3. People Identify Objects By Recognizing Patterns

Pattern or No Pattern?

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• Caption: The space between the dots makes our brains see a pattern.
• Patterns help us to make sense out of groups of items quickly, which is why our brains automatically try to make them. In the image, there are actually six dots, but by having them spaced, our brains think of them as more of a pattern and relay the information we're seeing as three groups of two dots. If the dots were placed closer together, we would "see" them as they are.

David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel

• 1959
• Hubel and Wiesel were able to show that cells within the visual cortex each responded to a different thing. For instance, some only respond to vertical lines, some to horizontal lines, some to edges and others to certain angles. Each cell responds to a certain shape.

Object Recognition

• An early theory of how we recognize objects was that our brain had a memory bank which stored the images of millions of objects and when we looked at something, we compared it to the millions of objects until we matched it up and recognized it. In 1985, Irving Biederman's research suggested that 24 basic shapes, called geons (geometric icons), are recognized in the objects we see and identify. These 24 shapes form the building blocks of all objects.

Imagining Vs Perceiving

• When we see something, our visual cortex is activated. However, there is much more activity when something is being imagined than being seen. It's thought that this is because the visual cortex has to work harder because the sight is not actually visible.

When Creating, Remember...

• Use patterns as much as possible since people will already be looking for them
• White space and grouping can help create patterns
• For easy recognition, use a simple geometric representation of the object
• Objects are easier to recognize if they already include geons (geometric icons that are a basis for objects)
• Use 2D elements instead of 3D elements
• Eyes communicate 2D representations of what we see so 3D elements may slow down the ability to recognize and understand them