How Two Neuroscientists View Optical Illusions
Perhaps you saw the rug disappear, or the couch pillows transform, or a few ceiling panels evaporate. Or maybe you didn't. In fact, dozens of objects change in this video, which won second place in the Best Illusion of the Year Contest in 2021. Voting for the latest version of the contest opened on Monday.
Illusions 'are the phenomena in which the physical reality is divorced from perception,' said Stephen Macknik, a neuroscientist at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn. He runs the contest with his colleague and spouse, Susana Martinez-Conde.
By studying the disconnect between perception and reality, scientists can better understand which brain regions and processes help us interpret the world around us. The illusion above highlights change blindness, the brain's failure to notice shifts in the environment, especially when they occur gradually.
To some extent, all sensory experience is illusory, Dr. Martinez-Conde asserts.
'We are always constructing a simulation of reality,' she said. 'We don't have direct access to that reality. We live inside the simulation that we create.'
She and Dr. Macknik have run the illusion contest since 2005. What began as a public outreach event at an academic conference has since blossomed into an annual competition open to anyone in the world.
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With COVID-19 continuing to mutate and over 40 million immunocompromised Americans still at risk, GeoVax's GEO-CM04S1 vaccine offers potential broader, more durable protection through a unique multi-antigen approach ATLANTA, GA - July 3, 2025 ( NEWMEDIAWIRE ) - GeoVax Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: GOVX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing multi-antigen vaccines and immunotherapies, today emphasized the urgent need for innovation in COVID-19 vaccination as the NB.1.8.1 variant - commonly known as 'Nimbus' - spreads rapidly across the globe. Nimbus, a highly transmissible Omicron subvariant classified by the World Health Organization as a 'Variant Under Monitoring,' is now dominant in multiple U.S. states and surging across Europe and Asia. Though not more severe, its rapid spread and potential for immune escape reflect an increasingly clear reality: COVID-19 is not going away, and it will continue to evolve. 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The Company's lead clinical program is GEO-CM04S1, a next-generation COVID-19 vaccine currently in three Phase 2 clinical trials, being evaluated as (1) a primary vaccine for immunocompromised patients such as those suffering from hematologic cancers and other patient populations for whom the current authorized COVID-19 vaccines are insufficient, (2) a booster vaccine in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and (3) a more robust, durable COVID-19 booster among healthy patients who previously received the mRNA vaccines. In oncology the lead clinical program is evaluating a novel oncolytic solid tumor gene-directed therapy, Gedeptin(R), having recently completed a multicenter Phase 1/2 clinical trial for advanced head and neck cancers. GeoVax is also developing a vaccine targeting Mpox and smallpox and, based on recent regulatory guidance, anticipates progressing directly to a Phase 3 clinical evaluation, omitting Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials. GeoVax has a strong IP portfolio in support of its technologies and product candidates, holding worldwide rights for its technologies and products. For more information about the current status of our clinical trials and other updates, visit our website: Forward-Looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements regarding GeoVax's business plans. The words 'believe,' 'look forward to,' 'may,' 'estimate,' 'continue,' 'anticipate,' 'intend,' 'should,' 'plan,' 'could,' 'target,' 'potential,' 'is likely,' 'will,' 'expect' and similar expressions, as they relate to us, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs. 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