Powerful ideas from top nonfiction
Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 5,500+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.
Start your free trial
Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
Listen to the Intro
Deviate summary
Beau Lotto
The Science of Seeing Differently
26 mins
Table of Contents
Deviate
summarized in 9 key ideas
Audio & text in the Blinkist app
Key idea 1 of 9
There’s an objective reality, but our brains don’t see it.
It’s February 2014 and the internet is, as usual, embroiled in a heated argument. All around the globe, people boldly declare their opinions, only to have family, friends, and complete strangers aggressively dismiss them as delusional.
So what’s got the world all wound up? A simple picture of a blue-and-black dress. Or is it a gold-and-white dress? Well, that’s exactly the issue. Everyone’s looking at the same picture but seeing completely different things.
This optical illusion became a viral sensation because it revealed an uncomfortable truth about the human mind. It showed millions of people that what we think of as reality is just an interpretation.
The key message here is: There’s an objective reality, but our brains don’t see it.
The controversial color-changing dress isn’t the only example of how our brains' interpretation of some circumstance or other can differ from reality. In fact, distortions like this are extremely common. Just think of all the different optical illusions you’ve encountered throughout your life.
One popular example shows two circles, each surrounded by a different field of color. At first glance, the two circles appear different, with one clearly being darker than the other. But when you hold the shapes side by side, their shade is exactly the same. The variation only appears because your brain is interpreting the visual stimulus differently, depending on the surrounding context.
Want another example? This time, imagine sitting in a stationary train. As you gaze out the window, the train on the next track starts to move forward. For a brief second, as you see it glide away, you may feel as if you’re moving backward, even though you’re not moving at all.
Clearly, it’s not just your eyes that are vulnerable to deceit. All our senses can be tricked by the mind. But if all our senses are unreliable, how do we know what’s really real? Well, a lot of the time, we don’t. And that’s okay.
For the most part, distortions of the outside world are harmless, or even beneficial, because they let us concentrate on more important sensations, like pain or fear. And, because our brains are the result of millions of years of evolution, the way they interpret reality doesn't have to be accurate. It just has to help us survive.
Want to see all full key ideas from Deviate?
Key ideas in Deviate
More knowledge in less time
Read or listen
Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
Find your next read
Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
Shortcasts New
We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.
What is Deviate about?
Deviate (2017) is a primer on the sometimes-tricky neuroscience behind human perception. It details all the illusions, distortions, and shortcuts our brains take when making sense of the world around us.
Best quote from Deviate
Seeing differently . . . begins with knowing that some of those often invisible assumptions that maintained your survival in the past may no longer be useful.
—Beau Lotto
Who should read Deviate?
- Curious minds interested in the science of human perception
- Designers seeking novel approaches to problems
- Anyone who wants to see the world from a new perspective
Categories with Deviate
Books like Deviate
People ❤️ Blinkist
Sven O.
It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.
Thi Viet Quynh N.
Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.
Jonathan A.
Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.
Renee D.
Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.
People also liked
Start growing with Blinkist now
26 Million
Downloads on all platforms
4.7 Stars
Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
91%
Of Blinkist members create a better reading habit*
*Based on survey data from Blinkist customers