Fashion influences science just as much as any other human activity. When neurologist Richard Cytowic became interested in synaesthesia, colleagues told him it was 鈥渢oo New Age鈥 and would ruin his career. People with this intriguing physiological phenomenon 鈥 about 1 in every 100,000 鈥 experience the world as a sensory salad, 鈥渟eeing鈥 sounds and 鈥渢asting鈥 shapes. The concept was first described in the 17th century, but by the late 20th century it was considered too weird for serious study. Ten years ago, Cytowic published The Man Who Tasted Shapes (Imprint Academic/MIT Press, 拢14.95/$19.95). That sparked a resurgence and his book has been updated to include the latest knowledge. It is a very readable description of something more than just a medical curiosity. Synaesthesia may shed light on the greatest of mysteries, the functioning of the human brain.
More from New 女生小视频
Explore the latest news, articles and features
Life
Jaguar makes epic 2100-kilometre journey across the Amazon
News
Environment
An island has been waging war on rats. They think they’ve finally won
Features
Environment
Matcha is under threat from climate change 鈥 can genomics save it?
News
Earth
Asteroid strike caused global firestorm that incinerated the dinosaurs
News
Popular articles
Trending New 女生小视频 articles