Hey there! Welcome to Life Noggin.
大家好!欢迎来到脑洞大开的生命奇想!
Have you ever been reading your favorite book and been able to taste the words as you see them on the page?
你有没有这样的体验,读着最喜欢的书,看着书页上的文字就可以尝到它们的味道?
What about hearing a new song on the radio and being able to see colors from the rhythmic sound?
或者从收音机里听到一首新歌,能从有节奏的声音中看到颜色?
This might sound like some sort of magical power, but for certain people, this can actually happen and it's with a condition called /synaesthesia/.
这听起来像是某种魔力,但是对于某些人来说,这样的事是可以发生的,前提就是联觉。
Synaesthesia is when the stimulation of one sense causes the stimulation of a different sense at the same time.
联觉是指一种感觉的刺激同时引发另一种感觉的刺激。
For example, someone with synaesthesia might be able to hear colors or taste letters.
例如,有联觉的人可能会听到颜色或尝到字母的味道。
The only time I've been able to taste letters is with a big, warm bowl of Alphabet soup! Get it? No? Alright!
我唯一能品尝到字母味道的时候,就是喝了一大碗热腾腾的字母形花片汤!明白了吗?没有?算了!
But all bad jokes aside, I'm actually not a synesthete, which is the term for people who have synaesthesia.
但是,不讲冷笑话了,我实际上并不是一个联觉者,联觉者这个术语是指有联觉的人。
Of the actual synesthetes around the globe, a common form of synaesthesia mixes letters and/or numbers with colors or simple patterns, and another common form mixes sounds with colors, textures, and shapes.
全球范围内联觉者,常见的一种联觉形式是将字母和/或数字与颜色或简单的图案混合在一起,另一种常见的形式是将声音与颜色、纹理和形状混合在一起。
Some synesthetes have a type of synaesthesia that can involve more than just two senses, but these cases are far more rare.
有些联觉者的联觉,不止有两种感觉,不过这种情况更罕见。
For where synaesthesia originates from, let's take a trip to that wonderful noggin of yours.
关于联觉的起源,我们要先看看你奇妙的大脑。
It's a little unclear from what part of the brain synaesthesia comes from, but two competing theories are that it either takes place in the limbic system or in the cerebral cortex.
联觉来自大脑的哪个部分,目前还不清楚,但是有两种理论争论不休:它要么发生在边缘系统,要么发生在大脑皮层。
Some scientists also believe that synaesthesia comes from a crossed wiring in the brain where neurons and synapses that are typically contained within a certain sensory system end up crossing to another one.
一些科学家还认为,联觉来自于大脑中的交叉连接:通常包含在某一个感觉系统中的神经元和突触,与另一感觉系统交叉。
In this theory, it's even thought by some that everyone has crossed connections at birth, but they're later pruned out.
根据这个理论,有些人甚至认为每个人出生时都有过交叉连接,但后来都被删掉了。
No matter where synaesthesia comes from, it also seems that it can be induced by certain things such as head trauma.
无论联觉从哪里来,它似乎还可以由某些事情诱发,例如头部创伤。
Some chemical agents might even be able to produce synaesthesia-like experiences.
一些化学试剂甚至也可以产生类似的经验。
I would have thought a radioactive spider would have been involved. Call me, Hollywood! I'm looking for work!
我本以为放射性蜘蛛也可以。好莱坞请联系我!我在找工作!
Now, it was once thought that synaesthesia was more common in females than in males, but a recent study has shown otherwise.
现在,人们一度认为联觉在女性中比在男性中更为常见,但最近的一项研究却显示了相反的结果。
From their pool of 3893 participants, researchers found synaesthesia in 1.55% of the females and 1.19% of the males, which was not a significant difference.
研究人员发现3893名参与者中,1.55%的女性和1.19%的男性有联觉,这个差异并不显著。
These findings also help give a general understanding of just how uncommon synaesthesia is, even if the exact percent of synesthetes in the world can be difficult to determine.
这些发现也帮助我们大致了解了联觉的不寻常之处,虽然世界上到底有多少联觉者很难确定。
So do you or anyone you know have synaesthesia? Let me know in the comments section below!
你或你认识的人有联觉吗?请在下面的评论部分告诉我!
And if you want to watch even more Life Noggin I highly suggest you check out our video on when multicellular life began.
观看本节目更多片段,我强烈建议你看看我们做的这个视频:多细胞生命是什么时候出现的。
The main theory is that multicellular organisms started out as cells grouped together in colonies. Some scientists count these as the first complex life-forms.
主要理论认为,细胞在菌落内聚集时,多细胞生物出现了。一些科学家认为这是第一批复杂的生命形式。
As always, my name is Blocko. This has been Life Noggin. Don't forget to keep on thinking!
我是宝高,这里是脑洞大开的生命奇想!思考不要停!