Eli5: Why does the human visual field seem to disappear when staring at something for an extended period of time without blinking the eyes?
In: Biology
This is called adaptation. The nerve cells respond best to changes, it’s the same kind of thing when you put a napkin or something light on your hand, you will feel it at first but then you get used to it.
Why do we have this evolved? Things that are moving and changing would probably kill us quicker than something that doesn’t. It makes sense that we are tuned to notice changes around us
You eye blurs foreground and background accordingly to sharpen the image of whatever it is you are looking at. So as you stare at a tv screen the wall and surroundings become blurred and you dont pay attention to it so your eyes can give you a better image of what you are watching.
Because you’re paying intense attention to the thing you’re staring at, and probably releasing stress hormones in the process.
I find that if I stare blankly (at nothing), the opposite happens. In fact, paying attention to the edges of your visual field can calm you down when stressed.
Your eyes have low resolution. You actually “see” with your brain, as it stitches all the information it gathers into a single coherent image. It also uses your memory to augment what you can’t actually make out. This is why optical illusions work, and why you sometimes think you see something that isn’t there.
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