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Senses are the physiological methods of Perception . The senses and their operation, classification, and theory are overlapping topics studied by a variety of fields, most notably Neuroscience , Cognitive Psychology (or Cognitive Science ), and Philosophy Of Perception . DEFINITION OF "SENSE" There is no firm agreement among neurologists as to exactly how many senses there are, because of differing definitions of a ''sense''. In general, one can say that a "sense" is a faculty by which outside stimuli are perceived. In other words, senses are Transducers from Matter to Mind . School children are routinely taught that there are five senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste; a classification devised by ancient peoples). It is generally agreed that there are at least seven different senses in humans, and a minimum of two more observed in other organisms. A broadly acceptable definition of a sense would be "a system that consists of a sensory cell type (or group of cell types) that responds to a specific kind of physical phenomenon, and that correspond to a defined region (or group of regions) within the brain where the Signal s are received and interpreted." Where disputes arise is with regard to the exact classification of the various cell types and their Mapping to regions of the brain. FIVE CLASSICAL SENSES Sight Sight or '''vision''' describes the ability of the brain and eye detecting electromagnetic waves within the visible range ( Light ) interpreting the image as "sight." There is disagreement as to whether this constitutes one, two or even three distinct senses. Neuroanatomists generally regard it as two senses, given that different receptors are responsible for the perception of colour (the frequency of photons of light) and brightness (amplitude/intensity - number of photons of light). Some argue that Stereopsis , the perception of depth, also constitutes a sense, but it is generally regarded that this is really a cognitive (that is, post-sensory) function of brain to interpret sensory input to derive new information. This "third" sense has recently been thought by some scientists to be associated with the time dimension, although no concrete proof has yet been recorded to validate this theory. The inability to see is called Blindness . Hearing Hearing or '''audition''' is the sense of Sound perception and results from tiny hair fibres in the inner Ear detecting the motion of a membrane which vibrates in response to changes in the pressure exerted by atmospheric particles within (at best) a range of 9 to 22000 Hz, however this changes for each individual. Sound can also be detected as vibrations conducted through the body by tactition. Lower and higher frequencies than can be heard are detected this way only. The inability to hear is called Deaf ness. Taste Taste or '''gustation''' is one of the two main "chemical" senses. It is well-known that there are at least four types of taste "bud" (receptor) on the Tongue and hence there are anatomists who argue that these in fact constitute four or more different senses, given that each receptor conveys information to a slightly different region of the brain. The inability to taste is called Ageusia . The four well-known receptors detect sweet, salt, sour, and bitter, although the receptors for sweet and bitter have not been conclusively identified. A fifth receptor, for a sensation called '' glutamate, a flavor commonly found in meat and in artificial flavourings such as monosodium glutamate. Smell Smell or '''olfaction''' is the other "chemical" sense. Unlike taste, there are hundreds of olfactory receptors, each binding to a particular molecular feature. Odor molecules possess a variety of features and thus excite specific receptors more or less strongly. This combination of excitatory signals from different receptors makes up what we perceive as the molecule's smell. In the brain, olfaction is processed by the Olfactory System . Olfactory Receptor Neuron s in the Nose differ from most other neurons in that they die and regenerate on a regular basis. The inability to smell is called Anosmia . If the different taste-senses are not regarded as separate senses one may argue that Taste and Smell should likewise be grouped together as one sense. Touch Touch , also called ''' Tactition ''' or ''' Mechanoreception ''', is the sense of '''pressure''' perception, generally in the Skin . There are a variety of pressure receptors that respond to variations in pressure (firm, brushing, sustained, etc). The inability to feel anything or almost anything is called Anesthesia . Paresthesia is a Sensation of tingling, pricking, or Numbness of a Person 's Skin with no apparent long-term physical effect. OTHER SENSES Temperature Thermoception is the sense of '''heat''' and the absence of heat ('''cold'''), also by the Skin and including internal skin passages. There is some disagreement about how many senses this actually represents - the thermoceptors in the skin are quite different from the Homeostatic thermoceptors in the brain ( Hypothalamus ) which provide feedback on internal body temperature. Pain Nociception (physiological pain) is the nonconscious perception of near-damage or damage to tissue. It can be classified as from one to three senses, depending on the classification method. The three types of pain receptors are cutaneous (skin), somatic (joints and bones) and visceral (body organs). For a considerable time, it was believed that pain was simply the overloading of pressure receptors, but research in the first half of the 20th century indicated that pain is a distinct phenomenon that intertwines with all other senses, including touch. Pain was once considered a wholly subjective experience, but recent studies show that pain is registered in the Anterior Cingulate Gyrus of the brain. Balance and Acceleration Equilibrioception , the '''vestibular sense''', is the perception of '''balance''' or '''acceleration''' and is related to cavities containing fluid in the inner ear. There is some disagreement as to whether this also includes the sense of "direction" or orientation. However, as with depth perception earlier, it is generally regarded that "direction" is a post-sensory cognitive awareness. Body awareness Proprioception , the '''kinesthetic sense''', is the perception of '''body awareness''' and is a sense that people are frequently not aware of, but rely on enormously. More easily demonstrated than explained, proprioception is the "unconscious" awareness of where the various regions of the body are located at any one time. (This can be demonstrated by anyone's closing the eyes and waving the hand around. Assuming proper proprioceptive function, at no time will the person lose awareness of where the hand actually is, even though it is not being detected by any of the other senses). It can be used in Reaction Time . Proprioception and touch are related in subtle ways, and their impairment results in surprising and deep deficits in perception and action ( Robles-De-La-Torre 2006 ). In contrast, an octopus has no or limited proprioception due to the complicated shapes their tentacles can form. Internal senses Epigastric sense is an anxious feeling localized in the stomach, as in nausea. Vascular sense is the sensation felt when there is a change in vascular tone, as in blushing. Gagging is the sensation felt when a foreign object such as food enters the windpipe. Swallowing is a sensation felt in the throat when swallowing something. Excretory senses are sensations felt when the urinary bladder or rectum are full. NON-HUMAN SENSES Analogous to human senses Other living organisms have receptors to sense the world around them, including many of the senses listed above for humans. However, the mechanisms and capabilities vary widely. Smell Among non-human species, Dog s have a much keener sense of smell than humans, although the mechanism is similar. Insect s have olfactory receptors on their Antennae . Vision Pit Vipers and some Boa s have organs that allow them to detect Infrared light, such that these snakes are able to sense the body heat of their prey. The Common Vampire Bat may also have an infrared sensor on its nose1 Infrared senses are, however, just sight in a different light frequency range. It has been found that Birds and some other animals are Tetrachromats and have the ability to see in the Ultraviolet down to 300 nanometers. Bees are also able to see in the ultraviolet. Balance Ctenophores have a balance receptor (a Statocyst ) that works very differently from the mammalian semi-circular canals. Not analogous to human senses In addition, some animals have senses that humans do not, including the following:
:The only order of mammals that is known to demonstrate electroception is the Monotreme order. Among these mammals, the Platypus (see {Link without Title} ) has the most acute sense of electroception. : Body Modification enthusiasts have experimented with magnetic implants to attempt to replicate this sense,2 however in general humans (and probably other mammals) can detect electric fields only indirectly by detecting the effect they have on hairs. An electrically charged balloon, for instance, will exert a force on human arm hairs, which can be felt through tactition and identified as coming from a static charge (and not from wind or the like). This is however not electroception as it is a post-sensory cognitive action.
: Magnetotactic Bacteria build miniature magnets inside themselves and use them to determine their orientation relative to the Earth's magnetic field.
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