Life’s too confusing for this stuff… Synaesthesia Life’s too confusing for this stuff…

What is Synaesthesia? Defined as “an involuntary physical experience of a cross-modal association” Crossing of the senses One stimulation of a sense causes the stimulation of another sense Greek Syn – together Aisthesis – perception Five main diagnostic features Involuntary Sensations projected onto environment (i.e. real) Sensations remain the same with time and situation Memorable (often most memorable) Emotional – causes ecstasy

History of Synaesthesia Possibly first identified/noted by Aristotle (4th century B.C.) or Pythagoras (6th century B.C.) First reference believed to be in John Locke’s Essay Concerning Human Understanding Speaks of a blind man interpreting scarlet as being like “the sound of a trumpet”. Leibniz and Newton both mention in 1704 Leibniz – recounted again a case of a blind man interpreting scarlet as being like the sound of a trumpet Newton – Attributed colors to notes of a musical scale Castel – 1735- Noticed same parallel as Newton, and created first color organ Galton – 1883 – noticed synaesthesia seemed to be frequent in children Scriabin – 1911 – composed Prometheus Incorporates music and light 1944 – attempt to teach “colored hearing”

Types of Synaesthesia   Two or more senses crossed, usually unidirectional – 31 possible combinations Two-Sensory: Colored Hearing (Chromaesthesia) Sound evokes perception of a color Colored-Olfaction Smell evokes color Colored-Gustation Taste evokes color Tactile-Gustation Taste experienced as shape Multiple Sensory Numbers, letters, words, dates, etc experienced as colors  

What’s happening in the brain? Idea that it’s a mental illness is no longer valid Positron Emission Tomography (PET) shows that different areas of the brain are active for a task for those with Synaesthesia than those without Depends exclusively on the left brain Associated with decreased blood supply to the neocortex, resulting in enhanced limbic expression Leads to belief that synaesthesia is influenced more by limbic system than neocortex Supported by the fact that there are emotions felt when a synaesthetic experience occurs Idiopathic (natural/genetic) Rebalancing of regional metabolism (similar to migraine) Everyone perhaps Synaesthetic at birth, and some fail to have their senses modulated Non-Idiopathic (developed) Seizure (electrical discharge in brain) induced Drug Induced Neuron degeneration Brain/Spinal damage Concussion induced (noises/lights cause pain – temporary)

Living With Synaesthesia Generalized Trends Order, neatness, symmetry, balance More prone to unusual experiences (déjà vu, etc.) Right-left hand confusion Math abilities and spatial navigation below average Superior memories Imagine: Conversations being painful or pleasurable from flashes of color, and not being able to concentrate on what is being said Voices blending together in a mix of colors Fast speech bringing a confusing mix of pictures and/or colors Remembering things, even in other languages, simply by association with another sense (pictures, for instance)

References http://www.macalester.edu/~psych/whathap/UBNRP/synesthesia/SYNBRA~1.HTM Great page, lots of information