How many
Xs do you see below?
X X X
Ok, now how many do you see below here?
X X X X X X X X X X X
In the first case you immediately
perceived
three Xs, but in the second case you almost
certainly had to look closely and
count them up
(to arrive at the total
of eleven).
This simple experiment sums up the meaning of
the word subitize, which
The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology defines as:
subitize - To apprehend directly the number of dots or other small objects in an unstructured stimulus display without counting them. The limit on this process is about seven or eight.
Subitize is derived from the Latin word subito.