Have you ever traveled to a location and realized that, in some strange way, you’ve been there before? Or, have you been asked a question that you swore you knew the answer to — but even though it’s on the tip of your tongue, you just can’t seem to get the answer out?

These and other experiences create the strange marvel that is our mind. Although science can explain in some part how our brain works and functions, certain psychological phenomena are still left unexplained.

One of the most common mysteries of our mind is Déjà vu, which is the experience of being certain you have previously seen or encountered a situation. But what many people don’t realize is that Déjà vu only describes having “seen” something before. There are actually many other terms that describe these paradoxical feelings that one may endure.

For example, Déjà vécu is the sense of having seen something before, but is accompanied by smells, sounds, and other menial details. People experienceing Déjà vécu have also described a sense of premonition accompanying their strange memory. Basically, history repeats itself in front of your eyes and soon after you can predict the future (or at least for a few seconds).

Another strange act of the mind is known as L’esprit de l’escalier. This is the sense of thinking of a clever comeback just as it’s too late to share it. Also known as stairway wit, this phrase can be used to describe a witty remark or insult that comes to mind. Unfortunately, it’s too late to use it because the window of opportunity has already been closed.

Perhaps now that some of the mind’s biggest mysteries have been brought to light, scientists can figure out how and why they occur. But since that hasn’t happened yet, I’ll just pretend I’m the only person in the world with cool psychic abilities. Check out the other phenomena here!

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