Disturbing rumors and online imprinting

[NoSuchCreature]

An online rumor has just been brought to my attention, which I don't intend to be the total source of discussion here, rather I would like to dwell upon the concepts it raises and the nature of such.

Look at the image linked as follows, and sincerely ask yourself what feelings you have from observing this:

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/6984/veryafraid6mc.jpg

Now, as the legend goes from there:

Quote:

The story is this, in Japan shortly before a teenage girl comitted suicide, she drew this picture, scanned it and posted it online. In korea this story broke out and it spread like wildfire. There are various posts around in korean forums that say that the viewer gets drawn to the girls blue eyes, they say they can detect a hint of wraith and sadness within the eyes. Maybe the girl had died with so much sadness and anger that her spirit haunts the image, or maybe the image provoke sadness, similar to the song 'Gloomy Sunday'.

The freaky bit is this, they say it is hard for a person to stare into the girls eyes for longer than 5 minutes, there are reports that some people have taken their own lives after doing so. People say the picture changes, as you view it there is a hint of a growing taunting smirk appearing on the girls lips or a dark ring grows around the girl or her eyes...

Now, I won't even dare to back the credibility of this, but it still sparks interest. Have any of you heard about this? Is there any truth to the paranormal aspect of it? How would you explain it?

But overall, is such a signature on so much as mere visual information even possible, and to what degree of modern usefulness?

I, personally, was unsettled by this image, and sincerely thought I could feel some sort of unnaturally implanted misery and feeling of being trapped, and this was before I read the story built around it.

My next thought, being myself, was how one could achieve similar means if such were possible, to create a form of influence somehow convenient in everyday life (such as forming a symbol that people feel an immediate sensation or emotion from, regardless of past recognition of it).

Whether this sort of feeling is brought on by a true telling of the rumor, or merely by the impression that its widespread utterance has built up, there is no denying that it carries with it a psychogical and possibly even psychic impact on the viewer, and I would love to see such a thing be made capable of replication in other forms.

Your thoughts?  

[Kal Eldritch]

Damn you FLO...damn you good...  

[NoSuchCreature]

Sovereign of Darkness

Damn you FLO...damn you good...

By that, do you mean that I'm being humiliatingly superstitious, or that I've just opened up a big mess of nastyness in this forum?

...Or both? sweatdrop  

[maenad nuri]

Wow. I totally feel, uh....nothing.

I AM IMMUNE!  

[NoSuchCreature]

Nuri

Wow. I totally feel, uh....nothing.

I AM IMMUNE!

>> Oh, hush. So I'm easily startled. My main idea is whether or not there are ways to play around with saps like me by imprinting certain feelings to a thought, object, or sensation without them being aware of it.

It's unfair to base the worth of dabbling with this sort of speculation on your mutant powers. domokun  

[PurpleDragonsGems]

*twitch twitch*....great...now that image is scarred into my brain *cries*  

[TeaDidikai]

Nuri

Wow. I totally feel, uh....nothing.

I AM IMMUNE!

So am I!

Althought, Hubby did want to smack the artist for it after about four minutes.  

[TatteredAngel]

Looks like someone had fun with Photoshop's liquify tool. That said, I do think it's creepy. Distorted faces tend to be, in my book. Something about the colors, too. But I think the main way I just can't view it as something imbued in the picture itself any more so than any other disturbing picture I've come across. I had sort of the same reaction to a lot of the pictures in the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark books I read as a kid- those drawings were by and large more frightening to me than the stories themselves.

So at least in this case, I think it's more a matter of personal hot buttons for creepy factor than anything else.  

[Pelta]

Wow. I so didn't need to see that first thing in the morning before my coffee. Note to self: Wake up more before going on Gaia.

So is what you're talking about somewhat like visual psychometry? Like being in a really foul mood, making something, then considering giving it to someone you hate... except that you're talking about just showing something to them. Meh. It could probably be done. Though a lot of the fear might just come from the backstory. So what you'd really be doing is showing someone an illustrated scary story...

Or maybe not. I need more coffee.  

[TeaDidikai]

Fluffy Little Octopus

Nuri

Wow. I totally feel, uh....nothing.

I AM IMMUNE!

>> Oh, hush. So I'm easily startled. My main idea is whether or not there are ways to play around with saps like me by imprinting certain feelings to a thought, object, or sensation without them being aware of it.

It's unfair to base the worth of dabbling with this sort of speculation on your mutant powers. domokun

Of course it is possible. People do it all the time- some of us are just sane enough to use basic psychology over exerting any kind of emotional/psychic effort.... I mean.... no. It's not possible. I don't know what you are talking about.  

[Collowrath]

I've seen another version of the same drawing, except without the freaky eyes and crazy mouth. It was really quite beautiful; it gave a sense of sadness. I guess that has to do with the solemn expression on the girl's face, or psychological matrixing (feeling sad because I'm told I should).

I'll give a link to the other version sometime later... I'm at school at the moment and the censors won't let me access it. It thinks it's porn. x.x  

[[GWW Guild Mule]]

"Mommy, I am scared."
I hate things like these, the stories are always fake, but the picture scares me alot. I looked long enough to see eye color then had to leave for a minute.

 

[Shavis]

Thats pretty ******** up right there... Not getting anything off of it, part of me likes it and finds it relaxing, part of me (oddly enough the part that hasn't had it's coffee yet) finds psycho-zombie mona lisa b***h thingy not really frightning more like... disturbing, not something I wanna look at first thing in the morning... though I would like to get a painting and put it in my living room to mes with people.