When we watch TV or a video on a computer screen, how does our brain tune out everything else in our vision to focus solely on the media playing without us even noticing it happens?

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In: Biology

Answer 1

Your brain is always doing this anyways. We dont really perceive reality, we perceive a mental construct based on input from our senses. Your brain is always receiving input, analyzing it, and using it to update this construct in our heads. It also filters out a lot of input that doesn’t need to be included in the construct. Thats why your brain eventually ignores a smell in a room, why you don’t notice background noises, and why you weren’t consciously aware of your tongue until just now.

When you focus on TV the same thing happens, but with a narrower focus. Over time your brain filters out more and more as you focus on the screen. Ultimately that’s what makes them feel so immersive; your mental construct of reality is almost entirely the video game, movie, whatever.