FOUNDATIONS OF MISPERCEPTION A Faithful RESEMBLANCE

By Susana Martinez-Conde and Stephen L. Macknik

When seeing is believing

There are things in that [wall]paper that nobody knows the yellow pattern. As she descends into madness, she comes to but me, or ever will. Behind that outside pattern the dim believe that she is imprisoned by the wallpaper. shapes get clearer every day. It is always the same shape, Mental disease can aggravate pareidolia, as can fatigue and only very numerous. And it is like a woman stooping sleepiness. After a recent surgery, one of us (Martinez-Conde) down and creeping about behind that pattern. noticed faces everywhere, in places as unlikely as the ultra- —Charlotte Perkins Gilman, sound images of her left arm during an examination of poten- “The Yellow Wallpaper,” 1892 tial postsurgical blood clots. She realized at once that the ubiq- uitous faces were the product of lack of sleep and the high titer THE PROTAGONIST in Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s short story of pain medication in her bloodstream, so she was more fasci- “The Yellow Wallpaper” suffers from the most notable case of nated than concerned. Her doctor agreed but made a note in pareidolia in ction. Pareidolia, the misperception of an acciden- her le for a different drug regime in the future. Just in case. tal or vague stimulus as distinct and meaningful, explains many Luckily, the hospital room’s walls were bare, and there was no supposedly paranormal and mystical phenomena, including yellow wallpaper in sight. Our brain is wired to nd meaning. UFO and Bigfoot sightings and other visions. In Gilman’s story, Our aptitude to identify structure and order around us, com- the heroine, secluded in her hideously wallpapered bedroom and bined with our superior talent for face detection, can lead to having nothing with which to occupy herself, is driven to insan- spectacular cases of pareidolia, with signi cant effects in soci- ity—full-blown paranoid schizophrenia—by the woman behind ety and in culture.

GOD SAVE THE QUEEN Canadian banknotes issued in 1954 featured a portrait of British monarch Elizabeth II. The young queen looked majestic and serene, despite the grinning demon tucked in the curls behind her regal ear (colored red, to make it easier to see). Talk about having a royally bad hair day! Canadians were understandably appalled by what became known as the “Devil’s head” or “Devil’s face” series. In 1956 the Bank of Canada ordered banknote companies to darken the highlights in the queen’s hair, effec-

tively exorcising the King of Hell from Canadian currency. OTTAWA CANADA, OF MUSEUM/BANK COLLECTION/CURRENCY CURRENCY NATIONAL OF COURTESY

18 SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN

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Courtesy of NASA I e T the Red Planet’s region of . from back staring face, ?) (or maybe human amile-wide of likeness the spotted it 2, Viking ship sister its for sites landing government cover-up, however, and criticized criticized and however, cover-up, government a of explanation alternative the favored theorists Conspiracy head. a humongous like look it made shadows unusual that and Cydonia around mesas numerous of one was “sphinx” Martian n 1976, as as n 1976, h ientificAmerican.com M Fac ind. e f S c rom rom nasa ’s Viking 1 circled looking for possible possible for looking Mars 1circled ’s Viking S p a c e S cientists believed that the

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Cydonia became a priority for for apriority became Cydonia S attempts to hide the remnants of an ancient civilization. Martian taxpayers,” said Jim Garvin, then chief scientist for for scientist chief then Garvin, Jim said taxpayers,” photos, revealing the mystifying Face on Mars to be ... a mesa. amesa. ... be to Mars on Face mystifying the revealing photos, Viking original the than sharper times 10 apicture snapped team could get a good shot at it.” In In it.” at shot agood get could Exploration Program. “We photographed the Face as soon as we o me two decades later, obtaining high-resolution images of of images high-resolution obtaining later, decades two me nasa A p ril 1998 the Camera Orbiter Mars the 1998 ril . “We felt this was important to to important was this felt . “We s c i e n ti fi c

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19 8/8/13 6:00PM OSQ313Rsmb3p.indd 20 20 20 sign. eye-of-the-tiger providing the so-called feline, decidedly looks image The necrosis. from intensity increased of area a central motor control) from iron accumulation, with in (involved pallidus globus the of intensity decreased show patients PKAN of brains The years. 15 within walk to ability the lose duringstarts childhood, and most patients PKAN Typically A. coenzyme of biosynthesis the for responsible enzyme the encoding genes the in mutations from results which associated neurodegenerative disease, One is or PKAN, pantothenate kinase– doctors diagnose neurological diseases. help to heuristics as illusions detection face- of use the advocate Janeiro de Rio of University Federal the of Vincent B. Maurice Neurologists Périclesand Maranhão-Filho TIGER THE OF EYE SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN FOUNDATIONS OF MISPERCEPTION OF FOUNDATIONS plumes emanating from re. smoke of geometry and physics the vertical lines) are naturally ex plained by tures on the background (horizontal and fea- the and (the cone) shape ground entists concluded that both the back - sci- The (the “head”). surface a conic over “nose”) the (such as lines on laid vertical and “mouth”) “eyes” and the (such as lines horizontal of consist can smoke the in perturbations that showed an The CNN. from image alysis a different in seen also photograph, the in face the of analysis ageometric published Paso, Texas of El at University the at then both KreinovichVladik andDima Iourinski, the viewers. in forth brought it feelings the and cloud murky the in evil” of “face the to related messages 30,000 than alism that sameday, received more photo from who retired Phillips, journ- and ensued, frenzy Amedia Darkness. of Prince the than other none of face of several newspapers, contained the pages front the on published and Press picture, distributed by Associated the time, the at Phillips to Unknown 9/11. on attack plane second the after and smoke in seconds engulfed ames, captured the World Trade Center, D. Mark Photojournalist Phillips SMOKE SATAN THE IN One year later computer scientists scientists computer later year One 8/7/13 6:55PM

FROM “THE EYE-OF-THE-TIGER SIGN,” BY R. PAUL GUILLERMAN, IN RADIOLOGY, VOL. 217; DECEMBER 2000. USED WITH PERMISSION FROM RADIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF NORTH AMERICA (top left); ANDY GEHRIG iStockphoto (top right); MARK D. PHILLIPS markdphillips.com (bottom) FOUNDATIONS OF MISPERCEPTION OF FOUNDATIONS OSQ313Rsmb3p.indd 21

From “The Face of Testicular Pain: A Surprising Ultrasound Finding,” by G. Gregory Roberts and Naji J. Touma, in Urology, Vol. 78, No. 3; September 2011. Reprinted with permission from Elsevier (top); Courtesy of Jonathan B. Boreyko and Chuan-Hua Chen Duke University (middle); © Salvador Dalí, Fundació Gala-Salvador Dalí, Artists Rights Society, New York, 2013 (bottom) ientific M ind. S c A m erican.com

than tothan look much stronger activation to actual faces showed gyrus fusiform right the whereas them, resembling objects and faces both by activated was gyrus fusiform left The faces. like looked that objects and faces viewed they while observers of brains the imaged have colleagues his and Meng Ming scene ( the in people of bodies by the formed several features in Voltaire’s face are with the Disappearing Bust of Voltaire, con links among things that are not actually ( University Duke at researchers of by ateam tured cap­ leaf, alotus of surface the on ing high of aseries in Starr Ringo Beatle of face the discover to startled similarly was mass accidental. benign the in features facial the deemed ultimately but virility, male of god tian Egyp­ the Min, of a manifestation be might image the that idea the with toyed doctors The pain. testicular severe with afflicted leas you where - c M para- Greek the from etymology, same the have Salvador Dalí. (Paranoia and pareidolia invented by Spanish surrealistic painter ( images sound ultra­ scrotal the agony, in in contorted aface, discover to shocked were Ontario in University Queen’s Touma J. of Naji and Roberts G. Gregory Urologists pareidolia. (Further Reading) (Further e ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ritical method” technique artistic idos edical imaging is a new fertile ground for for ground fertile anew is imaging edical ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ ◆ Vol. 78, 78, Vol. Finding. Illusions. Analysis. A Geometric online S M M D 67, Vol. de Neuro-Psiquiatria, in at-nasa/2001/ast24may_1 at-nasa/2001/ast24may_1 2001: http://science1.nasa.gov/science-news/science- Lateralization of Face Processing in the Human Brain. 9/11 Story. APhotojournalist’s Smoke? the in Satan Ultrasound ASurprising Pain: Testicular of Face The Neuropareidolia: Diagnostic Clues Apropos of Visual Fire? Center Trade World the in Face Satan’s There Was Unmasking the Face on Mars on Face the Unmasking Dartmouth College neuroscientist false establish to capacity brain’s The Dacey James reporter World Physics ­n i - ec ected is essential to the “paranoiac i ar Proceedings of the the of Proceedings in nha

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