May 06, 2012
Synesthesia May Explain Healers' Claims of Seeing People's 'Aura'
From Science Daily:
Researchers in Spain have found that at least some of the individuals claiming to see the so-called aura of people actually have the neuropsychological phenomenon known as "synesthesia" (specifically, "emotional synesthesia"). This might be a scientific explanation of their alleged ability.
In synesthetes, the brain regions responsible for the processing of each type of sensory stimuli are intensely interconnected. Synesthetes can see or taste a sound, feel a taste, or associate people or letters with a particular color.
The study was conducted by the University of Granada Department of Experimental Psychology Óscar Iborra, Luis Pastor and Emilio Gómez Milán, and has been published in the journal Consciousness and Cognition. This is the first time that a scientific explanation has been provided for the esoteric phenomenon of the aura, a supposed energy field of luminous radiation surrounding a person as a halo, which is imperceptible to most human beings.
More here.
Posted by S. Abbas Raza at 10:01 PM | Permalink
Comments
This is such a great example of a scientific attitude - an orientation to understanding nature through observation and the recording of data. We don't know where this particular line of inquiry will end, or if present hypotheses will prove fruitful. However, something will be learned, if only to eliminate a wrong hypotheses.
This is in stark contrast to, for example, Intelligent Design (ID) based upon the idea of irreducible complexity (IC). If ID were a tenable hypothesis, then proponents would be able to define the conditions of IC such that they would be recognized by anyone investigating a particular phenomenon. Then, they could stop wasting their time and go on to a more productive area of research.
Instead, scientists and the scientifically curious will always be of the mind to 'wonder why that is so.' Then someone will think, "How about this idea? Here's how we could test that hypothesis."
Posted by: Norman Costa | May 7, 2012 6:39:19 PM
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