The Blind Spot: Does Our Brain See Things that Aren't Really There?

Generally, we think we have a good sense of the past. We may not remember everything, but the things we do remember, we're pretty sure of. Well I say that most of your memories are not accurate, but that's not what this article is about. I'm going to take this further.

How Well Do We Remember The Present?

This will sound silly at first, but I contend that not only do you have a flawed remembrance of the past, you also don't even remember the present perfectly. Sound absurd?

Blind Spot

Well let me introduce you to the blind spot. There is actually a blind spot on your eye that does not see anything. An optic nerve gets in the way, effectively blocking your vision. Our eyes can't see anything in this blind spot, but our brain makes up what should be there. This is why we don't notice the blind spot. Sound crazy? Click here to try it for yourself before continuing with the article.

What Does This Mean?

Amazing, eh? Now you've now seen first-hand that you can't even believe everything you see. Your brain literally makes things up. Our senses are imperfect, and our brain is just like an artist trying to understand what the senses tell the brain. Whatever our brain tells us, we believe. But even in the present, it isn't always right.

Definitiveness & Memory

Seeing is the human standard. People often say, "I'll believe it when I see it with my own two eyes." Once you've seen it, it becomes truth. But we often hear of cases where different people see things differently. We put too much definitiveness on the things we see.

I say don't be definitive, whether discussing things past or present. As you see, we can't even be sure what we're seeing is real. If our brain can trick us when we know it's going to trick us (if you don't believe that, try the Blind Spot Test again), think about how much the brain tricks us when we don't know it's going to trick us.

Imagine how many times you've really wanted to see something. Do you think your mind could have tricked you any of those times? Perhaps you "saw" what you wanted to see.

I imagine the same thing goes for our memory. Often we might remember things the way we want to remember. But like with our vision, our brain will cheat. Our brains won't remember things as they were, but will fill in plenty of missing details.

So next time you think something is certain, remember that things may not be as certain as you think. Even if you see them with your own two eyes.