The user illusion is the illusion created for the user by a human–computer interface, for example the visual metaphor of a desktop used in many graphical user interfaces. The phrase originated at Xerox PARC. Some philosophers of mind have argued that consciousness is a form of user illusion which argues that conscious experience does not expose objective reality, instead it provides a simplified version of reality that allows the user, humans, to make decisions and act in their environment, akin to a computer desktop. According to this picture, our experience of the world is not immediate, as all sensation requires processing time. It follows that our conscious experience is less a perfect reflection of what is occurring, and more a simulation produced unconsciously by the brain. Therefore, there may be phenomena that exist beyond our peripheries, beyond what consciousness could create to isolate or reduce them. This notion is explored by Tor Nørretranders in his 1991 Danish book Mærk verden, issued in a 1998 English edition as The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size. He introduced the idea of exformation in this book. Philosopher Daniel Dennett has also embraced the view that human consciousness is a "user-illusion". Origin The pioneer of the concept of user illusion, Alan Kay, noted that the most important feature of a desktop computer is the user interface. He believed that the user interface is merely a tool to create the simplified representation of the underlying complexity of the computer. This “user illusion” that demonstrates the computer as much simpler than it truly is, not only allows the user to act and make decisions when using the computer, but, in all purposes, is the computer itself. For example, computer designers create windows and folders, objects that only exist in the interface but allow the user to interact with the underlying complex programming. User Illusion for Consciousness Empirical Evidence Benjamin Libet conducted an experiment that supports the consciousness user illusion. This study investigated the relation between our conscious and unconscious mind. Subjects wired with measuring electrodes were asked to move a finger. A half-second before the decision is made to flex the muscle, an electrical signal is detected in the brain. Astonishingly, the decision seems to be made by unconscious neurons before the self becomes aware of its desire to act. This study suggests that consciousness is the initiator. However, our subconscious minds process information and