r/science • u/unsw UNSW Sydney • Jan 11 '25

Health People with aphantasia still activate their visual cortex when trying to conjure an image in their mind’s eye, but the images produced are too weak or distorted to become conscious to the individual

https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2025/01/mind-blindness-decoded-people-who-cant-see-with-their-minds-eye-still-activate-their-visual-cortex-study-finds?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=social
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u/Ehrre Jan 11 '25

Aphantasia confuses me because.. how do you quantify a mental image? How do you measure how vivid it is for someone?

I can think of things but I don't see an image of it in my mind.. I know what an apple looks like I can describe it but when I imagine it I don't "see" anything at all.

It makes me wonder if anyone actually does.

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u/broden89 Jan 11 '25

Yeah it's always confused me because when I read a book, it's like I see a movie in my mind. It sucks when movie adaptations get released and it doesn't look right.

Do people with aphantasia not get the "brain movie"? Can you enjoy reading if you're not picturing anything??

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u/Orgetorix1127 Jan 11 '25 edited Jan 11 '25

I have aphantasia and have always loved reading, especially super plotty books. I tend to skim over parts that have a ton of imagery. I'm also a very fast reader, and I've always wondered if part of it is not wasting processing power on images.

John Green is an author with aphantasia, if you're curious about a writing style of someone who doesn't picture things. My own writing tends to not have extraneous detail about the environment/person, just what's needed for the scene. It's something I have to actively think about expanding on when I'm going over for a second pass.

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u/SpiderQueen72 Jan 11 '25

Conversely, I love reading books with a lot of imagery because I don't get anything otherwise.

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u/pistachiotorte Jan 11 '25

Oh, is this why I love reading plays? Any description is sparse. TIL