Retinal Persistence

Retinal persistence allows the eyes to see still images in motion. This theory allows us to be able to store a visual impression in the brain for a few hundred milliseconds after seeing the image. Because we can store the image, that fills the gaps of darkness in between the still images. Therefore each new image seen is processed by the retina before the old image has been able to fade completely, so the new image blends on top of the old one, allowing the eye to see continuous motion. Though this theory was later rejected, it played a big role in the illusion of movement. Earlier it had been determined that a film rate any less than 16 frames per second would cause the eye to see flashing images. The eye can still see as low as 10 frames per second, which would not look as continuous, but like a flipbook to the brain.