Neuroscience of the Senses
[Shopping list: 3 oz paper Dixie cups, red and green food color, 2 large pitchers, sugar, mixing spoons, jelly beans, paper clips]
Colored water test: Kids are given two small cups of equally-sweet sugar water, but one has red food coloring while the other is green. Ask which liquid is sweeter. Most kids should say the red because the color red is often associated with sweet things. This is an instance of the mind overriding the senses, because the taste buds are sensing the exact same amount of sweetness. For fun, have the kids do a blind taste test. The two different colors should taste the same now.
Jelly bean taste test: Kids do blind taste tests of different jelly bean flavors while holding their nose shut. It should be very difficult to tell the difference between jellybeans because the sense of smell is very important in identifying tastes.
Two-point discrimination: Use calipers or paper clips to test how well kids can tell whether they are being poked by one or two points (eyes closed of course). Touch different areas with either one or two paper clip points. When using two points, start out with the points very close to one another and separate them more and more each time until the person can tell that there are separate points. The most sensitive areas of the body are the finger tips and lips. It should be easy to tell in these areas, even when the points are very close. Kids will have a much harder time with the inside forearm or back of the calf, which are some of the least sensitive areas. Sensitivity is determined by the density of touch receptors in the skin. In fact, there are several different touch receptors, with some sensing pressure, others sensing vibration and so forth.
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