Can we see time? Welcome to the world of synesthesia | Imogen Malpas | TEDxOxford

Summary

This video explores the fascinating concept of synesthesia, where senses like sight and sound become cross-wired in the brain. The speaker discusses various types, such as grapheme-color synesthesia, where letters or numbers evoke specific colors, and the rarer time-space synesthesia, where time is experienced as a physical form. The talk also delves into how culture shapes the way we perceive time, illustrating this with examples from different cultures like the Aymara and Yupno. By understanding synesthesia and its cultural variations, the speaker suggests we can learn more about brain function and foster greater empathy across social divides.

Takeaways

• 😀 Synesthesia is a neurological condition where the stimulation of one sense causes the experience of another, such as associating colors with letters or numbers.
• 😀 Grapheme-color synesthesia is the most common form, where letters and numbers are experienced as having specific colors, and these associations remain consistent throughout a person's life.
• 😀 Time-space synesthesia is a rarer form, where individuals experience time as a physical shape or form, like a roller coaster or halo, moving around or through their body.
• 😀 Time-space synesthesia can vary in orientation; some individuals perceive time vertically, while others see it horizontally.
• 😀 Metaphors help us understand abstract concepts, like time, by mapping them onto concrete concepts, like space. This cognitive mapping allows us to create mental timelines.
• 😀 Our internal mental timelines are influenced by our personal space and can be mapped onto the body, with the future in front of us and the past behind us.
• 😀 The way we visualize time is culturally influenced. People whose first language is written right to left, such as Arabic speakers, are more likely to place the past on the right side of a timeline.
• 😀 Different cultures visualize time in varying directions. For instance, the Pormpuraawan in Australia associate time with directions, seeing the past in the west and the future in the east.
• 😀 The Aymara of the Andes place the past in front of them, as it is known, while the future lies behind them, as it is yet to be discovered.
• 😀 The Yupno people of Papua New Guinea visualize time based on their landscape, with the past downhill and the future uphill, in relation to their local river.
• 😀 Synesthesia can be influenced by cultural context, and the way people experience time or other senses may be shaped by the landscape and society they grow up in.

Q & A

What is synesthesia, and how does it manifest?

Synesthesia is a neurological condition where stimulation of one sense causes an involuntary experience in another. In the context of grapheme-color synesthesia, letters or numbers are perceived to have specific colors, and these associations remain consistent throughout the individual's life.

What makes synesthesia different from the way most people experience senses?

For people without synesthesia, senses are experienced separately, while for synesthetes, stimulation in one sensory modality automatically triggers a perception in another. This cross-wiring of senses is involuntary, consistent, unidirectional, and automatic.

What is time-space synesthesia, and how does it differ from typical experiences of time?

Time-space synesthesia is a rare form of synesthesia where individuals perceive time as having a physical shape or form. Time can be visualized as a hula hoop, roller coaster, or halo that moves with the person, unlike the usual abstract perception of time in most people.

How do time-space synesthetes perceive time in relation to their bodies?

For time-space synesthetes, time can be experienced as physically around their bodies, either in a vertical or horizontal orientation. For instance, some may feel time moving around them in a vertical loop, while others may see their past on one side and their future on the other.

How does metaphor play a role in our understanding of time?

We often use metaphors to make abstract concepts like time easier to understand. For example, we describe time in terms of space, such as moving forward in a queue or describing time as something that can be 'pushed back.' This helps us relate the abstract concept of time to more tangible, spatial ideas.

What is the significance of the mental timeline, and how do people relate time to space?

A mental timeline is the way individuals visualize their experiences of time. Many people associate the past with one side of their body or space, and the future with the opposite. This spatial organization of time is a universal concept, though its details can vary across cultures.

How do different cultures visualize the passage of time?

Different cultures have distinct ways of visualizing time. For example, in Western cultures, time is often visualized as running left to right across a page. However, cultures like the Aymara view the past as ahead of them and the future as behind, while the Yupno people use their geographical landscape, with time flowing along the river's direction.

How do language and cultural context influence the perception of time?

Language and cultural context significantly affect how people visualize time. For instance, speakers of languages that read right to left may associate the past with the right side of a page, while languages like English typically associate the past with the left. These differences demonstrate how cultural influences shape the mental representation of time.

What are some examples of how synesthesia might vary across cultures?

Synesthesia might take different forms based on cultural influences. For example, Western time-space synesthetes may visualize time as a clock or calendar, but in a culture like that of the Yupno people, time might be represented by the flow of the local river, showing that geography and culture shape the synesthetic experience.

What implications does studying synesthesia have for understanding brain connectivity?

Studying synesthesia can provide valuable insights into how different areas of the brain work together. Research into synesthesia helps us understand brain connectivity, which can lead to breakthroughs in fields like cognitive decline, memory, and brain injury recovery.