The rabbit-duck illusion is one of many illusions identified by Joseph Jastrow in 1899. The duck-rabbit drawing was first used by American psychologist Joseph Jastrow … A great example of this "rush to explain" was this "floating city" video: The internet is filled with optical illusions, both intentional and accidental. Known as the Jastrow illusion, there are a few different theories as to how this effect is created. The fact that the shorter side of one figure is next to the longer side of the other somehow tricks the brain into perceiving one shape as longer and the other as shorter. There's a simple and elegant explanation. Note added April 25, 2020: The Jastrow figure is not, technically, an illusion -- it's an ambiguous (bistable or reversible) figure; but it serves as the basis for a magic trick. i need every information about the Jastrow- illusion, especially: - which theory does explain this effect - can you use the rules of gestalt-theory as an explanation -- birgitta stein (birgitta_stein@gmx.de), May 03, 2001 Answers I suggest Stanley Coren of UBC be asked. The short edge of the upper figure is compared to the long side of the lower one. The Jastrow Illusion is an optical illusion first defined by an American psychologist, Joseph Jastrow, more than 100 years ago. This may seem like a minor point (after all the Jastrow Illusion IS partly why it seems bigger), but I think it illustrates a very common problem of rushing to embrace an explanation - especially if that explanation is really interesting and has a cool name. The Jastrow illusion is an optical illusion discovered by the American psychologist Joseph Jastrow in 1889. Sometimes the explanation of the most dazzling and mysterious magic trick is right there on the surface. Eventually some clever Twitter users came up with a viable explanation for the otherwise inconceivable footage - the Jastrow illusion. ... this explanation by the Guardian breaks it down further. With their left sides aligned, the lower figure appears larger Shifting the upper figure to the right reveals their identical sizes The illusion is called the Jastrow illusion. Jastrow illusion - Explanation. This is because the shorter edge of “A” is directly adjacent to the longer edge of “B”. These classic optical illusions, baffling viral photos, and mind-boggling designs will leave your head spinning. In this illustration, the two figures are identical, although the lower one appears to be larger. He has undertaken more research than most into illusions. How is this possible? Jastrow Illusion Named after the Polish-American psychologist, Robert Jastrow in 1889, the bottom figure appears to be larger although they are both the same size. Well this is known as the Jastrow illusion and there is no definitive explanation for why we perceive the different sized segments. This illusion is seen during the creation process as some identically curved edges can appear smaller than others. The Bright Side team tried to learn some magicians’ secrets, and now we have a simple explanation of the most famous tricks. So I am informed by Peter Prevos , an Australian civil engineer with a doctoral degree in organizational behavior, who is also an amateur magician.