Babies may be able to see image details that are invisible or imperceptible to adults. According to a recent study from Japanese scientists Jiale Yang, So Kanazawa, Masami K. Yamaguchi, and Isamu Motoyoshi, three- and four-month-old infants may view certain images differently because they lack perceptual constancy. That means they can see small image differences that are invisible to adults because of changes in lighting conditions.
For example, when adults see the same objects in different lighting, their brains automatically adjust to those lighting conditions. If your friend steps in front of a blue spotlight, they might appear blue, but you still recognize them. That’s perceptual constancy in action: Your brain recognizes that, though your friend is bathed in blue light, they aren’t suddenly a totally different blue person. Young babies who haven’t yet developed perceptual constancy, meanwhile, are able to see subtle images differences that adults ignore, but may be unable to recognize the same objects in different light.
via Mental Floss
