Why can't we see sound or hear light?

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Jitro
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04 Nov 2012, 1:50 am

Why can't we see sound or hear light?



blue_bean
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04 Nov 2012, 2:22 am

It's funny that I sometimes put my glasses on in order to hear things better :nerdy:



Dillogic
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04 Nov 2012, 3:15 am

Because your god didn't think it was necessary.



BrokenBill
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04 Nov 2012, 5:04 am

You can see a shock wave, but I guess thats really the effect on objects or matter of a frequency :shrug:


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donnie_darko
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04 Nov 2012, 7:07 am

Take LSD and you can.



Cesar
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27 Nov 2012, 4:15 am

I can visualise music :wink:



CyborgUprising
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27 Nov 2012, 10:37 am

Try acid...



Moog
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27 Nov 2012, 10:42 am

We suck.

Actually, I think synaesthetics can. Or rather, their brains interpret one stimulus in two separate sense streams. Or something like that.


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Zodai
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27 Nov 2012, 3:06 pm

We probably can, we just have a bit harder time noticing it.

Theoretically, due to the NT/AS difference in senses, NTs could rarely notice it at all, and AS maybe notices it so much they consider it "Normal"


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Dantac
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27 Nov 2012, 6:09 pm

Jitro wrote:
Why can't we see sound or hear light?


sound does not emit light and if light has a sound it'd be at the planck scale so we can't possibly hear it.



madnak
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27 Nov 2012, 10:07 pm

What do you mean by "see" and "hear?"

Our visual and auditory perceptions depend on the inputs received by our brains. Generally speaking, the optic nerve connected to the eyes sends visual inputs to the part of the brain that processes vision, and the cochlear nerve connected to the ears sends auditory inputs to the part of the brain that processes sound. Therefore photons of an appropriate wavelength, which activate the receptors of the retina and ultimately the optic nerve, are "seen" (ie we experience them visually), while the vibrations of air molecules, which activate the eardrum and ultimately the cochlear nerve, are "heard' (ie we experience them aurally).

This isn't a strict division. Crossed wires or interference in the brain can result in sensory inputs being processed in the "wrong" place, allowing the perception of one type of sensory input to "seem like" the perception of some other type of sensory input - hearing light and seeing sound are possible outcomes. This may be part of the normal function of the brain, but most people don't notice it.

Some perceptions can be a bit "funny," especially if they aren't directly related to sensory input. This can describe a variety of hallucinations which can be induced by mental illness, meditation, psychedelic compounds, and sensory deprivation (among others).



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28 Nov 2012, 9:37 am

Because we're not as open minded as we could be, literally.