👁️ The Power of Vision: Why Visual Games Matter

As human beings, we are equipped with five senses — all essential in their own way. But of these, vision is the most dominant in how we experience and interpret the world around us. It is our primary connection to the external environment, shaping how we move, interact, and understand.

We do not constantly engage in smell, taste, or touch — those senses are utilized in specific contexts.
Even hearing, while deeply meaningful and powerful in communication and emotion, plays a more selective role in information gathering.

But vision never turns off.

 

From the moment we open our eyes,

…we are flooded with visual input. Whether walking through a city, interpreting a chest X-ray, admiring a sculpture, or reading someone’s expression —

We are always looking.

Yet even though we are always looking , we are not always seeing and noticing.
To look is not always to see.

The Phases of Looking and Seeing … and
What we do wit the information we collect

1. Perception is the raw intake — the sensory awareness of color, shape, light, shadow, contrast, and motion. It’s what the eye (and brain) picks up before we’ve named or labeled anything.

2. Identification is the next step — the cognitive act of recognizing and naming what’s perceived. It’s where pattern recognition, memory, and knowledge come in.

3. Comprehension – Understanding what those identified forms mean

4. Sequential Thinking -/Activation and Abstraction – Linking what is seen to broader ideas or concepts

5. Imagination – Visualizing what is not directly observable

6. Expression – Communicating your internal visual experience to the external world

   •  While we may enjoy and internalize what we see, true mastery completes the loop: from sensory input (afferent), through integration with knowledge and experience, to outward expression (efferent). This final step is how we share meaning — not just as observers, but as contributors. In medicine, this might be a radiology report. In life, it could be writing, music, painting, or sculpting.
     This act of expression — informed by what we’ve seen, felt, and understood — is what connects us to others. It’s what makes us valuable to the world.

     PIC SIE
     (Identification, Perception, Comprehension, Sequential connections, Imagination, Expression)

     “Perceive It Clearly – And Interpret Expressively”

     This phrase follows the PIC AIE sequence:

🎨 Graphic Mnemonic Concept:

Title: The Eye of Expression
A symbolic image of an eye with 6 concentric rings or radiating layers, like the layers of sight expanding outward from perception to expression.

Layers:

1. Pupil – Perception (raw visual input, light entering)

2. Iris – Identification (recognizing form)

3. Lens – Comprehension (focusing understanding)

4. Retina/Nerve – Abstraction (connection to meaning)

5. Visual Cortex Halo – Imagination (envisioning beyond)

6. Spoken Word or Hand/Brush – Expression (communicating outward)

Just as we train muscles in the body,  we must train our visual sense — to sharpen our eye, to deepen perception, to connect what we see with what we know and feel.

Each element of

• PIC AIE
  ( Perception, Identification, Comprehension, Abstraction, Imagination, Expression)

  “Perceive It Clearly – And Interpret Expressively”

• Another Version

• It All Starts with Curiosity

  We are always looking — but we are not always seeing.

  What separates the keen observer from the casual onlooker isn’t just eyesight — it’s curiosity. The urge to notice what others miss.
  As Sherlock Holmes told Watson:

  “You see, but you do not observe.”

  In life, in art, in medicine — mastery begins with a question:
  “What am I not seeing?”
  And that spark of curiosity becomes the first step in a powerful visual journey.

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  Stage One: Curiosity – The Gateway to Seeing

  Curiosity invites the eyes to search with purpose.
  It directs attention. It challenges assumptions.
  It’s not about looking harder — it’s about looking smarter.

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  Stage Two: PIC SIE – The Phases of Seeing and Sharing

  Once curiosity opens the door, we enter the PIC SIE loop:

  “Pick what you want to See.”

  This mnemonic reminds us that seeing is a skill — and a choice.
  Here’s how we break it down:

  1. P – Perception
     The raw intake — light, shape, contrast, motion.
     Before we name or interpret, we notice.

  2. I – Identification
     Recognizing and naming what we see.
     Matching patterns with memory and knowledge.

  3. C – Comprehension
     Understanding the meaning behind the image.
     Seeing not just what, but why.

  4. S – Sequential Thinking & Abstraction
     Making connections — across time, space, ideas.
     Integrating what’s seen with what’s known. Building systems.

  5. I – Imagination
     Visualizing what lies beyond the visible.
     Predicting, creating, filling in gaps.

  6. E – Expression
     Completing the loop: from input to output.
     Sharing what we’ve seen and understood.
     In medicine, this might be a radiology report.
     In life, it could be writing, painting, music, conversation.

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  The Full Loop: From Afferent to Efferent

  True mastery of vision isn’t passive. It’s a loop:

  • Afferent: Taking in sensory input

  • Integration: Applying knowledge and experience

  • Efferent: Expressing insight to the world

  That final step — Expression — is where observation becomes contribution.
  It’s how we turn looking into meaning, and meaning into impact.

🎯 Visual Games was created with that mission in mind.

It is not about winning — it’s about learning to look, to observe like an artist, a radiologist, a detective, or a child seeing something for the first time. Through structured challenges, stories, and visual puzzles, Visual Games helps us rediscover and refine one of our most powerful tools: our eyes.

In medicine, as in life, better vision leads to better decisions.
And better seeing results in better patient outcomes.

We approached the case, you remember
with an absolutely blank mind,
which is always an advantage.
We had formed no theories.
We were simply there to observe and
to draw inferences from our observations.”

(The Adventure of the Cardboard Box)

A Complex Radiology Case

Classical Art
A Lot More Here than We See
What Story was Ruben’s Trying to Tell?

Abstract Art
What Story Does Michel-Basquiat want to Tell

Classical Sculpture
What was on Michelangelo’s Mind?

Abstract Sculpture
What was David Smith Trying to Say?

Photography
From the Series “dOG wALK aRT”

What Story does This Photograph Tell

Science in a Dogs Tail
The Golden Rule

Abstractions in the Ice
Grandmother Mother and Child Under the Moon

Tell the Story of this Photograph

AI Art
What is It Trying to Say?

 

The TCV and Sherlock Holmes Method for Image Analysis

A structured, story-driven approach to exploring images in medicine and beyond
Section: Radiologists and Detectives (RnD)

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🕵️‍♂️ Introductory Quote – The Holmesian Spirit

“We approached the case, you remember, with an absolutely blank mind, which is always an advantage. We had formed no theories. We were simply there to observe and to draw inferences from our observations.”
— The Adventure of the Cardboard Box

This method embraces the Holmesian ideal: to begin with pure observation — no preconceived ideas — and  let the image speak.

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🧩 Apply the TCV Theory (1 + 1 = Bigger 1)

• Begin identifying individual parts or elements — each with its own voice.

• Ask how these elements might unify into a larger narrative or diagnosis.

• Seek the greater meaning emerging from relationships, not isolation.

• The image becomes a story: the sum is more than the parts.

• This reflects the TCV principle of “Units to Unity” — a single image, with multiple components asking to be put together to tell a unified story

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🔍 Phase-by-Phase Framework

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🔎 Phase 1: Ask Broad Questions (Begin with Curiosity)

• Begin with an open, observational mind — free of assumptions.

• Pose big-picture questions such as:

  • What do we see?

  • What might be happening here?

  • What does this image feel like?

• This phase activates curiosity and deep engagement without jumping to conclusions.

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🖼️ Phase 2: Provide Background (Context and History)

• For Art or Sculptures:

  • Life of the artist/sculptor

  • Historical period and visual trends

  • Cultural meanings or prevailing ideologies

• For Medical Images:

  • Patient background and clinical context

  • Indication for imaging

  • Modality and setting (e.g., CXR, CT, MRI)

• This phase places the image in its narrative and technical context.

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🔬 Phase 3: Go Deeper – Ask & Answer

• Return to the questions posed in Phase 1.

• Begin forming answers — but split the response into two distinct lenses:

  • Facts: Observable, measurable, or widely accepted features

  • Opinion: Interpretations, hypotheses, artistic or clinical insights

• This phase blends deductive reasoning with creative exploration.

• It is where observation becomes understanding.

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🎯 Phase 4: Focal Points, Structured Analysis & Sequential Thinking

Once we begin to observe more deeply, certain elements in the image start to stand out. These are the focal points — clues that call for closer inspection. Each one becomes a unit of attention.

We analyze these using the SSPCTC framework:

• Size

• Shape

• Position

• Character

• Time

• Connections

But this is where we add a crucial dimension:

🔁 Sequential Thinking – The Architecture of a Visual Story

Observation is not a single moment — it’s a sequence.
One detail leads to a memory, a reference, a learned fact, or a gut feeling — and that, in turn, leads to the next idea. This is how a story builds, one step at a time.

“You did not know where to look, and so you missed all that was important.”
— Sherlock Holmes

This is not about what is invisible, but about what goes unnoticed — because we haven’t yet asked the right question or made the right connection. When we train ourselves to see in sequence, to follow the thread, each observation becomes a stepping stone in a larger narrative.

This phase is about more than labeling or identifying. It is about following the chain of meaning, using each clue to advance the plot — whether that’s a clinical diagnosis, an artistic interpretation, or a metaphorical insight.

So we ask:

• What do I see here?

• What does it remind me of?

• What question does it raise?

• What might come next?

This is how Holmes solved cases.
And this is how we build stories — in medicine, in art, and in life.

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🧠 Phase 5: Scientific, Medical, and Biological Relevance

• Relate the image to core disciplines:

  • Anatomy

  • Pathophysiology

  • Function and dysfunction

  • Clinical implications or diagnoses

• This phase anchors the visual story in scientific and educational value.

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❓ Phase 6: MCQ Creation and Explanation

• Create 1–3 multiple choice questions based on the image/story.

• For each question:

  • Give the correct answer with a reason

  • Explain why the other options are incorrect

• Encourages active recall, decision-making, and error correction.

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🖼️ Phase 7: The Memory Image (1 + 1 = 1)

• Conclude with a symbolic or memorable image that captures the learning point.

• Integrate:

  • Anatomical insight

  • Visual metaphor or narrative

  • Emotional or symbolic resonance

• This image acts as a recall trigger and supports long-term retention.

• Reinforces the TCV idea of “Units to Unity” — even complex truths can be captured in one image.

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🧭 The Heart of the TCV-Sherlock Holmes Approach

• Embrace curiosity over assumption

• Start Simple and Build to complexity

• Use structure to explore mystery
  

• Seek to unify part and whole, science and story, logic and memory

• Let images become portals to insight, meaning, and wonder