Final answer:
Lateral inhibition leads to the perceptual experience where edges of objects tend to fade into the background.
Step-by-step explanation:
Lateral inhibition leads to the perceptual experience where edges of objects tend to fade into the background. This phenomenon occurs due to the way nerve impulses are processed in the eye. The eye makes comparisons between adjacent light receptors and is highly sensitive to edges, resulting in the perception of false darkness variations. An example of this can be seen in Figure 26.14, where uniformly shaded grey strips appear darker on the dark side and lighter on the light side of the edge.