Spot the panda!

January 20, 2016 • 12:30 pm

I can’t brain today; I don’t want to attack fellow liberals and nonbelievers with whom I basically agree (why do people do that?); and I’m sick to death of reading and writing about the never-ending malevolence and evils of faith. Every day brings more news of such things, and what is there to do but point it out? Shall we have a panda to lighten our spirits? Yes, that’s just the ticket. And maybe some jokes later.

From IFL Science via reader Mark Sturtevant comes a “spot the panda” drawing. There are several ways to see it more clearly, but I’ll leave that up to you:

hidden panda_0

44 thoughts on “Spot the panda!”

    2. Me too, also when I look at it through the top part of my progressive lenses, which suggests it’s my presbyopia correction, not my astigmatism correction, that makes it harder to see.

    4. Either scrolling or unfocussing (taking glasses off) works.

      This is because the wavy lines are thickened in the ‘dark’ areas, thinner in the ‘light’ areas. But when sharply focussed, the difference between thick and thin lines is not enough to ‘see’ the design, also the lines confuse the vision. Anything that blurs the lines allows the underlying shape to become apparent.

      (A classic case of ‘not seeing the wood for the trees’?)

      cr

  5. Is Magic Eye making a comeback? It was quite the craze back in the 90’s. I developed the ability to quickly “unfocus” so this image was no problem for me. It took me about 2 secs to see the panda.

    2. As a student, I trained myself to view stereo pairs. When those Magic Eye books came out, I realized that exact practice (close focus with eyes diverged) was the key. I could flip through those books and see every image in a second. As squeakysoapbox indicates, that doesn’t work here.

  6. Glad I’m not the only one who can’t brain today….

    Basically, anything that reduces the spatial resolution of the image will work. Move away (or reduce the image size). Defocus your eyes (or apply a digital blur). Move your head (or the display.

    This technique would be great for a “see the forest for the trees” gag….

    b&

  9. 1) Be very near-sighted.
    2) Get back from the screen about 3 feet.
    3) Laugh and laugh.

  10. Old military/hunter trick – use “off-center vision.” Look at the sides of the box and the panda should quickly come into clear view…

    1. Probably predating “military”, if not “hunting”, but this technique has long been known to astronomers of various stripes under the title of “averted vision.”

  11. I can see the panda when I take my eyeglasses off. When I look at it through my glasses, no dice. Weird…

  13. Is it just me, or has PCC had a spike in the number of “I can’t brain today” posts lately. Is it the Chicago weather??

    1. Yes, PCCE has asserted that “he can’t brain” from time to time recently.
      What I think he means [I am not an Internet mind reader] is that his brain is making him say that, since he has no other say in the matter. 🙂

      1. The alternative implication is that the number of drive-by trepannings in Chicago will be lower today than normal.

  14. It’s funny, when I saw this earlier on my cellphone it was as clear as day: you couldn’t not see it.

    But viewing it on my computer’s widescreen it is really hard, and even moving around it is indistinct.

    1. I was about to say the same thing. In fact, making the image smaller makes the panda more clear.

  15. I prefer to debate people I agree with so I can raise my own and their debates with actual opponents, who are mostly circle jerk pointless conversations.

  18. If you use computer glasses, as I do, just tilt your head up and look through the bifocal and you will see it pretty clear. In other words, get out of focus and you see it.

  19. I don’t want to sound brash, but I’d suggest writing more about evolution; like those posts discussing papers on HGT in tardigrades, sympatric speciation (or lack thereof) in lake cichlids, or recombination in fruit flies. Active researchers are really interested in the opinion of Grand Poobah of Evolutionary Genetics. I know a lot of people who are hanging onto this site waiting for these posts.

  20. OK, all those things make the image appear. My question is: why do you have to do them to see the image? Why isn’t it apparent at first glance?

  21. I saw it right away. I wonder if it u us because I’m on an iPad or my astigmatism and eye issues have resulted in a super power.

    1. Me too. I got my first pair of spectacles at age 5, apparently because I kept runnng into large objects such as chairs and tables. So I saw it straight away. I’m also on an iPad.

      1. Ha ha! I started needing glasses at 9 or 10. I’m very myopic now and I have stupid cataracts because of it which in turn have made me more myopic. My up close is also now terrible. So far I can correct with contacts and cheaters for reading. 45 and cataracts. So crazy. 🤓👓

  23. I have just discovered that pushing myself rapidly back on a wheelie stool away from the screen provides a clear panda image for as long as the stool is moving which then disappears as the stool comes to rest. Fun on multiple levels.

  24. Apparently you haven’t read Da Roolz, posted over in the left-hand column. Rool Number 6 states: “Please do not tell me how to run my site. That is, comments about “too many cats,” “too many boots,” “not enough biology,” “too much religion,” etc., are not welcome. I provide content free of charge, and if you don’t like the mix of posts, you’re free to go elsewhere. By all means take issue with what I say, but don’t argue about the balance of topics.”

      1. And I bet you had kittens when you realised your comment was *apparently* directed at Prof CC. 😉

        Yeah I know, WordPress does it to everybody sooner or later.

        cr

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