Hello and meow my friends! I’m here to invite you all to a special STEAM Story Hour next Tuesday, April 16, at 6:30 p.m. at the Grand County Library. This story hour is all about optical illusions.
Optical illusions are games that humans play to trick their brains into seeing things that aren’t there. It may seem unkind and dangerous to play tricks on one’s own brain, but optical illusions are actually a fun way to understand how our brains make sense of the world around us.
When we see something, our brains have to quickly interpret the information from our eyes, and then draw the best conclusion about what’s going on. Because we see so much stuff every day, our brains sometimes take shortcuts. That’s where optical illusions come in–they highlight the difference between what we think we see and what we actually see.
We’ll hear a story, look at some famous optical illusions, and then we’ll make our own fun optical illusions out of everyday materials. This story hour is geared towards ages 3 -10 and will take place in the Large Meeting Room at the Moab library.
If this column has left you questioning whether you can believe your own eyes, I apologize and I offer this reset: Come to the library. If you perceive an average looking cat, get your eyes checked. If you perceive a tremendously handsome tuxedo cat with spectacular whiskers and a certain je ne sais quoi, then I can confirm that is not an illusion, it is your humble correspondent, Cosmo, and your eyesight is keen. Until next time!
