Op-Tric Tops

Five Tops Show Fechner Colors

Complete your own optic experiments like the founder of experimental psychology, Gustav Theodor Fechner.

In 1838 Fechner expected to see various shades of gray when he rotated a disc with black and white rings in different sizes on its surface. He was more than a little surprised to see colors instead. In honor of the discovery, these colors are often named Fechner colors. Op-Tric tops demonstrate this effect.

Make sure the light is not too bright, rotate the top, and observe it from different angles. What you can see are subjective colors, which are usually perceived as soft pastel shades of color. When the brain receives black and white images in quick succession, it forms a code which corresponds to the nervous system’s own color code. Color photographs of the rotating figure prove this - the picture is gray.