The Sixth Sense and the Rest - 1982 Christmas Lectures 3/6

Explore the fascinating world of internal sensory systems beyond the traditional five senses in this 59-minute Christmas Lecture from 1982. Delve into how the human body possesses additional sensory capabilities that operate below our conscious awareness, while discovering the remarkable sensory abilities of other animals that far exceed our own perceptual limitations. Learn about the four fundamental types of detector cells that underpin all sensory experiences - those sensitive to chemical substances, light, temperature change, and mechanical distortion - and understand how these basic building blocks create the rich tapestry of human perception. Examine the narrow spectrum of electromagnetic radiation visible to human eyes compared to animals that can detect ultraviolet light, infrared radiation, and polarized light, while investigating how our hearing range of ten octaves pales in comparison to animals using ultrasound echolocation and infrasound navigation. Discover extraordinary sensory modalities completely foreign to human experience, including the electric field detection systems of fish and the magnetic sensing capabilities of birds and bacteria. Gain insight into how each species inhabits its own unique sensory world, perfectly adapted to its environmental needs and survival requirements. Understand the philosophical implications of sensory perception and how our brains construct our experienced reality from the limited information our sense organs provide about the physical world around us.