Why do we see a famous furry face in this rock?
COURTESY OF SESAME WORKSHOP
Rock collector Mike Bowers has amazing rocks. He has sparkly purple gems. He has sharp, clear crystals. But there’s one rock in his collection that’s unlike the rest. Why is it special? It looks like Cookie Monster!
Looking for Patterns
KENNEDY NEWS & MEDIA
This type of rock is called an agate (AG-it). Agates look like normal rocks from the outside. But if you split these special stones in half, you’ll find colorful layers inside.
When we look at the layers of Mike’s agate, many of us see Cookie Monster smiling back at us. Why? Because our brains are trained to look for familiar shapes and patterns. They’ve been doing this since we were babies.
We find objects or animals when we look at the shapes of clouds. We see two eyes, a nose, and a mouth all over nature. Some even spot a face in an electrical outlet. And since most of us have seen Cookie Monster, we see the cookie-gobbling Sesame Street character when we look at Mike’s rock.
WESTEND61/GETTY IMAGES
Does this cloud look like an animal to you?
In His Cookie Jar
Mike posted a video of his special agate online. People loved it. Some even offered to buy it.
One day, Mike may sell his rock. But for now, he wants to hold on to his Cookie Monster rock. Where does he keep it? In his cookie jar, of course!
ERWAN MIRABEAU VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
What do you see when you look at this cliff?
FACT FINDER
Can't Miss Teaching Extras
Learn about meteorites, another fascinating type of rock, in our March/April 2020 Big Read “Attack from Outer Space.”
Fun fact: There’s actually a word for the phenomenon of seeing faces in everyday objects: pareidolia. It’s a commonly studied topic in psychology.
