In our show Mind Tripping, Katalina and I demonstrate how easily people can be influenced to make very specific choices. Sometimes these actions are motivated by emotional triggers, sometimes they are motivated by false logic, and sometimes they are motivated by distorting one’s sensory inputs. This is a classic example of how you could confuse a persons perceptions of their environment.
This is an optical illusion carpet in a Paris Video Game store. If you simply let your eye follow the lines on the carpet it looks as though there are dips, ramps, and hollow spots on the floor. Actually, the floor is quite flat and horizontal. However, because our brain uses points of reference to determine distance, depth, and shape, the specific pattern of the lines fools the mind into thinking that there might be a strange vortex in front of us.
My particular thought as I look at his photo is: I wonder if someone has ever tripped in this store because of this perceived altered reality. Did they have to get extra insurance? They probably would in America! It almost makes me want to book a flight to Paris just to experience this little mind trip in person.