Scintillating Starburst Optical Illusion

Article: A New Kind of Visual Illusion Uncovers How Our Brains Connect the Dots
Source: New York University, via Technology Networks  and NEI
Published: June 29, 2021
Article: Introducing a Visual Illusion – the Scintillating Starburst
Source: Pascal's Pensées, a blog post by the illusion's creator
Published: May 27, 2021

Scintillating starburst optical illusion, rotating

Comprised of concentric star polygons that induce illusory ray patterns, "scintillating starbursts" are a newly studied type of optical illusion that highlights the subjective, constructive nature of visual perception. Originally created as a logo for his design company, Recursia Studios, the artist behind scintillating starbursts then teamed up with a psychology researcher and data scientist to conduct a study on the mechanisms underlying the effect. Their study involved 122 participants who viewed 162 different versions of the scintillating starburst varying in shape, complexity, and brightness. The results showed that factors such as contrast, line width, and number of vertices influenced how strongly the rays were perceived. The authors argue that scintillating starbursts are a new optical illusion, distinct from grid illusions such as the scintillating grid, Hermann grid, Motokawa grid, and pincushion grid illusions. One of the authors explains, "[T]he rays are stronger and more striking and at the same time fleeting or scintillating, traversing the background." They suggest instead that scintillating starburst is a compound illusion, combining the perception of short Motokowa line segments that serve as guideposts for the illusory rays with a scintillating effect from saccadic eye movements that alternate between peripheral and foveal vision, with the effect being more pronounced to peripheral vision. The effect is further enhanced when rotating. The researchers also note that the illusion is an effect of luminance rather than of chromaticity (color). One of the authors explains, "If the background is brighter than the shape, the illusory rays will appear brighter than the background. If the background is darker than the shape, the illusory rays will appear darker than the background. If background and shape are isoluminant [regardless of color], no rays appear." While a technical study of optical illusions might seem extraneous, it reveals the subjective and constructive nature of visual perception. The existence and effectiveness of optical illusions challenges the belief that what we see always corresponds with reality. One of the authors states that a future direction could be studying the propensity to see optical illusions with personality characteristics.

Additional note: The blog article by one of the authors contains a reader comment that references a book (by the reader) showing an earlier iteration with a similar optical illusion.

My rating of this study: ⭐⭐

Karlovich MW and Wallisch P. "Scintillating Starbursts: Concentric Star Polygons Induce Illusory Ray Patterns." i-Perception.  29 June 2021. https://doi.org/10.1177/20416695211018720