The Paradox of Pictures

This paper explores the paradox of images. Images are motionless and never-changing reflections of a moment of inspiration, yet they manage to continuously inspire and move us. This paradox is extended to (software) patterns, which are often represented by images, such as sketches. Then it is argued that the paradox of images can be resolved by considering them as a pattern, the hourglass pattern. This pattern describes a process of deduction and inference, that closely resembles the way mental images or maps, are used in our brain. We propose that this hourglass pattern could be considered a candidate for a unit of intelligence.