SAN DIEGO — New research indicates that the integration of senses and functions in the brain is common. About two percent of the population has a condition called synesthesia, in which two different sensations, like color and sound, are experienced at once. Although this condition is rare, the new findings suggest the brain is wired in complex and sometimes overlapping ways to help people interpret and understand their environments. The research was presented at Neuroscience 2010, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news on brain science and health.
Today's new findings show that:
Other recent findings discussed show that:
"While synesthesia reflects an extreme manner in which the senses communicate, there's evidence that synesthesia operates through mechanisms present in all individuals," said press conference moderator Vilayanur Ramachandran, MD, PhD, of the University of California, San Diego, an expert on visual perception and behavioral neurology. "Understanding these mechanisms can help us answer fundamental questions about how the brain works."
This research was supported by national funding agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health, as well as private and philanthropic organizations.