Academic Centre
June 16, 2022
10:30
Zoom / Senate Hall
Illusions of mind from perception to biology, from normality to pathology
Guest lecturer: Professor Baingio Pinna
Prof. Pinna is one of today's most significant specialists in the field of visual perception. In addition to PhD in psychology, Prof. Pinna has also obtained master’s degree in computer engineering. Pinna’s works are published in internationally recognised scientific journals. The professor has become known to the general public for discovering the so-called watercolours illusion.
About the webinar
In modern vision science, illusions are related to a “mismatch/disagreement” between two domains: geometrical/physical vs. phenomenal. In this work we explore and extend the notion of illusion from perception to biology and from normality to pathology.
By exploring several compelling new phenomena, main purpose of this work is to answer the following questions:
- What is physical and what is phenomenal in the analysis of illusions?
- Is there a dividing line (and if so, how can we describe it) between illusions and non-illusions?
- Is it true that illusions are rare phenomena?
- Why do illusions exist?
- What is their perceptual and evolutionary role?
- What is their role in defining expressiveness, social relations, and personality assessments?
- What is their role in defining normality and pathology?
These questions and the related issues are discussed by deepening and exploring the biological, psychological, and social implications of both illusions and illusoriness. We suggest that illusions are not rare and niche phenomena; in contrary , illusions can be considered as a central biological requirement of natural selection and Darwinian fitness for all living organisms. Within the domain of human perception, by introducing what we called “Lombroso’s illusion”, we demonstrate the basic role of illusions of good and evil in assigning expressiveness and personality traits, in defining emotions, attitudes, normality, pathology, and many other properties necessary for all complex human relationships.
