Did You See That?
When Luke Skywalker and Han Solo are fighting the Empire, they encounter lots of enemy starships. But what are they really fighting? Their ship is very detailed-it looks real-but did you notice those blurry-looking ones flying by? What were they? Filmmakers use what scientists know about how we pay attention to detail and motion to make a scene like this realistic. Grab a friend and try this to find out more.
- You will need: four pages of newspaper, tape, an object or toy, and two colored markers.
- Tape four pages of newspaper together and stand in the middle of the big sheet. Raise your arms straight out to your sides. Look straight ahead and focus your eyes on a particular spot.
- Ask your friend to walk around you holding the object or toy. The path should be a circle, just outside the reach of your outstretched arms. The object should be held at eye level. Practice once.
- Starting behind you, ask your friend to walk slowly around you. Keep looking straight ahead (it might help to look focus on an object in front of you). Say "stop" when you first see something moving. Have your friend write "motion" on the newspaper at that point.
- Repeat the exact same process, only this time say "stop" when you can see detail in the object. Have your friend write "detail" at that point.
- Change places with your friend and repeat the activity, marking these results in a different color. (Make sure your friend stands in the exact same position you did.)
- What do you notice about the way your eyes see motion and detail? Where in your field of vision did you see motion? Where did you see detail? When you saw detail, where were your eyes looking?
Curious for an answer? Look Behind the Scenes.
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