What are those spots you observe after rubbing your eyes? - Paul CJ Taylor episode artwork

EPISODE · Aug 13, 2026 · 8 MIN

What are those spots you observe after rubbing your eyes? - Paul CJ Taylor

from TED-Ed · host TED-Ed

Explore the science of afterimages, which are the visual illusions that appear in the eyes after exposure to an image or bright light.--In the 1600s, Isaac Newton conducted a series of experiments to better understand the lights and colors that sometimes appear when your eyes are closed. If you’ve ever sat around an evening campfire or unintentionally glanced at the Sun, you may have noticed illuminated patterns briefly dance along your vision. So how do these visual illusions form? Paul Taylor explores the science of afterimages.Lesson by Paul Taylor, directed by Sofia Pashaei.Support Our Non-Profit Mission----------------------------------------------Support us on Patreon: http://bit.ly/TEDEdPatreonCheck out our merch: http://bit.ly/TEDEDShop----------------------------------------------Connect With Us----------------------------------------------Sign up for our newsletter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdNewsletterFollow us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/TEDEdFacebookFind us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/TEDEdTwitterPeep us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/TEDEdInstagram----------------------------------------------Keep Learning----------------------------------------------View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-are-those-colors-you-see-when-you-rub-your-eyes-paul-cj-taylorDig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-are-those-colors-you-see-when-you-rub-your-eyes-paul-cj-taylor/digdeeperAnimator's website: https://www.instagram.com/sofiapashaei----------------------------------------------Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Nathan Milford, Tomas Beckett, Alice Ice, Eric Berman, Kurt Paolo Sevillano, Jennifer Heald, Megulo Abebe, isolwi, Kate Sem, Ujjwal Dasu, Angel Alberici, Minh Quan Dinh, Sylvain, Terran Gimpel, Talia Sari, Katie McDowell, Allen, Mahina Knuckles, Charmaine Hanson, Thawsitt, Jezabel, Abdullah Abdulaziz, Xiao Yu, Melissa Suarez, Brian A. Dunn, Francisco Amaya, Daisuke Goto, Matt Switzler, Peng, Tzu-Hsiang, Bethany Connor, Jeremy Shimanek, Mark Byers, Avinash Amarnath, Xuebicoco, Rayo, Po Foon Kwong, Boffin, Jesse Jurman, Scott Markley, Elija Peterson, Ovidiu Mrd, paul g mohney, Steven Razey, Nathan Giusti, Helen Lee, Anthony Benedict, Karthik Balsubramanian, Annastasshia Ames, Amy Lopez and Vinh-Thuy Nguyen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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What are those spots you observe after rubbing your eyes? - Paul CJ Taylor

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