Demonstration Part 3

Now we can explore some other great examples of lateral inhibition at work. Below is a group of nine rectangles that form a sort of illusion caused by lateral inhibition known as the Hering Grid. Notice how there are faint smudges at the intersections, where areas flanked on four sides by WHITE appear darker than areas flanked by BLACK? How does lateral inhibition cause this effect?

It is the white areas, not the black areas that produce this effect. The white areas produce lateral inhibition to all adjacent areas. Areas surrounded on FOUR sides by white will receive more inhibition than other white areas. This inhibition reduces activation in these areas and makes them appear darker.

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