Sydney Science Festival: A Night of Illusions (SOLD OUT)

Baffle your senses with an evening of tactile and visual illusions. Watch static images move and twist before your very own eyes, feel your body change size and shape and immerse yourself in the bizarre sensory world of animals in which perception determines your fate. We invite you to step into a realm that will challenge your assumptions and mess with your perceived reality. You will never see the world the same again – trust us.

The evening will feature talks and interactive demonstrations from many talented scientists at leading Sydney universities including:

Matthew Bulbert, behavioural ecologist who examines how animals exploit the perception of others to increase their survival (a.k.a deception)

Erika Contini, psychologist and cognitive scientist who evaluates brain patterns associated with recognising objects

Alex Holcombe, vision scientist who investigates the speed limits on perception, attention, and reading

James O’Hanlon, researcher and host of the science podcast In Situ Science, who studies how animals survive using illusion, disguise and masquerade

Stephen Pritchard, cognitive scientist specialising in computational modelling and exploring sense of self using Virtual Reality.

Kim Ransley, vision scientist who looks at how the brain creates our visual experience

Tatjana Seizova-Cajic, who studies how we perceive space and motion via touch, proprioception and vision

Regine Zopf, who studies body self-perception and action with multisensory illusions

There are four sessions over two nights:

Friday 18 August, 6–8pm and 8–10pm
Saturday 19 August, 6–8pm and 8–10pm

A Night of Illusions takes place during the Sounds of Space exhibition, a free inclusive community event that merges the arts and sciences with two exhibition spaces; a large scale projection room showcasing the best in astrophotography and incredible recordings from Space, and a curated group show of mixed media works from an exciting collection of Australian artists.