Synesthesia

Synesthesia is a systematic and involuntary sensory experience induced by an unrelated stimulus. People with synesthesia, who are referred to as synesthetes,  have a neurological condition in which information stimulates many different senses. Some common forms of synesthesia include seeing a letter or number that induces a color, hearing sounds that induce color sensations, and more. It can be divided into "weak" and "strong" subcategories, in which strong is the aforementioned definition and weak is seen in everyones sense of cross-sensory correspondences. 

Photo Credit : The Triple Helix @ UChicago

There are many theories as to why this condition occurs such as retaining low-level, cross-sensory connections (that would typically sever during the later stages of infancy), or the lack of inhibiting processes that eliminate certain types of signals from flowing into or across sensory brain areas. It is interesting to note that "specific associations experienced by synesthetes may be based on their experience" (Rosenblum 284); An example of this association by experience can be found in the colorful letter and number magnets for the refrigerator that children use. A child sees that the letter "D" on the refrigerator is the color red - if the child is a synesthete, then as they grow older they will always see the letter D as red! This may differ from someone else who had a different set of fridge magnets, or no magnets at all, that instead see the color "D" as light blue. 

Photo Credit : 3 Cause - Synesthesia

A great video example that explains and allows you to experience synesthesia can be found by clicking the following link : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkRbebvoYqI

Works Cited

Rosenblum, L. D. (2010). See What I'm Saying: The Extraordinary Powers of Our Five Senses. W.W. Norton & Company

TED-Ed. (2013, June 10). What Color is Tuesday? Exploring Synesthesia [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkRbebvoYqI