The top frame is labeled Figure-Ground and shows two illustrations. At the left is a map of the southern US states, with Texas highlighted. The text reads as follows: We tend to perceive visual stimuli as figures existing on a background. On this map, one area becomes the focus, while the rest functions as background context.
The right illustration shows a black ornate vase, or two yellow faces in profile. The text reads as follows: Some stimuli, such as this classic figure-ground vase, are reversible figures. You see something different depending on whether you focus on the yellow or the black portion.
A frame labeled, Law of proximity shows two illustrations. The top illustration shows six columns of six dots in each column, with wider spaces between the pairs of columns. The text reads as follows: We tend to perceive objects that are near each other as a unit. This set of dots is perceived as three groups rather than six separate columns or 36 individual dots. The second illustration shows a simple bar chart, with two pairs of bars shaded in different colors. A color code identifies one of them as men and the other as women. The text reads as follows: Proximity helps us read graphs like this one. We understand that bars close together should be compared.
A frame labeled, Law of similarity shows two illustrations. The upper illustration shows ten columns each made up of squares or dots, forming alternating columns of squares and dots. The text reads as follows: We see objects as a group if they share features such as color or shape. In this example, we perceive eight vertical columns rather than four rows of alternating squares and dots. The lower illustration shows a horizontal bar chart, with the bars represented as rows of small houses rather than actual horizontal colored bars. The row labeled Canada has 3 houses, while U.S. has 6 houses, and Mexico has 5 houses. The text reads as follows: Similarity helps us read color-coded charts and graphs. We understand the graph above as having horizontal bars because we naturally group the similarly colored icons.
A frame labeled, Law of connectedness shows two illustrations. The upper illustration shows nine columns of five orange dots. A frame surrounds the dots in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th columns, and a horizontal line is drawn among the second dots in the 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th columns. The text reads as follows: We tend to see objects as a group if there is something that connects them. In this group of dots, the ones enclosed in or connected by lines appear related even though all dots are the same. The lower illustration shows a person’s head with the layers of the skull shown as folded-open sections, labeled Skull, Scalp, and Meninges. The text reads as follows: In a textbook figure, connectedness helps us understand what is being labeled.
A frame labeled, Law of closure shows two illustrations. In the upper illustration, four circles are drawn, with the left one being a solid circle, and the remaining circles composed of progressively smaller dashes. The text reads as follows: We tend to fill in incomplete parts of a line or figure. In this example, we perceive a circle even when the line is broken. The lower illustration shows the letter A composed of multiple horizontal lines. The text reads as follows: Closure allows us to read letters and images that are interrupted. We can read this letter even though it is made up of unconnected lines.
A frame labeled, ‘Law of continuity’ shows two graphics. In the left graphic, the upper illustration shows two visual equations. The first equation, labeled A, shows a dotted X equals an upward-sloping dotted line plus a downward-sloping dotted line. The second equation, labeled B, shows a dotted X equals a dotted greater than symbol plus a dotted lesser than symbol. The text reads as follows: We perceive groups where objects appear to be going in the same direction. In this example, we perceive the figure as made up of two continuous lines that intersect, A, rather than two angles that are brought together, B.
The second illustration shows a scatter plot, with the dots arranged closely along a line rising up from the origin as it moves diagonally to the right. The text reads as follows: Continuity helps us read graphs like this scatter plot, where we perceive the overall pattern.