Trippy Video Shows Toddlers Reacting to an Immersive 3D Experience

Photo: Screenshot from Reddit

Technology has allowed us to get increasingly creative with exhibits and entertainment. While 25 years ago 3D graphics only happened on computer screens, today it can be a fully developed, 360-degree experience. These kinds of works are marvelous, but our brains may still struggle to fully grasp them—no matter our age. One very cute video starring a group of little kids getting up close with an interactive environment has gone viral, and we can't help but relate to them.

In the clip, the three kids—led by an avidly curious toddler—try to keep their footing as the images in the immersive space quickly shift. The scene seems to depict a rocky landscape. When the site's video first speeds up and the image lowers and moves to the side, two of the kids lose their balance despite that the floor beneath them remains perfectly still. Once up again, the littlest one tries to hold his ground as the video seems to slide at a constant speed as if he were on a moving walkway. However, once the video on the interactive screen speeds up even more, the kids take a tumble once again.

As adorable as it is to see the children react to this, the scene is a great example of how our brains process stimuli. As one Redditor explains, “Your eyes mess with your balance[.] You try to take the visual information and process it before your inner ear which in this case isn't being activated[,] so the eyes cause the body to react to a stimulus that isn't actually affecting the inner ear.”

Another commenter added that the video depicts the human brain showing its pattern recognition skills. “Just like how you can look at optical illusions and see movement in a static image[,] here, their brains are processing acceleration in a moving image with no mass. There would probably be more reason for concern if they didn't react at all in this scenario.” While it may look like an age thing, it is not, as one user wrote. “This happens to fully grown adults in these projections. It's almost impossible to not ‘overcorrect' your balance.”

Some others chimed in with similar experiences. “The first time I was playing around with my VR headset, I fell sideways out of my chair,” said one person. “Using the mouse/keyboard to move around is weird. Turns out that your visual input will completely override every other input.”

It's not clear where the video was filmed, but one thing is clear: these types of dizzying experience seems to be universal. To some, you don't even need to be physically there to experience the whipping motion of the video, much like one Redditor cheekily said, “I fell out of my chair watching that.”