''Looming'' is a term found in the study of

perception Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...

, as it relates directly to

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

. Looming occurs when an object begins moving closer to the eye. As the resulting image becomes increasingly larger on the perceiver's

retina The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...

, i.e., when an object ''looms'', there is an automatic

physiological Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...

response to

perceive Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...

the object as an approaching object or surface, instead of one that is stationary or receding. Evidence indicates that looming perception is not limited to the visual modality, but can occur due to auditory or even tactile stimuli. There is a different type of

mirage A mirage is a naturally-occurring optical phenomenon in which light rays bend via refraction to produce a displaced image of distant objects or the sky. The word comes to English via the French ''(se) mirer'', from the Latin ''mirari'', mean ...

that is also described as looming, in which distant objects appear much nearer than they actually are. This is explained in the same way as the image of the ship , except that the image is not inverted; the variations in density may also act as a

magnifying glass A magnifying glass is a convex lens—usually mounted in a frame with a handle—that is used to produce a magnified image of an object. A magnifying glass can also be used to focus light, such as to concentrate the Sun's radiation to create ...

. Sharp edge eye syndrome (SEES), sometimes known as visual looming syndrome, is a condition in which the patient experiences ocular pain or discomfort when viewing or mentally picturing sharp objects and edges. Patients may present for medical care because they perceive the condition to represent an ophthalmic problem or a sign of a more serious underlying condition.

References

*Schiff, W., Caviness, J.A., & Gibson, J.J. "Persistent fear responses in rhesus monkeys to the optical stimulus of 'looming'." ''Science'', 1962, 136, 982–983. *Schiff, W., "Perception of impending collision; a study of visually directed avoidant behavior." ''Psychological Monographs'', 1965, 79 Whole #604. Perception {{cognitive-psych-stub

See also

References