On Wed, 19 Feb 1997 11:11:15 GMT Josephine Seale wrote:
> From: Josephine Seale <jvs196@soton.ac.uk>
> This idea can also be seen in reference to
> the illusion of the train above as, having been on a train a
> lot, I no longer get that illusion of feeling that I am
> moving. Ths, could it be that with practise or a high amount
> of exposure to a particular situation that a person's
> perceptual processes can, eventally, be affected by one's
> experiences. With this view in mind couldit therefore be
> possible that the majority of perceptual processes are,
> basically, cognitively penetrable ?
I remember reading about a guy in the late 1800s who for some strange
reason decided to wear glasses which inverted the world. He reported
that over the first few days, it was rather strange seeing things
upside down but after that, his perceptual system had obviously calmed
down and he encountered no problems. In fact, he had to constantly say
to himself that he was viewing upside down - it was that natural. I
think he removed the spectacles after about three weeks and had the
same re-adjustment problems as when he first wore them.
This I think shows that habituation must may play some part in the
perceptual system. I am not sure whether this guy's cognitive
penetration was able to override a perceptual system that strongly and
constantly informed him his world was upside down but certainly
physiologically, there were no problems. I guess this is similar in
some respects to an ongoing illusion!
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