Illusions and Infographics

The Purves Cube is an illusion comprising two identical brown squares on a Rubik’s cube that appear to be different shades of brown. However, we all experience this illusion differently.

20% of people experience the illusion strongly, perceiving a much greater difference in the shade of brown than the average. However, another 20% of people barely experienced the illusion at all. This result provides fascinating new clues into how the human brain takes light and shade into account when perceiving colour, revealing that this process works in different ways for different people.

These illusions may look as though they are moving – but they are actually static images.

The Perception Census will run until spring 2023. Take part, and you’ll be joining a community of participants from across the globe – view our maps below to see more detail on where our participants are from.