Synesthesia and Sensation

Synesthesia, or "joined sensations" is a very interesting neuropsychological garbling of the five human senses. Especially under the influence of sufficient quantities of psychedelic drugs, the perception of these senses can become involuntarily mixed when processed in the brain. In addition to being involuntary, the one who is experiencing these mixed senses in synesthesia believes them to be an accurate representation of sensation, rather than simply shuffled electrical signals in the brain.

Synesthesia does not require drugs to occur. A tiny fraction of the surveyed population has actually reported experiencing synesthesia. According to interviews conducted in 1996 by MIT, a woman named Carol while in college began to perceive numbers not as symbols, but as colors in her mind. An audio interview with the same woman revealed that she experienced mixing of sensations in other ways. When she was at the dentist getting a root canal, Carol identified pain not as pain, but as the color orange. After the root canal was performed, the sensation of orange began to subside. According to Richard Cytowic's 1995 study entitled "Synesthesia: Phenomology and Neurospychology," the majority of those who naturally experience synesthesia are female, and the trait can be passed on genetically from generation to generation.

The five human senses can produce ten possible pairings. Thus, someone who experiences color with hearing can experience music by not only hearing the sounds but also seeing colors associated with tones and rhythms. Cytowic further reveals in his study that synesthesia is not an idea, but an experience that is involuntary, but elicited by certain triggering stimuli. Although the mechanisms of why synesthesia occurs are not fully known, scientists believe that the hippocampus region of the brain plays a large role in the joining of sensations. Studies with LSD's effect on the regions of the brain reveal marked responses in the hippocampus region, and that particular psychedelic drug is known to produce artificial synesthesia. Other drugs known to cause synesthesia are peyote cacti and psilocybin mushrooms.

Many artists have attempted to portray synesthetic depictions in their artwork. Russian composer Alexander Scriabin, who experienced synesthesia himself, tried to reflect the sensations in his 1910 work "Prometheus: the Work of Fire." World renowned Russian artist Vasilly Kandinski attempted to mix sensations of sound and color into his vivid and unique paintings.

Studies into synesthesia have created some baffling questions that require further inquiry. Cytowic writes about the interesting feature of synesthesia being prevalent more in females than in males, and more in left-handed individuals than right-handed individuals. Generally, neurological traits that are more prevalent in left-handed people manifest themselves in males rather than females. Furthermore, it has been discovered that the United Kingdom has a higher rate of "synesthetes" than other areas of the world that were surveyed.

Unfortunately due to the controlled schedule 1 status of drugs like peyote, LSD, and psilocybin, researchers have been unable to execute many tests concerning psychedelics and synesthesia. This is most unfortunate because studies with these drugs could not only reveal more about their true nature and mechanism on the brain, but also how certain regions of the brain function when eliciting certain responses. Perhaps within the next two decades the scientific community will better understand this both bizarre and fascinating human reaction to stimulus.