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Reviewed by:
  • The Fourth Annual National Conference of the American Synesthesia Association, Inc.
  • Amy Ione
The Fourth Annual National Conference of the American Synesthesia Association, Inc.Hosted by the Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, U.S.A, 05- 07112004.

Although historical descriptions of cross-sensory experience abound, particularly in the arts, it is only recently that the public at large has found the idea to be a topic of interest. Perhaps the current enthusiasm is partially due to the way various technologies today titillate so many of our senses simultaneously. The current fascination also may be related to research reports on cross-sensory experiences, more properly termed synesthesia. Synesthesia occurs when an individual receives a stimulus in one sense modality and experiences a sensation in another. Recent empirical studies, it seems, have buoyed the topic, often revising earlier conclusions about how the brain works. More precisely, we now know that historical commentators, who cast the phenomenon in terms of abnormality, philosophy and metaphor, were too quick to draw these conclusions. Their [End Page 360]views today, in effect, remind us how hard it is to characterize subjective experience. The updates, on the other hand, show that despite the limitations of rigorous, quantitative analysis, data can nonetheless further understanding.

Indeed, advances in brain research have allowed us to enlarge our knowledge of this phenomenon. One compelling outcome is the evidence that laboratory studies comparing genetic characteristics with brain plasticity and development have furthered the nature/nurture debates. Equally exciting is the manner in which synesthetes and scientific research teams have extended their hands to one another. The communication among diverse populations was quite evident throughout the Fourth Annual National Conference of the American Synesthesia Association (ASA), at the University of California, Berkeley.

Held in early November, and hosted by the U.C. Berkeley Institute for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, the conference demonstrated how seamlessly some topics reach across disciplinary domains. Presenters, attendees, synesthetes and non-synesthetes exchanged information easily despite the varied backgrounds of those in attendance. As scientists, artists, humanists and lay-people articulated various themes, the resulting blend underscored that quantification and communication are both necessary in our efforts to elevate our understanding of higher brain functions. Even scientific studies designed to focus on a limited area (e.g. color-grapheme studies) seemed to reach beyond the laboratory space. It was clear that articulate descriptions provided by synesthetes helped researchers to raise questions used in the design and interpretation of research goals. In the symposium environment, moreover, it seemed that further refinements would come about because of how the synesthetes in attendance reacted to the data presented. The working lunch, led by Sean Day, helped the group to sort through some of this complex information and share their responses to nagging questions within the field.

A short review can hardly touch the tools and topics the symposium brought to mind. One highlight was learning of the history of the American Synesthesia Association (ASA), a story that offers a microscopic view of how the field as a whole has gained momentum. Carol Steen and Pat Duffy, two synesthetes, founded the ASA in 1995. Steen, who uses synesthesia in her art, heard the neurologist Richard E. Cytowic on National Public Radio in 1993, the year his book The Man Who Tasted Shapeswas published. This book was instrumental in bringing synesthesia to the fore for many. In Steen's case, Cytowic's comments marked the first time in her life that she had learned anything about synesthesia, although she is a synesthete. This led her to explore the literature, limited though it was. Through her exchanges with Simon Baron-Cohen, a synesthesia researcher, she met Pat Duffy, a synesthete writer also living in New York City. Steen and Duffy formed what became the ASA so that synesthetes could talk to one another. Since that time the ASA has organized seven conferences, the Berkeley event being the latest.

As many of us know, interdisciplinary events often challenge us with a spectrum that mixes the "too-technical" and "overly naive" with a number of strong, balanced presentations. This was not the case at the ASA...

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