What is a waterfall illusion?

By Forinfos - 08/12/2025 - 0 comments

The waterfall illusion is an optical illusion that deceives the brain into perceiving nonexistent motion after a period of staring at a moving visual stimulus, such as a waterfall. This is also known as a motion aftereffect.

To experience the waterfall illusion directly, a person must stare at a running waterfall and then shift his gaze to a stationary object nearby, such as a wall or sidewalk. The stationary object then temporarily appears to be moving in the opposite direction of the waterfall. This is attributed to a phenomenon known as "neuron fatigue," in which the neurons detecting downward motion become overexcited and neurons detecting upward motion become more active.

Login to Comment

Comments

Be the first to write a comment for this article.

Related Articles

How do you build an indoor waterfall? What are some waterfall design ideas? What are some good waterfall designs? How do you build a backyard waterfall? What is waterfall methodology? Is all Waterford crystal marked? Which waterfall in Yosemite occasionally appears to be on fire? How do you build a waterfall in your backyard? How do you build a backyard rock waterfall? What is the largest waterfall in the Philippines?

Trending Articles

How do you find a list of recommended books? Has Megyn Kelly of Fox News ever been married? Can you rent an action movie from a library? How do you audition for a game show? Does the Parade magazine website maintain a database of recipes from old issues? How many songs has John Denver released? How does a person make a printable newsletter? Has Randy Travis recovered from the stroke he suffered in 2013? How do you use TumbleBooks? How does Juliet speak yet say nothing?