What causes the illusion of continuous motion in movies?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the physiological and perceptual processes that create the illusion of continuous motion in movies, despite them being composed of discrete still frames. Participants explore various aspects of this phenomenon, including comparisons to real-life movement and the role of visual perception.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • One participant poses a question about the physiological processes involved in perceiving continuous motion from still frames.
  • Another participant draws a parallel between movie motion and real-life movement, suggesting that both consist of smaller movements.
  • Some participants mention the frame rate, noting that higher frame rates contribute to the perception of fluidity, with one suggesting that 30 frames per second is a common threshold.
  • Another participant asserts that the brain fills in gaps during perception, contributing to the illusion of continuity.
  • A participant discusses the mechanics of color TV, explaining that the perception of color involves a chemical response in the eye that takes time to process, which affects how motion is perceived.
  • One participant introduces the concept of neural firing rates, indicating that perception becomes analog at frame rates above approximately 20 frames per second.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express various viewpoints on the mechanisms behind the illusion of motion, with no consensus reached on a singular explanation. Multiple competing ideas about the physiological and perceptual processes remain present in the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Some claims rely on assumptions about visual processing and frame rates, while others introduce concepts that may not be fully explored or defined, such as the specific nature of the chemical cascade in the eye.

wunderkind
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evil physiology problem

here's a really evil physiology problem:
Why is it when people watch a movie, they see a continuously running picture, when really a movie is composed of a set of still frames? What physiological process is involved in this?

I really am stuck on this one, and I would appreciate it if anyone can help me! Thanx!
 
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I don't know the physiology of it, but I guess real life is the same thing as a movie. Any movement you make is really comprised of a set of smaller movements. Nifty.
 
P.S. I could give you the answer "oh beause the frames move faster than you can recognize, so it just looks fluid because it's like 30 frames a second or whatever", but I'm sure you are looking for a better answer than that :)
 
thanx!

Thanx! I really appreciated the help!
 
Your brain fills in the gaps.
 
It's even worse if you watch color TV. All that is really there are three very small tiny round dots. One red, one green and one blue. The rest of the screen is black.
It is the response time of your eye that does the trick.
Light triggers a chemical cascade that your brain ends up interperting as light.
That cascade take time to complete and then reset.
Any changes that occur after the cascade starts are ignored.
Note that for a movie there is a black frame that appears while they move a new picture frame into place for viewing. This is done because you would actually notice
the movement otherwise. Black is no light so it does not trigger any new cascades.
Hope this helps.
 
The short answer is neural firing rates. Perception appears to be analog at more than about 20 frames per second.
 

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