Why We See Faces in Clouds and Elvis in a Potato Chip

When you see your Aunt Harriet in a cloud, it's not because you're fixated on her (we hope). According to University of Illinois scientist Kara Federmeier, this all has to do with the way your brain processes visual information.

You see a cloud. It looks like whipped cream. But your brain says, "No, that can't be whipped cream up there," so it keeps on searching your lifetime image slide show for some other object/ outline/texture package that resembles the cloud but is not so commonplace that it has been discounted before.

Then it says, "Stop! That time at the picnic 3 years ago when Aunt Harriet looked over at you. That's it! That's a match!"—and you see Aunt Harriet in the cloud. Your brain passes over images that often look like clouds but have been determined not to be and searches to see if it can find a more unique image that fits. Because facial recognition has been so important in human evolution (e.g., to identify your enemy), your brain is genetically disposed to retain a huge stockpile of facial images. This means that a face might be its first choice, but the best match could also be a horse or a frog or a tugboat. This is also why you see Elvis in a potato chip. –courtesy of D. G., Palatine, Illinois

THE MEANING OF A MOLE

A mole on . . .	Means . . .
A woman’s or man’s neck	a long and happy life, wealth, fame
The right side of a woman’s or	good fortune
man’s upper lip
The right side of a man’s forehead	wonderful luck
The left side of a woman’s forehead	two husbands and a life of exile
The left side of a man’s forehead	a long term in prison
	–The Sunny Side of Life, 1916