Why we see faces everywhere we look

If you have ever imagined a face in an inanimate object, your brain is engaged in a process called pareidolia. This is the tendency to see a pattern or meaning in something, where actually there is nothing there. Seeing faces in everyday objects is a common experience. Many of us perceive a smiley face in the clouds, in the froth of a cappuccino, or in an object as mundane as an electrical plug socket. 

Scientists from the University of Sydney in Australia conducted a study to investigate whether our brain processes these illusory faces in the same way it does with real human faces. Their research suggests there are some similarities in how we recognise both human and "false" faces.

In the study, 17 volunteers looked at a series of illusory and human faces. They had to rate the strength of emotional attachment they felt upon seeing each one. The researchers' conclusion was that the same neural circuitry was involved in determining what was or wasn't a real face. Psychologist David Alais said: "We know these objects are not truly faces, yet the perception of a face lingers." 

He added: "We end up with...a parallel experience that the object is both a compelling face and an object." Mr Alais said the brain sees two things at once, and that we focus more on the image of a face than the fact it is an object. He added: "The first impression of a face does not give way to the second perception of an object."

Source: Breaking News English

Comprehension

What does pareidolia mean we have a tendency to do?
What does the article say seeing faces in everyday objects is?
In which part of a cappuccino do we see smiley faces in?
What object does the article refer to as being mundane?
What does the research say there are similarities in?
How many volunteers took part in the study?
What did volunteers have to rate the strength of when looking at faces?
What circuitry was the same when the volunteers looked at faces?
What did the researchers say lingers?
How many things did researchers say we see at once?

Discussion

What do you think about what you read?
Do you see faces in inanimate objects?
What do you think when you see faces in things?
What do you think of smiley faces?
What other things do you see in inanimate objects?
Does looking at a happy face change your mood?
Who is the happiest person you know?
What makes a happy face look happy?
Should people always look happy in photographs?
What would make you happier?

Vocabulary

inanimate - not alive, especially not in the manner of animals and humans.
mundane - lacking interest or excitement; dull.
neural circuitry - an arrangement of neurons and their interconnections
compelling - evoking interest, attention, or admiration in a powerfully irresistible way.