The 32 Senses

 

What they taught us in school is wrong; there are far more than the basic five senses we're all familiar with, making life more complex than most people are willing to admit.  Below is a list of 32 senses I've derived, with help from Guy Murchie's The Seven Mysteries of Life.  It purveys the entire animal kingdom, and even considers some bacteria.  Some of his senses don't make sense to me, while others I've added that I think are missing from his list.  Senses are differentiated by the unique abilities of disparate species in the animal kingdom, and reports of extra-sensory perception (E.S.P.) from our very own.  

 

1.  Sight.  The first of the basic senses, being able to perceive the visible spectrum. 

2.  Radiation.  Bees, butterflies, and reindeer can see in ultraviolet light. 

3.  Temperature.  Snakes, frogs, insects, and some species of fish can see in infrared light.  Other than that, the basic sense of temperature we feel can't be explained by touch alone.  The pressure exerted on our bodies by the outside air sends a signal to our brain about how hot or cold it is.  This signal may come from the nervous system, but not necessarily in the context of pressure exerting a force on nerve endings in the skin.  Temperature is primarily an internal sensation that isn't always affected by outside sources.  An illness that causes your body temperature to drop is completely independent from the temperature outside.  Thus, the sensation is internal. 

4.  Electromagnetism.  Birds and fish navigate using the Earth's magnetic field.  Humans can feel static electricity, which is not a function of touch.  Many other species (fruit flies, turtles, salamanders) exhibit sensitivities to the Earth's magnetic field. 

5.  Hearing.  The perception of sound is incredibly diverse.  Echolocation in bats and whales is a special case that may indicate a separate sense on its own. 

6.  Pressure.  Many animals, such as birds, cats, dogs, and sharks, can detect approaching storms because of the change in air pressure.  Fish are also able to swim in schools using water pressure. 

7.  Touch.  The vaguest of senses, here we are just talking about simple contact with the skin. 

8.  Weight and balance.  This is one of those unconscious senses we take for granted.  There is a structure in the human ear called the otolith that tells us we're in balance.  Spin around in a circle a few times and you will start to feel unbalanced, especially in your head. 

9.  Space or proximity.  Every species has a range within which it feels comfortable living next to others.  Insects and reptiles don't mind being close to each other at all- in fact many species crowd each other all the time.  Birds and fish need greater distance, but mammals seem to need the most of it. 

10.  Smell.  Dogs being a special case- they can both navigate and "see" using smell, which are different senses for them. 

11.  Taste. 

12.  Hunger and thirst. 

13.  Humidity.  Different from temperature in that the amount of water vapor in the air can be detected. 

14.  Emotions.  Each individual emotion can be considered a sense on its own. 

15.  Pleasure and pain.  These are senses that are derived from others, such as touch, taste, smell, etc. 

17.  Procreation.  Horny, lustful, the urge to create offspring, you get the point. 

18.  Play and humor.  There's a reason it's called having a "sense" of humor. 

19.  Time.  Another mostly unconscious sense having to do with circadian rhythms, migration patterns, daily cues for food and mating. 

20.  Hallucinations.  Phosphenes, hallucinogens and schizophrenia- seeing things that aren't there, including dreams.  It should be a sense because they are "third eye" perceptions. 

21.  Navigation.  Birds have a map of the sky in their genes, they navigate by instinct and not by teaching. 

22.  Domineering and territorial sense.  People tend to stand a certain distance away from each other,  Animals have natural hierarchies and territorial grounds, often a function of their size. 

23.  Colonizing.  Insects use this sense more extensively than mammals.  Bees and ants have natural instincts to colonize and work together as a community. 

24.  Reasoning.  The ability to sense logic or put things in order by using one's surroundings.  Reason is not limited to humans.  Other primates, dolphins, whales, squirrels, and birds are all capable of doing it.  In fact, there are very few animals that don't use reason on some level.  Even insects use it to evaluate their surroundings, especially when hunting, creating nests or hives.  Abstract reasoning however is limited to humans, and that's what most people who don't think animals can reason are really referring to. 

25.  Intuition.  The ability to make sense of cause and effect without using logic. 

26.  Aesthetics.  Appreciation for the natural beauty of nature, works of art, other people, etc.  This may be limited to humans.  It often happens when things are said to "move the soul". 

27.  Psychic.  A sense that incorporates the various E.S.P.s, including clairvoyance, telepathy, divination, etc.  While most humans can’t do them, some claim to be able, and it's unclear whether other species can. 

28.  Memory.  A foundational sense that can trigger others, like emotions and aesthetics. 

29.  Hypnotic.  Includes trances and general dizziness. 

30.  Relaxation and sleep.  Calmness isn't strictly an emotion.  It can incur a physical state, like sleep. 

31.  Spirit.  Many people claim to be able to feel their soul or spirit, including me.  I feel it when my heart aches, or during rare moments of transcendence. 

32.  Love.  Need there be proof?  I feel bad for anyone who can't feel this greatest of senses.