J Burns's Senior Project Blog
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Project Title: Synesthesia; The Interweaving of Senses BASIS Advisor: Miles Hansen Internship Location: Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85257 Onsite Mentor: Dr. Stephen Tillery, College Professor |
Project Abstract
I planned on utilizing research articles and textbooks online and through my library. Additionally, I conducted interviews of those living with the condition and interviews of those who study the condition, particularly those with an intimate knowledge of neurology who may be able to answer why the phenomenon occurs, but I could find only around a quarter of the number I wanted to reach. I hoped to conclude with a creative project involving giving others a chance to understand what having synesthesia is like, so I am drafting a story including many of the insights I learned.
Week #9: Idiosyncratic and Unique writing
The difficult thing about writing a story with a synesthete as the main character is that every instance of synesthesia is different. Even those with the same kinds of synesthesia have idiosyncratic experiences, meaning details like colors, sounds, or sensations will be difference. This means that I have a lot of creative freedom within my... Read More
Week #8 Creating or Sharing Perception?
Something I've noticed over some of the previous years is the tendency for these classic pieces of literature, like the kinds found on AP tests, to use synesthesia. This is because it is used as a strategy in many cases. It can be so subtle that readers often don't detect it. Some examples are found... Read More
Week #7 Results and Representation
I have been able to interview or survey 5 synesthetes by now. Because most synesthetes experience multiple types (and the likelihood for having another type is 50% if you have a previous type), it was no surprise that some of my interviewees commented they have at least 14 types. They were also informed that the... Read More
Week #6 Synesthetic Solutions
This week I've been studying the binding problem with synesthesia. As I've stated in previous blogs, any synesthete's colors they see are idiosyncratic, meaning their colors are unique to them. There have been associations between some synesthetes and things that they "imprinted" on to have the colors they connect with those graphemes. There are equivalents... Read More
Week #5 A Personal Case
Touching on another thing from last week, the list of synesthesia cluster shocked me, but probably not for the reasons you think. This list of types of synesthesia was so expansive. What has been frustrating for me is that I didn't know much beyond the obvious types of synesthesia, but I finally felt seen after... Read More
Week #4 Overlap and Hidden Senses
When I was little, I posed a very interesting question to those around me. If you invented a completely new color, only you had seen it, how would you convey this to others? No one had a concrete answer. Obviously, this scenario can't literally happen because while "new colors" are discovered, they are blends with... Read More
Week #3 Door Into Consciousness
Synesthesia is evidence that there are so many signals in life that we are unaware of. The interconnectedness of various signals creates something new altogether. Because the extra associations also help with memory, there are practical uses for it as well. This week, I have been focusing on both interviews and the synesthesia book, which... Read More
Week #2 Constraints within Types and Indentification of Synesthesia
Did you know synesthesia is impacted by which languages you speak? The most common form of synesthesia, color grapheme, is coloration of letters, numbers, punctuation and other markings. Obviously, the characters which produce color differ by language. And, interestingly, some synesthetes say that the synesthetic colors are only produced in their native languages. One who... Read More
Week #1 The Magic of Synesthesia
Imagine that, with every spoken word, you could see written transcripts of what was spoken, kind of like live captions that you can’t turn off. This is a common form of synesthesia. For many, this, and countless other sensory phenomena, are real. Hello. My name is J Burns, and I’m researching different types of... Read More