Does looking at the image to the left make you uncomfortable? If so, you might be suffering from trypophobia, or fear of clusters of holes. Although this phobia appears to be relatively common -- it even has its own website and Facebook group -- it has not been scientifically studied ... until now! Here, the researchers explored the features of images that trypophobia sufferers fear most (obtained from the aforementioned website). They found that many of these images have "spectral characteristics" (features of luminosity and contrast) that resemble those of extremely poisonous animals. Based on these analyses, they conclude that trypophobia could be related to an evolutionarily ancient instinct to avoid dangerous animals.
Fear of Holes. "Phobias are usually described as irrational and persistent fears of certain objects or situations, and causes of such fears are difficult to identify. We describe an unusual but common phobia (trypophobia), hitherto unreported in ...
