And our brains do this all the time. Have you ever jumped because you thought you saw a spider? There was nothing there, but you flipped out anyway. The truth is, you reacted before you even had time to consciously see a spider. Part of your brain, which science refers to as the "HOLY FUCK SPIDER cortex," detected the spider threat and inserted that spider right in your visual frame, even though you'd later discover that it was merely a harmless tuft of your roommate's pubic hair.

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All the scientific explanation in the world won't stop your friends from calling you a giant pansy.

The brain may be bullshitting you, but the alternative would be worse. Without its sweet little lies, your consciousness would remain in pieces. Researchers have observed all sorts of brain-damaged individuals who cannot resolve their internal conflicts (or resolve them very poorly). These patients include stroke victims who insist their paralyzed arms are healthy, and even a patient who believes in God in one hemisphere of his brain and not the other.

So don't feel annoyed that your brain makes you see tables weird sometimes. If it didn't find some middle ground, your life would be a schizophrenic nightmare.

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For more reasons your brain is totally unreliable, check out The 5 Strangest Ways Your Mind Can Get Your Body Sick and 5 Mind-Blowing Ways Your Memory Plays Tricks On You.

If you're pressed for time and just looking for a quick fix, then check out 5 Insane Things Supposedly Seen by the Mars Rover.

And stop by LinkSTORM where everything you'll see isn't real.

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Related Reading: For some optical illusions that absolutely are not photoshopped, click here and prepare to be stunned. If you'd like to know more about how your senses lie to you, read this article and learn how your brain predicts the future. To keep your head messed and confused, try this article and then try to forget about the fact that you spend forty minutes per day completely blind.