I use optical illusions as a gimmick when I talk to doctors. I do service user involvement with mental health stuff. Clinicians talk about "accepting the reality of the patient experience", but sometimes that concept is quite weak. Showing someone an optical illusion (the grey grid and green bar[1] is great for this) and asking them what colour they see - and then proving that they are wrong - is powerful illustration of how strong the mind can be.
I use optical illusions as a gimmick when I talk to doctors. I do service user involvement with mental health stuff. Clinicians talk about "accepting the reality of the patient experience", but sometimes that concept is quite weak. Showing someone an optical illusion (the grey grid and green bar[1] is great for this) and asking them what colour they see - and then proving that they are wrong - is powerful illustration of how strong the mind can be.
[1] (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/Gre...)