Have you ever wondered why some foods taste better on a plane, or why a small stone seems to weigh more than another, larger one, even though they weigh the same? What we experience is based on a much richer collaboration than the five classic senses. Our body is indeed equipped with a veritable symphony of sensory channels.
Neuroscientists now estimate that our body uses between twenty-two and thirty-three different sensory systems. These mechanisms go far beyond sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. They include, for example, proprioception, which allows us to locate our limbs without looking at them, or interoception, which informs us of internal changes like hunger or an increased heart rate.
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These senses never act in isolation. On the contrary, they constantly exchange information to build a unified experience. Thus, our felt state can alter what we see, and our vision sometimes modifies what we hear. Smell, in particular, plays a major role in the appreciation of flavors, a role often underestimated.
Let's take the example of taste. What we usually call the taste of a food actually comes from a fusion between the perceptions of the tongue (salty, sweet, sour, bitter, umami) and the aromas captured by the nose during chewing. Touch, which provides data on texture, completes this experience. This is why the consistency of yogurt or the melt-in-your-mouth quality of chocolate are so important.
Concrete work highlights these interactions. For example, engine noise on a plane diminishes our perception of saltiness, sweetness, and sourness, but not that of umami flavor. This is why tomato juice, rich in umami, is often judged tastier on board. These observations come from studies conducted in specialized laboratories, such as the Centre for the Study of the Senses in London.
We can all observe these effects in daily life. A well-known illusion, called the "size-weight" illusion, shows that a small object is often estimated to be heavier than a larger object of identical weight. It illustrates how much our perceptions result from a sometimes erroneous cerebral calculation.
This updated knowledge of perception opens horizons in many sectors, from gastronomy to cultural design. By appreciating the diversity and nuances of our senses, we can better understand how we perceive and interact with our surroundings at every moment.