Some People Can Hear A Color Or Smell A Sound

[Hum]

Surprising as it may seem, there are people who can smell sounds, see smells or hear colors. Actually, all of as, at some point in our lives, have had this skill (some authors affirm that it is common in newborns). This phenomenon, called "synaesthesia" - from the Greek "syn" (with) and "aisthesis" (sensation) - consists of the pairing of two bodily senses by which the perception of a determined stimulus activates a different subjective perception with no external stimulus (in science, the evoker stimulus is called inducer and the additional experience concurrent).

In the department of Experimental Psychology and Physiology at the University of Granada, a research group is carrying out pioneer work in Spain on the systematic study of synaesthesia and its relation with perception and emotions. Professor Juan Lupi??ez Castillo and Alicia Callejas Sevilla have devoted many years to the study of this unknown but interesting phenomenon, which affects approximately one person out of every thousand. Many of these people do not even know that they are synaesthetes, as they think they perceive the world normally.

Callejas' doctoral thesis is one of the most detailed studies on this phenomenon at an international level, and it is probably the first doctoral thesis on this topic in Europe. Her study covers the various forms of synaesthesia focusing on the most common one: the grapheme-color type (for people with this form of synaesthesia, letters, words and numbers evoke colors in an automatic and involuntary way).

One of the distinctive characteristics of this form of synaesthesia is the fact that people are certain about their perceptions: they feel that their way of experiencing the world is correct, and they become disappointed when they realize there is something that is not quite right. 'Therefore, when a person with grapheme-color synaesthesia indicates that the word table is blue, it is quite probable that if he or she ever sees the same word written in a color other than blue, this word will appear to him or her as wrong and consider it a mistake. The synaesthete might even point out that the word is ugly or that he or she does not like it because it is not correct,' affirms Callejas. Consequently, finding the word table written in red might be unpleasant whereas seeing it in blue might be agreeable. This emotional reaction associated with how synaesthetes perceive consistent or inconsistent stimuli is an extremely interesting subject and has been studied for the first time in this doctoral thesis.

Some of Callejas' conclusions show that these emotional reactions occur automatically and can not be ignored. Moreover, they can affect the synaesthete to the point of slanting his or her preferences when faced with certain stimuli which correspond to his or her inner experiences. Even more important is the fact that these emotions can transform how they perceive events associated with these experiences. These events may have no emotional meaning initially but they can become more or less pleasant if they take place at the same time the synaesthete finds a word in the correct or incorrect color.

'Then, there are people for whom time units evoke colors - explains the researcher. It is also common for a synaesthete to see colors when listening to words, sounds in general or music notes (people who can see music, for instance). There are also cases, although fewer, where people can see colors in flavors, others perceive flavors or experience touch sensations when listening to different sounds, some link flavors to touch sensations, etc.'

These researchers from Granada underline that synaesthetes always experience the same vision, synaesthesia is permanent (a given stimulus always evokes the same color for one person) and idiosyncratic (it is different for each person). Therefore, if for a synaesthete the word dog is red, every time he or she sees it, it will be perceived as red.

Even though synaesthesia has been known for a long time, its scientific study is relatively recent. Writings such as the Castel one, in which reference is made to previous studies about a synaesthesia case in a blind person, are found in the 18th century. The evolution of the study of this phenomenon has been spectacular - the number of researchers working on this topic is constantly increasing, as will be evident in the Conference which will take place in Granada - and, as the phase of proving that this phenomenon exists has been overcome, explains Alicia Callejas, 'we are starting to approach questions of major theoretical importance, and to develop adequate study strategies.' The results of her research have been published in the following prestigious scientific journals, among others: Cortex, Experimental Brain Research and Consciousness and Cognition.

Nowadays, the research field goes from grapheme-color synaesthesia to other forms never studied before: flavors evoked by music or words (lexical-gustatory synaesthesia), space structures linked to time units, colors and music, etc.

source

[Laurë Veteran]

As a child I used to have images and colours associated with peoples names. Now it's more of a barely there shadow of a colour that I only feel when I think about "what colour is personX".

This stuff is pretty cool though, I'd love to experience it. I'm sure there's a way...apparently it happens when two areas of the brain interfered and communicate when they shouldn't. Like your visual cortex & the sound bit mixing it up.

[4CxbqFxVnstmA Veteran]

Are there drugs or treatments like shocks that can make you experience these things if you don't naturallY?

[Hum]

^ Probably if certain areas of the brain had 'holes' poked in them, yes.

[MonkeyClaw Veteran]

I have this condition, and I consider it a blessing. When I think of letters, numbers, days, months, years, words, I see colors in my head. It is really an amazing thing to live with, I love it. When I see colors in like reality, I have different feelings that I associate with each one. They are very subtle but still there. It really makes the world so much more colorful.

And Hum, you can experience this apparently on LSD which despite what your government loves to tell you, does not poke holes in your brain. MDMA, thats a different story. But LSD is PHYSICALLY harmless. If you aren't prepared for the experience it can overload you mentally which always sucks but it almost always goes back to normal. Statistically speaking the number of instances of people developing mental problems such as schitzophrenia are proportional to the normal segment of the population.

So your chances of developing mental disorders after a trip are just the same as if you hadn't at all. If you're out of puberty, mentally sound and confident in yourself and are placed in a safe, fun environment that you are familiar with, you will have a great trip. I know it worked for my friends and I!!! :D

And PS, I had synesthesia before I did LSD or Shrooms so this wasn't something drug induced, though those two substances do have some similar effects for people who don't already experience it.

[Hum]

^ I was speaking hypothetically.

If the correct brain areas were surgically altered, you could experience "synaesthesia", permanently. ;)

The brain is a filter; keeps you focused on the physical 'Reality'.

[MonkeyClaw Veteran]

^ I was speaking hypothetically.

If the correct brain areas were surgically altered, you could experience "synaesthesia", permanently. ;)

The brain is a filter; keeps you focused on the physical 'Reality'.

Ah, ok, that I agree with, haha.

[kernatch]

it's fascinating stuff. what's interesting is that even in normal people, the different senses combine weakly... the classic example is the bouba and kiki image..

one is called bouba and one is called kiki... it probably feels intuitive which is which. the 'sharp' sound of kiki matches the sharp visual edges, the 'round' sound of bouba matches the round edges.

you can find it in many other words... needle, knife, cut, prick... booby, balloon, belly... etc

[Jennifer]

The human brain is capable of some amazing things thats for sure. It would be cool to be able to experience that after living with "normal" perceptions, as I imagine people with synaesthesia have no idea that they aren't experiencing things like others are for a good portion of their lives.

And Hum, you can experience this apparently on LSD which despite what your government loves to tell you, does not poke holes in your brain. MDMA, thats a different story. But LSD is PHYSICALLY harmless.

Harmless, that is unless you're an elephant! :p

Elephant on acid

[Wrezal]

The human brain is capable of some amazing things thats for sure. It would be cool to be able to experience that after living with "normal" perceptions, as I imagine people with synaesthesia have no idea that they aren't experiencing things like others are for a good portion of their lives.

Harmless, that is unless you're an elephant! :p

Elephant on acid

haha i never knew that would happen to an elephant!