Still No Real Explanation for ‘The Dress’

The Internet EXPLODED on Thursday night over "The Dress."  Maybe you saw it as blue and black, maybe white and gold, maybe BOTH.

I saw white and gold, no question. But my husband, and both of my kids saw blue and black. And chastised me for not seeing it that way.

But, the good news is that statistically I wasn't alone. Fifty eight percent of people saw it as white and gold, forty two percent saw it as blue and black.

Men were about 6% more likely to see it as blue and black.

The younger you are, the more likely you are to see it as blue and black.

And people looking at the photo on a computer were more likely to see it as blue and black.

People on cell phones were more likely to see white and gold.

And your brain KNOWS that a blue light shining on white makes it LOOK blue.  So maybe when you saw the dress, your brain decided that's what was happening . . . and canceled out the blue and led you to see the base color as WHITE.

But maybe your brain DIDN'T perceive blue light shining on the dress . . . so you took the blue at face value.

Your brain also takes into account how MUCH light is shining on something . . . the time of day . . . the brightness of your computer or phone screen . . . and the contrast of other colors.  All of those can also add up to affect your perception.

I'm sorry if that's an unsatisfying explanation, it should be.

Because it still doesn't REALLY explain the phenomenon of the dress. And I'm not fully satisfied.  They're saying it just hit this perfect visual sweet spot that no one's ever encountered before.

Or, it's fake.

Love,

Bethany