specific star to focus on.  Notice that from where you are standing, you are able to tell which stars are above your star, below your star, to the right of your star, the left of your star, as well as any combination of those directions.  However, without using complicated scientific equipment, you cannot tell which of those stars are closer to you than your chosen star, and you cannot tell which stars are further away from you than your chosen star.  This is because the stars are too far away for binocular vision to be a factor, no stars are overlapping one another, parallax cannot be utilized over the course of an evening, and stars aren’t affected by shadows. 

This is why things like pictures, paintings, films, videogames, etc. are able to feel 3-dimensional despite the medium they are displayed on being flat surfaces.  They are able to utilize many of the tools that your brain uses to create depth perception, with things such as VR even utilizing binocular vision to further cement the illusion of depth.

I used to think this was just some cool realization about biological vision and geometry, but now I have a slightly different view on the subject.  The reason that depth perception is an illusion is because everything is you.  Everything that you thought you were separated from via “space” and “distance” is actually 0 centimeters away from you and there was never any separation, at least from the first-person perspective.  In the same way that all of time (past, future, and present) is being imagined right now, the entirety of space is located right here in your visual field.  When you look up at the stars, they aren’t lightyears away, they are located exactly where you are and exist as qualia in your visual field.  Instead of thinking of things in your visual field as distinct objects which you are looking at, try to see the entirety of your visual field as a flat movie screen 0 centimeters away from your eyes.  In a sense, this post could be retitled "The Illusion of Distance". 

Hopefully this made a modicum of sense.

[justfortoday]

7 minutes ago, Null Simplex said:

Here is a realization I had while studying geometry a decade ago, as well as a spiritual recontextualization of the realization that I’ve added recently.  The realization is that depth perception is an illusion.   For many of you this is obvious.  For others though, I am willing to bet that some believe that the visual field is 3-Dimensional, the dimensions being left-right, up-down, and forward-back.  The issue is that forward-back doesn’t exist on the visual level, but rather it is an elaborate illusion your brain creates in order to survive.  The brain uses binocular vision (two eyes), objects overlapping one another, parallax, shading, and other things to create this elaborate illusion. 

To prove that depth perception is an illusion, I will create a scenario where your brain isn’t able to utilize any of the tools mentioned above.  Next time you look up at the stars, choose one specific star to focus on.  Notice that from where you are standing, you are able to tell which stars are above your star, below your star, to the right of your star, the left of your star, as well as any combination of those directions.  However, without using complicated scientific equipment, you cannot tell which of those stars are closer to you than your chosen star, and you cannot tell which stars are further away from you than your chosen star.  This is because the stars are too far away for binocular vision to be a factor, no stars are overlapping one another, parallax cannot be utilized over the course of an evening, and stars aren’t affected by shadows. 

This is why things like pictures, paintings, films, videogames, etc. are able to feel 3-dimensional despite the medium they are displayed on being flat surfaces.  They are able to utilize many of the tools that your brain uses to create depth perception, with things such as VR even utilizing binocular vision to further cement the illusion of depth.

I used to think this was just some cool realization about biological vision and geometry, but now I have a slightly different view on the subject.  The reason that depth perception is an illusion is because everything is you.  Everything that you thought you were separated from via “space” and “distance” is actually 0 centimeters away from you and there was never any separation, at least from the first-person perspective.  In the same way that all of time (past, future, and present) is being imagined right now, the entirety of space is located right here in your visual field.  When you look up at the stars, they aren’t lightyears away, they are located exactly where you are and exist as qualia in your visual field.  Instead of thinking of things in your visual field as distinct objects which you are looking at, try to see the entirety of your visual field as a flat movie screen 0 centimeters away from your eyes.  In a sense, this post could be retitled "The Illusion of Distance". 

Hopefully this made a modicum of sense.

Yeah, reality is a VR game.

that’s why you can’t see your own head, instead you have the “world”. Which is just your own mind.

Your senses aren’t receiving input from a physical universe, but rather this screen in front of you just plays a hallucination

[Batman]

Nice explanation, thanks!

Notice that every perception is illusory. Perceptive faculties are shaped around the survival of the organism, not for the purpose of "perceiving" the Truth. In other words, our senses provide us with distinctions that are relevant to our persistence as biological life form, and not with direct nature of what is. Illusion is an essential aspect of survival and life. In fact, the more complex the life form is, the greater is the illusion. Consider what is the experience of a unicellular organism, which require only a very simple perception in order to maintain life. 

[Zeroguy]

17 hours ago, justfortoday said:

Yeah, reality is a VR game.

that’s why you can’t see your own head, instead you have the “world”. Which is just your own mind.

Your senses aren’t receiving input from a physical universe, but rather this screen in front of you just plays a hallucination

VR or not.Games are meant to be played.

[LastThursday]

19 hours ago, Null Simplex said:

This is why things like pictures, paintings, films, videogames, etc. are able to feel 3-dimensional despite the medium they are displayed on being flat surfaces.

You can actually see it in action by looking at a video on a flat screen and covering one eye. After a short while it pops out and becomes more 3D. When you use both eyes, parallax kicks in and weakens the illusion from a flat screen (because there is no difference in each eye). With only one eye, parallax can't be used, so other cues kick in more strongly. This shows vision is "constructed". Who needs VR?

[RMQualtrough]

Salvia Divinorum completely ends the brain's ability to process depth. The entire visual field becomes one incomprehensible flat blob image.