NOVA

Stranger in the Mirror

Student Handout

Give It a Second Look

Have you ever looked at something familiar but been unable to figure out what it was? Sometimes this happens when you are just waking up in the morning when the lighting is poor. But if you look at something long enough, you can usually figure out what it is. People who have visual agnosia have this problem all the time. Their eyes work, but their brains have a hard time understanding what their eyes are seeing. You can get a sense of what this might be like by looking at this picture.

illustration of dalmation

Procedure
Write your answers on a separate sheet of paper.

  1. Spend several minutes looking at the picture. List what you see.

  2. Name the subject of the picture.

  3. How did you determine what was shown in the picture? How long did it take you to figure this out?



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