Motion Induced Blindness - something to think about

[hellyer 216]

In a motor accident, wherein a speeding car hits a slower moving vehicle coming from the side, the speeding car drivers often swear that they just didn't see the vehicle coming from the left or right. Well, they may not be lying. They probably didn't see the vehicle coming from the side, in spite of broad daylight.

This phenomenon on the car drivers' part is known as "Motion Induced Blindness".

 

Once airborne, pilots are taught to alternate their gaze between scanning the horizon and scanning their instrument panel, and never to fix their gaze for more than a couple of seconds on any single object.

They are taught to continually keep their heads on a swivel and their eyes always moving. Because, if you fix your gaze on one object long enough while you yourself are in motion, your peripheral vision goes blind.

Till about three decades ago, this "heads on swivel & eyes moving" technique was the only way to spot other aircraft in the skies around.

Now-a-days they have on-board radars, but the old technique still holds good.

 

Let me give you a small demonstration of motion induced blindness.

Just click on the link below. You will see a revolving array of blue crosses on a black background. There is a flashing green dot in the centre and three fixed yellow dots around it. If you fix your gaze on the green dot for more than a few seconds, the yellow dots will disappear at random, either singly, or in pairs, or all three together. In reality, the yellow dots are always there.

Just watch the yellow dots for some time to ensure that they don't go anywhere!

 

http://www.msf-usa.org/motion.html

 

(Notes given by the author below the rotating array are educative.)

 

So, if you are driving at a high speed on a highway (or snow riding) and if you fix your gaze on the road straight ahead, you will not see a car, a scooter, a buggy, a bicycle, a buffalo or even a human being approaching from the side.

Now reverse the picture. If you are crossing a road on foot and you see a speeding car approaching, there's a 90% chance that the driver isn't seeing you, because his/her peripheral vision may be blind! And you may be in that blind zone!!

[Alexander L 80]

I tried that. It disappears

[hellyer 216]

it does

[Tubby Beaver 209]

the yellow dots do disappear.....but they are actually stationary....its the blue grid that rotates, so how do the yellow dots represent a moving object in your peripheral vision?

[Alexander L 80]

you concentrate on a point and you lose your peripheral vision. Only moving parts of your peripheral can be detected. Capish?

[Tubby Beaver 209]

you concentrate on a point and you lose your peripheral vision. Only moving parts of your peripheral can be detected. Capish?

 

Yeeaaaaahhhh......so a moving car that may hit you from the side.......is moving and so would be visible (according to this test)

[Alexander L 80]

it is in your peripheral which has been "turned off" by you focusing on the road ahead. So you won't see it. You have to move your eyes almost constantly like you do when you cross the road or someting.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

you concentrate on a point and you lose your peripheral vision. Only moving parts of your peripheral can be detected. Capish?

 

That's not what you said.....and if you can still see the edges of the grid move, then ur peripheral vision is still working to a degree as it's still picking up the movement of the grid....the blind spot of ur peripheral vision would be seeing stationary objects....objects that are not moving would become "invisible" to u

[Tubby Beaver 209]

The difference may be in the TYPE of movement.....lateral movements or movements at a significant angle to you would be picked up but moving objects that are at or around 90 degrees to you, so they are coming at you in a straight line, may not have enough aspect change for ur vision to still register it whilst u are focused on a point in the distance....it may trick ur brain into thinking it's stationary and therefore would disappear from ur field of vision. Perhaps to test this, they may have the yellow dots slowly increase in size to see if that has an effect

[Alexander L 80]

When I drive I always look around and up and down moving my head and eyeballs. Its just to be alert never knew about eliminating blind spots.