Filling-in, also known as Troxler’s fading, is a phenomenon in which a stationary visual stimulus eventually disappears from perception, even though it is still present in the visual field.
This occurs because the human visual system adapts to constant stimuli and eventually stops responding to them.
After staring at the red dot for several seconds, the blue ring will fade
Table of Contents
- How does Filling In work?
- Versions of Filling In
- Illusions like Filling In
- Discovery of Filling In Fading
- References and Resources
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How does Filling In work?
Filling-in refers to the visual process by which the brain unconsciously fills in missing or degraded visual information in a scene, based on prior knowledge or expectations. This can lead to the perception of a complete and coherent image even when some parts of the visual input are missing or ambiguous. The brain uses this ability to fill-in gaps in sensory information to create a continuous and stable perception of the visual world.
Troxler’s fading and filling-in are related phenomena in vision. Troxler’s fading is a type of visual adaptation where an unchanging stimulus eventually disappears from consciousness, while filling-in refers to the brain’s ability to “fill in” the background of a visual scene based on prior knowledge or expectations. These two processes are related in that they both involve the brain unconsciously filtering out or adjusting sensory information over time.
Filling-in occurs because of the way the human visual system processes information. The visual system is constantly receiving a flood of information from the eyes, and it must filter out the most important information in order to make sense of the world. One way it does this is by adapting to constant stimuli, so that they no longer capture our attention.
When a visual stimulus is presented in the same location for a prolonged period of time, the neurons in the brain that respond to that stimulus become less responsive, and eventually stop responding altogether. This is known as neural adaptation. As a result, the stimulus disappears from perception, even though it is still present in the visual field.
In addition to neural adaptation, other mechanisms such as lateral inhibition and surround suppression also play a role in Filling-in. Lateral inhibition refers to the process by which the activation of one neuron in the visual system can inhibit the activity of neighboring neurons, which could lead to reduced perception of a stimulus. Surround suppression refers to the phenomenon where the presence of a stimulus in the surround of the fixation point can suppress perception of the stimulus at the fixation point.
Filling-in effect is not limited to visual perception, but can be observed in other senses as well, such as touch and hearing.
Versions of the Filling In
The following are some other examples of Filling in and Troxler’s Fading
After staring at the cross for several seconds, colors fade away
After staring at the dot for several seconds, the colored ring fades away
After staring at the cross for several seconds, the dots fade away
Illusions like Filling In
The following are some illusions that are related to Filling In and Troxler’s Fading
The Phi phenomenon is the illusion of movement created by the rapid succession of static images or light sources.
It is the perceptual phenomenon that explains how the human brain perceives motion when presented with a sequence of still images or light sources that are displayed in rapid succession.
The Rotating Snakes is a peripheral drift illusion that consists of a grid of shapes, with some of them appearing to be rotating or undulating. The illusion is created by the interaction of the shapes with the neural processing of the visual system.
The Moiré pattern illusion: This illusion is created by superimposing two similar patterns on top of each other, such as a grid of lines or circles. The resulting pattern appears to be moving or changing.
The Scintillating Grid Illusion, in which a grid of black and white squares appears to pulsate or “breathe” when viewed from the periphery of the image.
The Hermann Grid Illusion, in which the intersections of a white grid on a black background appear to be gray, even though they are actually the same color as the background.
The Zöllner Illusion, in which parallel lines appear to be tilted or bent when intersected by diagonal lines.
The Fraser Spiral Illusion, in which a pattern of short, curved lines appears to form a spiral.
The Hering Illusion, in which two straight lines appear to be curved due to the presence of surrounding lines.
The Café Wall Illusion is a visual illusion that is created by a grid of alternating light and dark horizontal and vertical lines. The lines appear to be bent or tilted, even though they are actually straight.
These illusions are usually caused by the way our eyes process visual information and the way the brain interprets it. They can also be caused by the interaction of different visual elements, such as lines and angles, in the image. They are often used in research on visual perception and the neural basis of perception.
Discovery of Filling In Fading
The phenomenon of filling-in has been studied and documented by many vision researchers, but no single person is credited with discovering it. The concept has been developed and refined over many years by the collective efforts of many scientists in the field of vision research.
Troxler’s Fading is named after the Swiss physician and philosopher Ignaz Paul Vital Troxler, who first described it in 1804.
Ignaz Paul Vital Troxler was a Swiss physician and philosopher, born in 1780 and died in 1866. He was a physician in a Swiss hospital, and is most well-known for describing the phenomenon of Troxler’s fading, also known as Troxler’s effect, in 1804.
He first described this phenomenon in his doctoral thesis, in which he observed that a stationary visual stimulus, such as a fixed point, eventually disappears from perception even though it is still present in the visual field. He explained this phenomenon as being due to the adaptation of the retina to constant stimulus.
Troxler also made contributions to other fields, such as philosophy, psychology, and pedagogy. He published a number of papers on these subjects, and his ideas were well-received by his contemporaries.
He was also a professor at the University of Basel, where he taught anatomy and physiology.
References and Resources
Check out our complete list of illusions.
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