YouTubers Take an Aphantasia Test | Sci Guys Bitesize 

i wish i had never found out that people can actually see things with their mind. i have never experienced it. all i see is black when i close my eyes. i can't imagine things, i can only recall memories but they are picture-less also. i am so jealous of everyone able to do this.

i didn’t realise people could see that vividly in their minds woah

I have aphantasia, as a child I thought that "picture this" was a wierd turn of phrase.

I imagined an invisible ball in a dark room on a small round invisible table.

What's really weird is how, for the first 30ish years of my life, when people talked about "mind's eye," "visualize," and mind palaces, my brain just accepted these as non-literal terms and didn't question it.

I really identify with the song thing - I constantly have songs on loop in my head all the time!

My teacher tried to teach me to remember the prime numbers by imagining walking down a street and hanging placards of the numbers on lampposts as I went, then collecting them as I went back down the series. It never made any sense to me and this is probably why.

This is so mind blowing to me! I wasn't aware that people have such visual thinking, crazy to me

I never realised that I couldn't see things in my mind until I learned about aphantasia, I assumed everyone could just see black! I can recall memories but the details aren't always perfect, and when you said to imagine the 5 point star I literally couldn't see a thing! I also don't know if I have an internal monologue, I think things to myself but it's not like they're independent thoughts, I have to say things to myself like 'I wonder what you would say in this scenario'... the mind is wild

It felt like he was going to say more about internal monologue, but didn't. For me, my internal monologue is what I would be saying if I was speaking.

It's so weird to know that not everyone is experiencing the world as I do. There are movies and books in my head that my mind is creating without me even trying. Maybe that's why I'm more of an introvert. Am so happy being in my own presence and it's not boring. Also it would be great if all of these people were guests on the podcast.

My English teacher: Now write about the surroundings and what the character sees Me: huh.. 👁👄👁

I’m turning 38 next month. I have always been a very creative person. I just discovered TODAY that I have had Aphantasia my ENTIRE LIFE! The funny thing, is that I dodged the idea of it for a very long time because I always thought I was a visual learner, but I literally only learn by doing and repetition. The fact that I used visual things to memorize in my life was about structure, and organization, not because I’d see it in my brain. WHAAAAATTTT????!!!!!

When I just casually imagine things it's all abstract concepts but since finding out about aphantasia I found out that if I really focus on it I can get quite the clear picture, gives me quite the headache though I also don't have an inner monologue in the sense of words, I have concepts of the things going though my mind but it only takes the form of words when I'm actively storytelling or writing something down or thinking how I want to say something. Let me tell you it's really hard sometimes to put these abstract concepts into words that other people can understand

I have a very weak mind's eye. If you tell me to visualise a particular thing I can only bring up the vaguest sense of it - but if I am daydreaming I can recall a tv scene vividly, or remember my Dad's face and the subtleties of his expression just for a moment before it loses definition.

The way the guy jumped up and down and said ‘am I going to die?’ So gentle but high key concerned Lmao love him

I just found out about aphantasia a few years ago. Before then I thought visualization was a metaphor. I couldn't memorize my music in marching band, mental math was futile, and I had given up on art, one of the only things I felt I was good at. I had so many ideas but I couldn't put them on paper. Later I found other artists could actually see their ideas and literally copy them from their minds picture. I felt cheated. Now I do geometric designs that I always enjoyed in school because I don't have to plan them. It's all spontaneous, I have no idea what it's going to look like until it's done. Now I have a coloring book out and a second one coming out soon. Knowing definitely makes a difference between being a failure and finding a way of thinking that works for you.

Brains are so strange and fun! When I can't sleep, I picture the floorplan of a friend's house/flat in my head and then proceed to fill it with my own furniture and decorations. It's very relaxing! My inner monologue is quite loud and can get a bit distracting.

My inner monologue is too strong. Its like another me inside me. Most of the time its my voice, but sometime its other people's voice. Of course I can change the voice whenever I want.

I have aphantasia, but I have a strong inner monologue. I could talk to myself for hours about situations and be like "I wonder if I do this, do that, I wonder what goes on in their life, etc". I'm trying to learn how to lucid dream and I'm upset because I don't think I'd be able to do it.

I can imagine it if my eyes are open, I can’t see it but I can imagine it

When i try to visualize something like an apple , it flashes in my mind and then it fades away ,can’t keep the image constantly in sight ,thought it was how everyone pictured things lol

I have aphantasia and I thought that when someone was saying to imagine something I believed it was a metaphor. And the only time I can visualize something is when I have lucid dreams which only happens about 2 times a year then when I wake up I can’t visualize it and I get super frustrated. And I have a vague inner monologue.

My internal monologue is so loud and distinct that she can really piss me off sometimes. It’s basically everything I would be saying out loud if I was narrating my life, and when I’m alone I sometimes whisper it subconsciously. I did that typing this out to plan what I was going to say. Idk if any of that makes me weird but there you go

i definitely have this, i thought i was totally normal until about 2 months ago. now i understand why i could never grasp the visual side of lessons when i was a kid when they use to tell you “okay now close your eyes and imagine ...”

What I find interesting is that while I can’t picture anything when I’m awake, I can when I’m asleep and dreaming.

I love this, I get terrible anxiety because I am constantly thinking about thinking and feeling like I am visualizing things wrong? Its hard to explain but this was really comforting to watch.

Like Rowan, I constantly have songs running through my head. And they’re like the full recording, too, with instruments and background tracks and everything. I don’t know if I have an internal monologue - I sometimes do, and sometimes don’t. I also talk a lot in my head as though I’m explaining something to an imaginary person or I’ll make up conversations that haven’t happened yet. It’s a really interesting topic - how everyone thinks differently.

John Green recently tweeted that he can't visualize things in his head. So only one of the Greeb brothers has aphantasia!

i have aphantasia and every single english teacher i ever had told me that i didn't describe things enough and i was just like "why should i describe things if we can't visualise?" and years later (only from sci guys) i realised i have aphantasia and i understand

Yeah my inner monologue is pretty much always on My mind can never be blank, if I’m not talking there’s a part of a song I like playing in repeat over and over 😭

this is FASCINATING well done guys! brilliant!

I'm feeling so robbed by life since i dont have neither visualisation or an internal monologue. I miss so much. When i don t have external inputs, my mind is a dark void. I can think and *feel* the words but can't hear them nor hear songs.

I don't get the 'picture a red 5 point star' example. Like, I can _picture it,_ but there's no light behind my eyes.

The only thing that bothers me about having it is the fact that I can't visualize the faces of family members that have died.

My ability to visualize my thoughts helped me pass medical school. I boosted my memorization efficiency by creating crazy mind map and mind visualization, tried to make the thoughts as funny and quirky as possible so I could memorize faster and absorbed more.

Yes, I agreed with Hank when he was asked about internal monologue. Everytime he asked someone, I was like how can they have an inner monologue when they are having an external one at the same time. Unless there are long pauses in conversation, I'd only be focused on what we're talking about.

When I watch videos with talking or especially questions in them (like this one), my internal monologue usually participates in the conversation. I almost always have an internal monologue unless I'm speaking. I have a song in my head more than half of the time lol

I discovered this a few years ago when describing a dream to my wife. ‘It was so vivid b/c it was narrated by more than one voice.” I knew something was up when she said “narrated?”. Thanks for doing this video…it’s so hard to imagine people visualizing things without their eyes open. :)

I have Aphantasia and till I knew about it and inner monologue, my closest to inner monologue was literal just saying words very very quietly. If someone were to xray me see how my mouth was moving and happened to know what words look like in that sense. That person would be able to see all of my inner monologue.

I can see things. Touch things. Taste things. Things are so vivid. Since a young child I have had dreams that were like reality. I could also lucid dream, changing my dreams as they were happening. I never knew other people could NOT do these things.

hi! i have Aphantasia and i dont have a inner monolog either. so when the teacher have that test that they say a word and you have to write down what you think of first, or like "imagine sheeps hopping over a fence to sleep" wasnt making sense to me. i only see black void. im jealous that people can imagine their loved ones, their memories, their future, etc.

It has been SO strange to me, learning about this. I have never actually SEEN an image in my head, but I KNOW precisely what something looks like. And it becomes more specific the more I think about it. So if you say, picture an apple, it might be a red apple, but it also is a green apple, and then when I think about it more closely, I fill in the details, like the type of apple, the blotches on the skin, what it might smell like and taste like. I know where those blotches are, but I don't actually see them. As far as inner monologue goes... I am more like Rowan. It's rare I don't have something running through my head, either a monologue or music. Sometimes I think in concepts, but more often it's words, even if they're not full sentences. It's so interesting how everyone's mind works a little differently!

To not have an internal monologue is wild to me. Both my subconscious and conscioud mind won't shut up. Having none sounds like a beautiful holiday.

Bro, I’m exactly with that lady who said a mix of 1 and 6 . I know what it _feels like_ to look at a red five point star, I guess. And I can define it, could give you the wavelength of light it gives off and the angles that make it up. But I don’t think I really _see_ it. It’s not even like it’s a fuzzy image or a silhouette, it’s just like I can feel its presence in my mind but not detect it any other way.

If only I didn't have it... I wonder what's it like to see colors when you close your eyes, sounds interesting

What I find interesting is that I can't picture a single thing if I try to but I have really vivid dreams so clearly my mind must be capable of doing it. I could be right in the middle a scene in my dreams surrounded by buildings and looking at people etc but then as soon as I wake up it all completely disappears.

It’s so strange because I can visualize things, but I also can’t! Like, I can’t actually SEE them, but I can keep track of where and what things are supposed to be in different places on my “screen” that is completely black. It’s almost like everything has it’s own little symbol and I can like… place them in different areas, but they are in no way visible. I can just keep track of their existence and their presence in my brain. So like, I could design a room in my head, and I could keep track of where everything is in the room and what color everything is supposed to be, but I could never actually SEE it. It would all just be black.

The 'am I going to die' panic was so funny. I have aphantasia and have no idea how I got a B in my art GCSE without being able to visualise things!

Could never do that "Memory palace" type of exercise for remembering facts. You have to be able to visualize a room before being able to visualize facts placed in a room. I knew I wasn't normal but just kept it to myself for most of a lifetime. Knowing there's now a name for it doesn't really change anything.

I don't think it's to do with visualising actual things, but when I was younger I used to "see" a different face for each day of the week. Never really acknowledged it, it just happened every time I heard the days. One time I thought "Hang on.. why does Sunday have more freckles?" which was such a weird question that I finally noticed the faces and after acknowledging it, they went away and I can't picture them since. That's why I refuse to consciously think about what my bar looks like in the "A guy walks into the bar" joke, I probably like my bar and don't want to lose it forever.

What makes this even more amazing, is that there are some pretty prominent theoretical physicists and mathematicians that are theorizing that when we dream at night we're actually traveling consciously into other dimensions. And if that is true, that would suggest that people who have better visualization skills actually have an ability to see into other dimensions. I have hyperfeditasia to the point that I can imagine things happening while I'm looking at reality. Which isn't all that rare.

I always thought it was just me who couldn't visualise images until literally last night, and it was like a slap in the face to realise people could actually close their eyes and see something, because I've never been able to do that. My dreams are the same, i am a voice in a black void, no images just my voice. I've always had a good minds ear, nose etc but a blank minds eye

6:50 As a writer with aphantasia, this is 100% the truth. My focus on writing is heavy on dialogue, internal thoughts and reflection, and movement. Very little is spared for descriptive language outside of establishing the basics and describing movement in a scene. For example, I won’t heavily describe the beauty of a location, but I will say what is in that location as necessary or when a character is taking it all in. If something serves a purpose I'll mention it, like a sewing machine in the room to show a character's skill set. And if characters move places and positions I’ll say so, or I’ll describe their facial expression or similar type of things. When it comes to reading, anything with a lot of descriptive writing is so boring to me. I can appreciate that it sounds nice, but my inability to picture anything means that past a sentence or two of it, I'll start skipping to when characters are thinking, doing, or speaking again lol.

I could picture things with my eyes opened but it’s hard to picture things with my eyes closed.

It's weird, I remember being able to see things in my head but I can't anymore. I still dream often in full color though. I've never had a nightmare and can't imagine senses either

Lol when I was younger I used to watch movies in my head during church because I was so bored. I could picture everything just like I was watching it. I can usually do it with my eyes open too

I have a hyper realistic imagination. That's probably why I can spend so much time laying in an empty room doing nothing. In my mind I'm doing all kinds of things, solving the worlds problems, inventing things, writing things etc..

something ive always wondered is: do people actually see things when they imagine?? :O i can clearly imagine and "trace" images in my mind, but not physically see them. ex: when i imagine something red, i *know* its red as opposed to any other color, but i dont actually *see* the color red the language used to talk abt imagination is so nebulous that ive never known if ppl actually *see* things or not lol :"]

it makes me so sad that i can’t picture stuff in my head

I think their is a continuum of process here, not just one factor. Age, Emotional Health, Past Experiences, Learning Abilities, Language Skills.

Like tom, my internal monologue gets anxious? thats the best way I can describe it, and it talks so quickly, and I find I almost can't control it.

Roly literally has me in tears from laughing . he is so cute . * am i going to die ?? * in his accent 😭 why was he confused lmao

The words in my head are absolutely non-stop. I have a constant running monologue. I envy people who can “shut” their brains off. WTF?!

I don’t have a mind’s eye. But, I often have great non-visual musings, imaginings which I turn into my drawings. These become my external worlds of imaginative, whimsical or dramatic imagery. It is while i am drawing out my preliminary pencil-lines, there is where ‘images’ evolve, on paper. Maybe ‘cuz I don’t see internally, that is why external stimuli are part of my process. Waiting for inspiration takes on a new meaning, now I think about it. Thanks, Sci Guys for this episode! P.S. Aphantasia, as I understand it, as a ‘title’ for the lack of a mind’s eye, was coined pretty recently. Well, I recommend everyone read Oliver Sack’s ‘Mind’s Eye’. Another fascinating book of his. He wrote it before aphantasia became what it is now.

I do this test of "visualize an apple" every time I get the oportunity to talk about aphantasia. People usualy get intrigued when I tell them I cannnot, and freak out when they realize nor can they.

Been looking forward to this

When I read books it’s like I’m wearing a VR headset and watching a movie. I can’t see my own surroundings but I’m consciously reading the book and watching it all play out. I also do other voices which is why I love reading

my brain is so strange. no mental imagery, barely a internal dialogue ( how loud are those supposed to be anyway? i don't hear a clear voice in my head at all, but i can still read without doing it out loud ), and i can't replay other people's voices in my head. there's no visual or auditory stuff going on. it's a hassle now that i know the majority of this world has it better than me. i really hope doctors look into this more

So strange thing I'm only JUST realizing today, at the age of 37 years 4 months and 12 days of life... I don't see anything when I try to visualize with my eyes closed, I have a conceptualized idea that's usually more feeling and words, but when I imagine or visualize mentally with my eyes OPENED, I can see a nearly clear picture that's a bit fuzzy around the edges. I was talking to my partner about it and he was talking about bars that he's got a vague idea of because he'd seen them so much, but he's entirely dark mentally and I could see both the bar from Cheers and the bar from How I Met Your Mother in my head with my eyes still open. Human brains are so fascinating 0_0

I'm sitting here yelling at my screen: "this can't be real! None of you are seeing anything!" That's how foreign this concept is to me. It just sounds like something they're making up to justify it to the questioner. Like when he asked to picture a ball I thought, "balls are round and 3 dimensional" but I realized I still wasn't seeing it. I can recognize one when I see it and it has the attributes mentioned, but I can't just conjure one out of thin air inside my head to look at. When he said to picture it MOVE? That was entirely trippy - it gave me the closest thing to a visual input yet, as it looked/felt like it was being smeared like thick paint when you scrap across it. It felt like I feel when I have to try to play make believe with my kiddo. It's like nails on a chalkboard, I hate that type of play. I like finding answers, making plans, figuring out puzzles, writing opinions, teaching - I do NOT like making things up that aren't factual. I think for me that may be why - I have a deep aversion to the slightest dishonesty or presumption. When I was in school I could look at a text and have total recall while testing for it, right down to the font and page numbers. So it's not like i can't see anything. I just can't make something up to see. It has to be a specific thing. Picture THIS ball in your mind would likely not have tripped me up. -I had exactly the same take as the survey questioner about the mind palace. Why complicate things? The memories are already there, it just seems like a bunch of extra steps that would make it easier to forget the way to the memory.

wow this is such a cool lineup of youtubers

I don’t have a mental image, but I’ve always had a mental monologue. Kinda like mental radio 24/7; I can sing entire songs in my head or carry on imaginary conversations but I cannot picture anything consciously

I only just found out about aphantasia and I find it funny that, when trying to find an analogous "unusual brain processing situation", almost everyone brings up colourblindness. Given that I am colourblind and therefore have a lifetime of experiencing the astonished reactions from people when I try to explain how colour is changeable to me, depending on what I am told by colour-sighted? (lol) people about the things we can see around us, I can imagine how this is a fair comparison. It must be equally strange for people with Aphantasia to realise that they do not really remember, or simulate the world in the same way that they naturally assumed other people do. And yet we all do our best to get along and accept each other 😊

The whole concept of a mind's eye is definitely fascinating. I can't see a single thing if someone tells me to close my eyes and imagine something. It used to frustrate the hell out of me when I was told to do this at school, as all I could see was black. With my eyes open, however, I can see some things. It's mostly memory recall though, so if someone tells me to imagine a pink elephant with purple stars, I can see (with my eyes open) a picture of a grey elephant but it's on a safari and there are no stars, as I haven't even seen a pink elephant with purple stars. However, if someone tells me to picture a Land Rover or a house, I can see those quite easily, as I have plenty of pictures to choose from. As I can see some things in my mind's eye, I don't think this counts as aphantasia. I'm not sure though. Anyone else like this? Regarding an internal monologue, I always have one / when no specific thoughts are running through my mind, then a song will play. So basically there is never silence up there.

When I'm making a grocery list I will browse through my small local grocery store in my mind's eye and as I browse past the merchandise I'm reminded of things I need or could use and write my lists that way. No, I do not meal plan, lol.

My brain usually has a soundtrack, a narrator, imagined dialogues, an inventor, a panic setting and a what if setting. Usually at least two at the same time and in three different languages. I can imagine things, but when i do, i see nothing. It is a concept. When i imagine an apple, I don’t know what kind of apple it is, what the colour is. My head is probably broken..

i'm not surprised to learn tom scott's internal monologue speaks really really fast

When I was a kid, my inner monologue would sometimes get louder and louder until it was shouting. It could be so loud! It scared me, so I guess I got control over it, but I still fear it. Sometimes when I'm having an inner monologue, or dialogue, I get this anxiety that it might get loud again, and I won't be able to control it. I'm like the aqua haired lady as far as that goes, my mono/dialogue is going all the time, except when I have music in my head, or I'm listening to ambient sounds. I don't listen to music much, even though I'm a musician, because it interrupts what's going on in my mind. I also compose music in my head.

Im so lost rn. I never thought about actually focusing on color or definite shape. The red star is like a 2 or a 3 for me. My mind tells me the star is there but i cant actually visualize clearly. But i swear I remember my dreams having color.

I cant really imagine that far, i can almost think of basic things ive always seen and expect like a light brown wooden table a tennis ball and obviously the result it falls off that table. I can almost see faint figures, but i cant vividly see them as if im with the person in that room.

Half a century into my life, and now this is being spoken about everywhere. Hopefully, less people feel alienated.💌

I visualize vividly and write descriptively. My mind tend to drift away too much and go off daydreaming.

great, now i cant stop seeing this bigass red star before my eyes. thanks

I might have partial or something. I see all the colors and images, but like with a fog over it. As if ghostly. So, I saw star number 3. I can't believe people could see 6, exactly. That's remarkable.

When I think about writing something, I hear the words in my head and I see them written out in front of my mind’s eye. Like, if I have a scene that I’ve pictured, it’s kind of like a movie in there and then the right words to describe it starts popping into my head. Even as I was writing this, I pictured a scene of someone showering because that’s one of the scenes I’ve come up with like this and later written down. And I have this constant inner monologue that I just cannot shut up. It’s very similar to what Rowan was saying! If I’m not thinking words of my own, it’s songs or quotes.

In the film the never ending story, Fantasia is a place that only exists when it is imagined by us.

5:56 I can relate to that. And when the music is not playing in my head, I make geometrical patterns using my feet to "draw" the patterns. Also rubbing my thumb against another finger to the point that those fingers I rub have VERY shiny nails from all the rubbing. I am diagnosed with bipolar type 2 but I believe that all of these habits are common across a lot of mental issues

Do you have an inner monologue? -unplugs headphones- -silence- stares out window - 'I must be thinking something?' -inner conscous voice says- -more silence- -motorbike goes past- Brain: >> And that was when I realised that my thoughts were just sounds, impressions, shapes, and light. Verbal thoughts are like if I was having a conversation with someone and actively thinking about what to say. Also explains why my autistic self can go non-verbal when tired.

I cannot coprehend people actually seeing things in their mind, crazy!

I can’t see in my mind and no internal monologue. Its mind blowing to me that people have those things. Sounds stressful and loud internally.

I would have just asked, “Can you hear your thoughts?”

Sometimes I catch myself trying to imagine something so hard that my eyes start to slowly open because I want to see it so badly. But I cant.

I can really vividly imagine sounds, but I'm not sure if i can picture images.

I have very vivid dreams and daydreams down to textures, sounds, colors, and emotions. I am always bothered by how vivid it is because I could add scenes to my dreams after I woke up and I can also dream of the same thing but with new scenes. The word aphantasia makes sense to me but in the opposite.

I'm more of a 4 on that red-star chart, but like Dr. Page, I also "know conceptually" enough about what I'm imagining to describe it as a 6. But I do absolutely have an inner monologue, punctuated by songs like Rowan. Honestly, I think in language so much that I can't even imagine how I'd ever figure anything out, or truly understand anything, without describing it in words. I often think out loud -- "talk to myself" if you like, though I don't answer back like a conversation 😅 -- because that helps me think even more clearly. I guess this is a big part of the reason that my creative outlets are "I suck at visual art, but I love writing and programming", since those are more language-focused. Brains are weird on the whole, and thinking about how other peoples' brains work differently from your own is even weirder.

I don't feel I have trouble imagining things, but I did NOT "see" that red star. I felt it. I don't know how else to say it. For the ball on the table, I did have colors, but I didn't see them. I just conceptialized them. The weird thing though is I HAVE used the mind palace technique to remember things, and it DID work for me. I also used to do that thing as a kid where you picture something running alongside the car. I didn't "SEE" it visually, but I felt it was in my "imagination." I'm so confused, and having a minor identity crisis right now.

2:00 so I can kinda identify with the 1 and 6 answer. I am building a definition of how I visualise I call conscious aphantasia. If you ask me to straight up hard focus on visualization its 1. but if I get caught up in a story and let my mind wander my subconsious will generate vivid imagery. the moment my conscious mind trys to get involved it returns to 1. Like for this question I got caught up in the moment and my mind got caught up in the moment and i first saw the outline of a start and then each point had a circular point of yellow light appear on it and that 5th of the star turned red and then the yellow circular light disappeared. and at the end I saw 6 clearly. but the moment I looked at the chart and became fully aware of what I was doing I could not return to 6 no matter how hard I tried! I just stayed at 1. It explains how if I get caught up in a book or am dreaming or am listening to a description in dnd and get caught up in the moment i can see things. key term caught up in the moment. But if you ask me to picture a beach... nothing. how something will look nothing. the more focused I am the worst the visual. the more unfocused the better.

I realised I had an inner monologue when singing along to songs in my head when younger and realising I could sing along to songs I had never heard before. I now know that it's likely just because my brain is processing the lyrics as I hear them and my monologue has such a short delay that it seems like I'm singing along.

I am so fascinated by this. I see darkness behind my eyes but in my mind's eye I see everything clearly. And I see it better with my eyes open. It's weird I don't know what that is.