Pareidolia

[7.62]

10 minutes ago, BlackRockBigfoot said:

Or....are you actually hearing voices of something that is using the sounds of the brook for cover?  Lol.

 

Pareidolia and other pattern recognition mechanisms were survival traits.  Our ancestors could easily look at a saber-toothed tiger or other predator and easily recognize it as a danger.  However, their fellow bipeds appeared extremely similar at a glance and could either be of the same family or tribe (friend) or from the next tribe over (foe).  Being able to quickly identify facial features and determine the threat level was the difference between life and death.  

 

So, even though these traits often play tricks on your mind, don't entirely discount them.  Don't let them rule your judgement, but don't completely ignore them either.

 

If my dogs are calm on those nights so am I 

I always had them with me on camp outs alone.

[BlackRockBigfoot]

14 minutes ago, 7.62 said:

 

If my dogs are calm on those nights so am I 

I always had them with me on camp outs alone.

That's a pretty good rule of thumb.

[zeebob889]

3 hours ago, MIB said:

 

Well, sure, pareidolia is a thing but it is not a matter of seeing what you want to or hearing what you want to.   Pareidolia is part of how our brain works.   We match what we see and hear to things we are familiar with looking for the right fit.   It is done in steps .. we refine the match at each step.   Pareidolia is basically stopping the process with an incomplete / inaccurate match.   It usually happens when we don't have enough time to complete the process or when significant detail is obscured.

 

Pareidolia has nothing to do with "want."   Wrong word.  Call that wishful thinking.   Call that delusion.   Do not call it pareidolia. 

 

MIB

 

When someone on Social Media peddles out some stump photo and others start with the red circles and arrows, the two cross over pretty quickly but I see your point.

[BlackRockBigfoot]

It's a double edged sword.  I have seen people dismiss one frame of video as pareidolia when subsequent frames show the face that was dismissed move its mouth or turn its head.  

 

Some of Scott Carpenter's stuff I can't see unaided no matter how hard I try. Other stuff looks like pareidolia at first glance but then exhibits movement that would appear to be consistent with an actual face.  

 

Again, all this does is reinforce the argument that nothing short of a living breathing specimen or a body will ever be definitive proof. Anything else, no matter how vague or how clear, can and will be explained away.  Human perception is a tricky thing.