. I. Introduction
‘Until very recent years, it was supposed by philosophers that there was a typical human mind which all individual minds were like…Lately however, a mass of revelations have poured in which make us see how false a view this is.’
-William James, 1890
One of the chief purposes of the human brain is to create a sensory reality. Most people possess five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. The brain organizes the sights, sounds, tastes, scents, and textures we encounter, separating each sense so that we can clearly tell the difference between something we see and something we hear, or something we touch and something we taste. In some individuals, however, the brain arranges the senses in a very different manner. This condition, called synesthesia, causes people to involuntarily combine two or more senses. Someone with synesthesia might be able to see sound, for example, or he might be able to taste shapes. He might have a three-dimensional view of time, or, in rare cases, he might associate color with temperature. There are nineteen specific types of synesthesia, and it is estimated that about 1 in 2,000 people have the condition. However, this number may not be accurate; there are probably many people who have the condition, but don’t realize that it’s abnormal.
II. Background
Figure 1 – Location of the senses in the human brain
As seen in Figure 1, the human brain organizes the senses into regions. Synesthesia results when the brain “cross-wires” the senses, causing synapses that normally are contained in one particular area to cross to another sensory system. For example, in a synthetic person, the nerve cells that carry sound may end up in both the hearing and vision parts of the brain. Other types on synesthesia include combining taste with touch, scent with sight, and assigning personalities to different letters of the alphabet.
Synesthesia tends to be a heredity condition, and is most commonly found in women. People with synesthesia often become musicians, poets, artists, or authors; being involved with creative arts gives them a chance to express the way they experience life.
Figure 2 – Bouba and Kiki
According to some scientists, everyone experiences these “crossed connections” when they are born; most infants react to sensory stimuli in ways that suggest synesthesia. This realization led to the hypothesis that young children have crossed connections, and as their brains develop further they lose their synesthesia. Adult synesthetes are simply individuals who retained the crossed connections.
However, 98% of adults still possess a miniscule amount of synesthesia, according to a study created by Wolfgang Kohler. Look at Figure 3, and decide which shape should be named Bouba, and which should be named Kiki. 98% of the people asked that question answer it the same way: the sharp, angular shape is Kiki, and the rounded blob is called Bouba. This is probably because the curves of rounded shape metaphorically mimic the gentle waves of the sound 'bouba.' In contrast, the sharp emphasis on the sound ‘kiki’ is represented by the jagged edges of the angular shape. Without even thinking about it, our brains combine sound and shape, showing minor symptoms of synesthesia.
There are numerous ways to determine whether or not an individual has synesthesia. One of them, as seen in Figure 3, tests for the most common type of synesthesia: grapheme-color, in which people see letters and numbers in color. To a non-synesthete, Figure 3 looks like the image on the left: a jumble of black numbers. To someone with grapheme-color synesthesia, however, it looks like the image on the right; because the numbers are two different colors, it’s quite easy to differentiate between the fives and the twos.
People with grapheme-color synesthesia tend to remember people by their colors, rather than by name. If the name Laura appears purple, for example, a synesthete will often remember that her name is purple instead of recalling that her name is Laura.
III. Biography of Investigator
Oliver Sacks, author of Musicophilia, is a British neurologist. Born in London in 1933, Sacks was surrounded by medical scientists from a young age; his mother was a surgeon, and his father worked as a general practitioner. He succeeded in earning a medical degree at Oxford and moved to New York in 1965 to study the nervous system. Sacks’ main area of interest is in mental conditions, including Tourette’s syndrome, autism, phantom limb syndrome, schizophrenia, retardation, Alzheimer’s disease, and synesthesia. In addition to studying medicine, Oliver Sacks writes books pertaining to his discoveries—he received Lewis Thomas Prize by Rockefeller University in 2002, which recognizes the scientist as the “poet laureate of medicine.” Published in 2007, one of his books, Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain, consists of interviews and discoveries the scientist collected regarding synesthesia.
IV. Impact on the World
The discovery and investigation of synesthesia raises deep questions and theories about truth and perception. Once someone is aware of synesthesia, he’ll begin to question his world. What if he’s the only one who hears that sound? What if no one else experiences that taste? What if he perceives that color differently than the person sitting next to him? According to the Uninhibited Natural State theory, everyone is synesthetic in reality, but most of us are not consciously aware of it. This type of thinking leads to philosophical discussions about truth. If the worlds on a page seem black-and-white to you, but multi-colored to someone else, then what is the true color of the ink? Knowledge of synesthesia can result in open-mindedness and tolerance when faced with disagreements, not just over the color of a word, but over more important matters, as well. After all, everyone sees the world differently, not just synesthetes.
V. Journal Article Review: “Synæsthesia and the Brain”
Most cases of synesthesia are idiopathic, or developmental. This means that the person experiencing the condition has had it for as long as they can remember. In some cases, however, synesthesia can be acquired in non-idiopathic ways. Seizures, hallucinogenic drug use, brain damage, and spinal cord injuries can result in synesthesia. Neuron degeneration, the loss of certain neurons that make up nerves, can also induce synesthesia; concussions may result in temporary sensory confusion, as well. As for idiopathic synesthesia, not much is known other than the fact that it seems to run in families. Studies show that most infants possess synesthesia, and as the brain develops it eliminates the sensory confusion; some theories suggest that everyone possesses some form of synesthesia throughout their entire lives, but most people aren’t completely aware of it.
Works Cited
"Biography Oliver Sacks, M.D., Physician, Author, Neurologist." Oliver Sacks, M.D., Physician, Author, Neurologist Official Website Musicophilia, Awakenings, The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat. 2010. Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
Booth, Shannon. "Synaesthesia and the Brain." Macalester College: Private Liberal Arts College. Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
Jensen, Amber. "Synesthesia." Lethbridge Undergraduate Research Journal. 2007. Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
"Neuroscience for Kids - Synesthesia." UW Faculty Web Server. Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
"Synesthesia Links and References." ./mediateletipos))). Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
"Synesthesia." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. 7 Dec. 2010. Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
Tarko, Vlad. "Synaesthesia: Seeing Sounds, Tasting Shapes - This Eerie Phenomenon, Long Regarded as a Mere Curiosity, Might Offer a Window into the Nature of Thought - Softpedia." Latest News - Softpedia. 4 Jan. 2006. Web. 12 Dec. 2010.
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