In the scientific literature the term "visual illusion" is preferred because the older term gives rise to the assumption that the optics of the eye were the general cause for illusions (which is only the case for so-called physical illusions). "Optical" in the term derives from the Greek optein = "seeing", so the term refers to an "illusion of seeing", not to optics as a branch of modern physics. A regular scientific source for illusions are the journals Perception and i-Perception
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In the scientific literature the term "visual illusion" is preferred because the older term gives rise to the assumption that the optics of the eye were the general cause for illusions (which is only the case for so-called physical illusions). "Optical" in the term derives from the Greek optein = "seeing", so the term refers to an "illusion of seeing", not to optics as a branch of modern physics. A regular scientific source for illusions are the journals Perception and i-Perception
