Bone Stories: synesthesia, neurodiversity, and anatomy in colour by CC Hart

Abstract:  Synesthesia, a union of the senses, is a perceptual phenomenon, and a part of the neurodiversity paradigm. Current studies illustrate that approximately 4% of the global population has one or more forms of synesthesia; the trait shows a high degree of heritability and begins in  infancy or early childhood. The vast majority of synesthetes have a  colour concurrent paired with their sensoria, with coloured numbers, letters, and words among the most frequently reported forms of blended perception. In conversations with my fellow synesthetes, I’ve become increasingly aware of the ways that cross-sensory experiences can be triggered by novel inducers. Synesthesia tends to defy the neat  boundaries established by neuroscience research. In my case, the colour I see with graphemes and lexemes gets transferred to grayscale radiography. Witnessing bright pink femurs, chartreuse humuri, and SLAP lesions the shades of flames are ordinary aspects of my workday. I print  radiographs and MRIs…