Are there other senses

Our inner ears have streams of fluid that flow between three winding canals. When we nod our head up and down or turn it left, right or sideways, this fluid will flow to one of the three canals, each detecting a specific sense of direction. Along with input from the visual and proprioceptive systems, our brain uses this information to send messages to our muscles telling them how to stay upright and evenly distribute our weight. While proprioception and balance help us navigate the world outside, we have internal senses reporting on the world inside, too.

Perhaps most immediately obvious is our sense of hunger. This hormone travels to a region of the brain called the hypothalamus, where it activates neurons that stimulate hunger.

A good example of this is our inner carbon dioxide detector. We get rid of CO2 by breathing it out, so things like excessive breathing during exercise can cause our levels to drop too low. When they do, we become dizzy, confused and begin experiencing heart palpitations.

Conversely, things like anxiety attacks, where we find it hard to breathe, cause our CO2 levels to spike. When they get too high, we start feeling drowsy, disoriented and often get headaches. In both of these scenarios, sensory cells called chemoreceptors, which detect and respond to high and low levels of chemicals in the blood, send signals to the brain. They tell our bodies to either amp up breathing and expel the excess CO2, or to slow it down to avoid losing too much.

While hunger and balance are inarguable components of our sensory system, there is another, far more hotly debated, sense. Some researchers think humans might also be able to sense magnetic fields. For years, researchers thought that magnetoreception, the ability to detect magnetic fields, only existed in migratory birds, fish and a few other animals. In March , though, a group of researchers published a paper on human magnetoreception in the journal eNeuro. In popular culture, a firm grip has long been associated with a macho image, but it turns out that an increased handgrip strength can help both women and men reduce the dangers associated with high blood pressure.

High blood pressure, known as hypertension, increases the risk of stroke and usually increases as. These behavioral changes may warn of Alzheimer's — and they have nothing to do with memory problems. It's that simple, we won't try to sell you anything. We won't even ask for your phone number. We promise.

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This belief is so ingrained that even the scientifically literate will treat it as taken-for-granted common knowledge. Today, the five senses are considered such an elementary truth that it is sometimes used as a point of consensus before writers embark on more mysterious or contentious topics. If only it were that simple. One, somewhat vague, definition might argue that a human sense is simply a unique way for the brain to receive information about the world and the body. If that is the case, then we can claim with confidence that there are certainly more than five human senses.

First consider the senses that relate to the position of our bodies. Close your eyes, and then touch your right forefinger to your left elbow tip. How did you do it? Somehow you knew where the end of your finger was and you also knew the position of your left elbow. Proprioception is possible thanks to receptors in our muscles known as spindles, which tell the brain about the current length and stretch of the muscles. Now imagine you are blindfolded and I tilted you forwards slowly.

This is thanks to the fluid-filled vestibular system in your inner ear, which helps us keep balance. This system also gives us our experience of acceleration through space, and it links up with the eyes, making it possible to cancel out our own motion.

There are also numerous senses providing us with information about the inner state of our bodies. The most obvious of these are hunger and thirst, inner body pain, and the need to empty the bladder or bowel.