Size-weight Illusion 🏋️♂️
🧠 Psych - 92 / 100
Hey,
This is the 92nd edition of this newsletter!
Let’s talk about Size-weight Illusion.🏋️♂️
What is it?
The tendency to underestimate the weight of the bigger object (for example a box) when compared to a similar smaller object of same physical mass, and vice versa.
Examples -
In a simple home demonstration, pieces of lead or other heavy material may be placed in two different-sized containers and surrounded by sand to prevent them from moving about and from being visible if the containers are transparent, and the weights of the containers may be adjusted until they are identical, whereupon the smaller container will feel much heavier than the larger one.
Where does it occur?
The illusion also occurs when the objects are not lifted against gravity, but accelerated horizontally, so it should be called a size-mass illusion. [1]
Why do I need to know?
One explanation of how the size-weight illusion works is that by looking at a larger object, people expect it to be heavier and therefore lift it with a greater impulse. This causes the larger object to lift easier than the smaller object that the viewer thinks will be lighter.
This hypothesis has been proven in a test when strings were tied to the bottom of small and large cans and it was found that greater energy was used to lift the large can.
Takeaways: -
How we perceive the weight of objects is critical to many activities, such as carrying groceries, doing yardwork, or throwing a football. You can imagine that those affected with disorders and diseases which impair their senses, memories, or integration of these information channels might have difficulty performing such everyday tasks.
Deepening our scientific understanding of perception could lead to new therapies and treatments for such conditions, thereby improving the quality of life for many people.
References & Studies: -
https://psychology.wikia.org/wiki/Size-weight_illusion
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Size%E2%80%93weight_illusion
http://www.scifun.org/HomeExpts/size-weight.htm
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