Synaesthesia News and Research

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Study sheds light on why some people hear 'hear' silent flashes or movement

A synaesthesia-like effect in which people 'hear' silent flashes or movement, such as in popular 'noisy GIFs' and memes, could be due to a reduction of inhibition of signals that travel between visual and auditory areas of the brain, according to a new study led by researchers at City, University of London.

28 Mar 2019

vOICe sensory device: An alternative to invasive treatment for blind people

A device that trains the brain to turn sounds into images could be used as an alternative to invasive treatment for blind and partially-sighted people, researchers at the University of Bath have found.

9 Jul 2013

Video gaming can improve vision in individuals with cataracts

How we perceive the world tells us a lot about how the brain processes sensory information. At this week's meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Vancouver, McMaster University psychologist Daphne Maurer will report on how vision develops in individuals born with cataracts in both eyes. Although such persons have their vision "corrected" by surgery and contact lenses, Maurer's study shows that they experience specific visual processing deficiencies into adulthood.

18 Feb 2012

Certain patterns of brain activity allow 'seeing' two colours at the same time

The Nobel prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman once wrote in his autobiographical book (What do you care what other people think?): "When I see equations, I see letters in colors - I don't know why […] And I wonder what the hell it must look like to the students."

10 Mar 2011

The smell of sound - researchers look at phenomenon synaesthesia

The research field has grown from grapheme-colour synaesthesia to include other forms of synaesthesia in which flavours are evoked by music or words (lexical-gustatory synaesthesia), space structures by time units, colours by music, etc.

28 Dec 2007

Grapheme-color synaesthesia

A psychological phenomenon known as "grapheme-color synaesthesia" describes individuals who experience vivid colors whenever they see, hear, or think of ordinary letters and digits.

18 Sep 2007

Researchers gain better understanding of how nerves need to be reconnected after spinal cord injury

Nerve cells relay messages at blink-of-the-eye speeds by squirting chemicals called neurotransmitters across tiny gaps called synapses to awaiting message receptors. But lots of different receptors and neurotransmitters work simultaneously. Which goes where to send the proper message?

13 Jul 2005

Psychic powers that enable people to see auras around others may simply be a quirk of the brain

Supposed psychic powers that enable people to see auras around others may simply be a quirk of the brain, according to a University College London (UCL) study of a rare form of synaesthesia where some people see colourful ‘auras’ around their loved ones.

18 Oct 2004