Is There a Mistake in This Photo?

A photo circulating online shows a series of numbers from 1 through 15 and asks you to spot the mistake. If you were unable to find the mistake, you’re asked to share to see the answer. There is plenty of speculation, but what is the answer?

There is no mistake.

Let’s take a look at the graphic which has circulated online since at least 2012.

The photo includes the following text:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
If you were unable to find the mistake above
Click “share” to see the answer!

One social media description states, “SHARE IF U WANT TO SEE THE AWNSER”

Theories abound as to what the “mistake” could be, such as:

• One of the numbers has a slightly different appearance. (They are all the same)
• There is no “0” to start the series (who says the series has to start with any particular number? It could easily have been 3 through 18 or 4 through 19)
• The word “awnser” in some descriptions is spelled wrong. (This is true, but the graphic states there is a mistake above the text in the graphic, which there is not)
• A lack of commas (It’s just a row of numbers, so grammar doesn’t necessarily apply)

So why share a “mistake” that has no mistake? There could be a few reasons:

• A prank – Posting a graphic claiming to contain a mistake that actually contains none could be nothing more than a joke to watch people argue over it.
• A trick question – The “mistake” could be that there is no mistake, thus the graphic is merely a trick question.
• Share Bait – Some people just like to get a graphic or post viral at any cost. What better way than to post a fake mistake and let people over-think it?

Sharing a graphic won’t suddenly reveal new information as the graphic implies. You may have also encountered a similar “look at the circle” graphic which has also circulated for several years. That graphic also has no optical illusion, but was merely a trick to get people to share it.

Bottom Line

We believe there is no mistake in the graphic above, and that it has likely been circulated in order to get more likes and shares for social media page admins.

What do you think?

Updated July 8, 2015
Originally published June 2012