Eli5: Why do wheels look like they’re spinning the wrong way when going fast?

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Eli5: Why do wheels look like they’re spinning the wrong way when going fast?

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12 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

They don’t. You’re watching film (analog or digital) of a spinning wheel, not a wheel.

Cameras have frame rates, and just like the blinking bulbs on a movie theater marquee appear to move around the rim, what you’re seeing is a frame rate illusion, not movement.

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