MetaChat - Paranoid but not fooled.

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27 October 2005

Paranoid but not fooled. Is sanity just a shared illusion?

Researchers at the London university found that schizophrenics are not fooled by visual illusions that easily trick non-schizophrenics.

post by: orthogonality at: 14:56 | 16 comments

≡ Click to see image ≡

posted by mcgraw 27 October | 15:09

Note: when I wrote "Is sanity just a shared illusion?", I was being rhetorical -- the implication is less sweeping but more interesting: apparently schizophrenia involves, among other things, excessively focused concentration.

posted by orthogonality 27 October | 15:13

Unless someone can present the 'objective reality', the answer is Yes.

posted by Gyan 27 October | 15:30

with genius, a touch of madness.

and vice-versa, apparently.

posted by whatnot 27 October | 15:47

reality by consensus?

btw same deal w/ autistic people re: optical illusions / pattern-finding

posted by Wedge 27 October | 16:17

This seems really interesting and I'm sorry I can't read about it now. Thanks for the post, though.

posted by omiewise 27 October | 16:58

Autistics are also great at detecting lies and insincerity. Schizophrenics... I would think that would depend on the branch. Paranoid probably not so much...

posted by dreamsign 27 October | 18:07

Oh, but that reminds. Depressed people have more accurate self-perceptions. (non-depressed people inflate them) A tad... depressing, don't you think?

posted by dreamsign 27 October | 18:07

Autistics are also great at detecting lies and insincerity

afaik, it is the exact opposite... not unlike asperger syndrome (the official disease of the internet™). if you could cite any research, that would be cool TIA.

posted by Wedge 27 October | 19:37

dreamsign may be thinking of aphasia - Oliver Sacks relates a little anecdote in one of his books about people with aphasia watching presidential debates and finding them hilarious, because they picked up on the insincerity and such a lot better without the distraction of the words.

posted by ubersturm 27 October | 21:24

ahh ok. thanks, ubersturm.

posted by Wedge 27 October | 22:16

As a (non-paranoid) schizophrenic with depression, I can tell you that some of us have a very sharp perspective on reality.

posted by mischief 27 October | 23:17

some of us have a very sharp perspective on reality.

...because of the drugs? or do you mean w/o them?

posted by Wedge 28 October | 02:59

Does anyone know what journal they are referring to? So far as I know, there is no journal called "Biology".

posted by AlexReynolds 28 October | 03:07

A moment...

You are entirely correct, ubersturm. Just checked my old text where I remembered reading this exact thing. Funny, though, I still don't remember this referring to people with aphasia. Must have misread it the first time around! Thanks for the correction.

posted by dreamsign 28 October | 03:55

So far as I know, there is no journal called "Biology".

i've honestly never heard of it, myself, but i think they're referring to this? i.e., the "Journal of Biology"... even though the article's text reads, (incorrectly?) "...reported in the journal Biology."

posted by Wedge 29 October | 03:09

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