After reading the short story and listening to the podcast,
it is obvious to tell that out of our 5 senses neither our sense of sight nor the
ability to hear is very reliable. Although sight is probably the most important
of our senses, it is not trust worthy. Some have better eye sight than others
in the sense of the ability to see objects at different distances or the sense
of being a tetrochromate—the condition of conveying color information through
cones. Regardless, or sight can fail us in many ways which cause us to see
things differently than others. Our sense of hearing is not a trust worthy
either. Different people hear sound very differently. They judge it differently
through the dynamics and the pitch. Our sense of smell, and along with smell
comes taste, is not reliable either. Odors and tastes are liked and despised by
many. It is not reliable because everyone interprets there experience of a particular
smell or taste their own way. To some certain smells and tastes may be bitter,
but to others these exact same smells and tastes are sweet. The most reliable
sense is touch. Regardless of the experience or person, most tend to describe their
sense of touch in the same way. All other senses are mainly interpreted,
however sense is a common thing. Mostly everyone tends to agree what is rough,
soft, smooth, hard, etc. This particular sense is the most trust worthy because
it is something that is agreed upon by many.
I agree that sight is an untrustworthy sense. This became more apparent to me after listening to the Radiolab episode titled Color. Color is a symptom of vision. This symptom has become stronger over time in humans. This is due to artist and poets who strived to see a more vibrant world. What one sees, even what they cannot see, varies from person to person, even among species. Humans only have 3 color sensory cones as opposed to mantis Shrimp who have 16. These shrimp can evaluate a wider array of color then humans. In other words they can spot the blue blur among the all seeming alike blurs. Vision is an illusion of what your brain can process from the different rays of lights. Just because one does not see it does not mean it’s not there. Our sense of touch can be just as deceiving. One’s brain connects clues from all senses to conclude what “reality” is. With just touch alone one cannot accurately determine an object. Many things feel alike, for example grapes. A common party dish for Halloween is pealed grapes. This is because pealed grapes resemble the brains idea of severed eye balls. Our sense of touch cannot be trusted just as the sense of vision can deceive. In my opinion ones sense of smell is the most trustworthy among the five sense. Smell has a direct connection with memory. When one smells something their brain triggers a specific neuro path. Studies have shown this can come as a benefit for student. When a student studies with a specific scent and then is introduced to the same smell later they are more likely to remember what they studied. The smell helps the brain return down the same paths as when they were studying and as a result remember better. This supports my theory that smell is our most trustworthy of senses.
ReplyDeleteAfter taking the time to read the short essay “How We Listen” by Aaron Copland and then listening to the podcast “Colors,” I took a different perspective on my five senses. I really connected with Aaron Copland’s short essay where he explains that there are three different ways we listen. Since I myself am I music lover I could relate to his examples of people who go to concerts to loose themselves in the scene. As for my five senses as a whole I noted my strengths and weaknesses. My weakness is my sense of sight because everything is not what it seems. We live in a society and culture where appearance seems to be everything. When one goes for a job interview there is a certain way to present yourself. Sight is my weakest sense because I judge people base on their appearance and sometimes my judgements are wrong. My strongest sense would be taste because I trust it the most. Everything I put in my mouth I either like or dislike and thats due to my tastebuds, it has never failed me.
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