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Running head: INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS AND ENHANCE MEMORY

Synesthesia as an Intervention to Modify Children’s Access to Enhanced Learning and Memory

Janelle Salazar Chapman

University of Colorado Boulder

Department of Philosophy

Committee:

Thesis Advisor | Department of Philosophy | Brian Talbot

Honors Council Representative | The Honors Program | Paul R. Strom

Member | Department of Philosophy | Dominic Bailey

Member | Department of Psychology and Neuroscience | Lewis Harvey Jr.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 4

ABSTRACT 5

INTRODUCTION 6

THE PREVALENCE AND NEUROANATOMY OF SYNESTHESIA 9

INTRINSIC VALUES 13

INTRINSICALLY NEUTRAL 13

Developmental Synesthesia 14

Acquired Synesthesia 20

Summary 20

Sensory Obstruction 21

INSTRUMENTAL VALUES 24

INSTRUMENTALLY GOOD 25

Consistency 26

Pattern Recognition 27

Synesthetic-Inducing Material Supports Memory 32

Congruence Supports Memory 33

Accuracy and Speed 33

Summary 34

INSTRUMENTALLY BAD 35

Communication Barrier 35

Mathematical Performance 38

APPLICATIONS TO CHILDREN 41
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WEIGHING THE RESULTS 42

SUMMARY 43

CONCLUSION 45

REFERENCES 48
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Acknowledgments

This thesis is based on research surrounding synesthesia and learning. I am grateful for a number

of family, friends, and colleagues in encouraging me to write, persevere, and defend it. With each

draft, I have benefited from suggestions and feedback offered by my thesis committee: Brian

Talbot, Dominic Bailey, Lewis Harvey, and Paul Strom. In addition, I want to thank my colleagues

that have witnessed various stages of this thesis: Latoya Erskine, James Guenther, and Huy Tran.

I wish to acknowledge my partner, Kenneth Dyer, for his valuable input and constant support.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge with gratitude, the support, and love of my family — my

parents, John and Jenny; and my sister, Jacqueline. They all kept me going, and this thesis would

not have been possible without them.

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Abstract
Synesthesia is a phenomenal experience where a person reports more than one sensory experience

activated for one stimulus. A specific type of interest is grapheme-color synesthesia where a person

sees graphemes (letters and numbers) and it elicits a secondary response (color). It is through these

experiences that people with grapheme-color synesthesia are given a secondary benefit: enhanced

learning and memory. If people in society seek to equip children with the tools they need to succeed

and excel in development, and synesthesia is a tool that helps with that, it would be logical to

consider synesthesia as an intervention to increase children’s access to enhanced learning and

memory. However, in order to assess whether it should be considered for inducement, synesthesia

must be evaluated in isolation of its instrumental benefits. This thesis outlines the intrinsic values

of synesthesia, the instrumental values, and the applications to children before weighing whether

inducement is permissible. Synesthesia is argued to be intrinsically neutral by balancing the

positive and negative attributes including their respective counterarguments. Afterwards,

instrumental advantages and disadvantages are weighed, and counterarguments are provided to

keep a balanced review. Finally, the costs and benefits of synesthesia in the realm of learning and

memory are scaled to determine whether induced synesthesia is permissible. This thesis concludes,

that in order to permit induced synesthesia, the data must be valid and replicable in order to

accurately predict and achieve the correct type of synesthesia and reduce creating more harm than

good; therefore, induced synesthesia is not permissible.

Keywords: synesthesia, learning, memory, intrinsic, instrumental, value, mathematics

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Synesthesia as an Intervention to Modify Children’s Access to Enhanced Learning and Memory

Synesthesia is a feature in which a person experiences cross-module activation of more

than one of their senses. For example, a person can see sounds through colors or feel the same

sensations as another person they observe. To provide an example of a type of this unusual

occurrence, think about your typical morning routine: waking up in the morning, making yourself

breakfast, and getting dressed to go to work. This time affords you minimal sensory stimulation as

you only process one sensation at a time (e.g. hear the alarm chime, smell coffee lofting into the

air, and watch as your breakfast is slowly prepared in the microwave). Now, imagine an alternative

reality in which a secondary sensory experience accompanies the sounds you hear. When the high-

pitched alarm chimes, blue waves from your alarm clock bounce around the room. The

microwave's beeping noise is coupled with a shade of orange. Throughout your day, colors are

paired with sounds. This is the experience of a person with chromesthesia and, to them, these

pairings are normal.

Conventionally, these experiences are generated with an inducer (the stimulus) that triggers

the synesthetic experience resulting in the elicitation of the concurrent (the response) at a given

point in time. For example, graphemes are inducers and colors are concurrent for grapheme-color

synesthesia. To some people with this condition these experiences provide secondary benefits:

strong memory and learning. Unique perceptions of one’s environment through various forms of

synesthesia prompt questions related to education, morality, and research applications. In order to

narrow the scope of this issue, these subcategories will be addressed since induced synesthesia

could apply to children.

As a society, we want to give our children all the tools they may need to succeed and/or

put them ahead in development. In academic settings, this sentiment is especially prevalent. In the

realm of education, some of the benefits of inducing synesthesia may include accurate and faster
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responses and stronger learning association skills (Ghirardelli, Mills, Zilioli, Bailey, &

Kretschmar, 2010, Bankieris & Aslin, 2016). However, there are many pressing issues considering

the employment of this tactic in education. One of which being, whether this is worth investing

energy into when there may be alternatives to explore that have been proven to improve the

education system. A question that is worth pondering is whether induced synesthesia could be

helpful for everyone, some, or none. For example, could this be beneficial for those that are not

visual learners and instead tactile or auditory learners? If implementing inducement ends up being

unhelpful to individuals whose learning style is not visual, then it may deter students from

education or set back students in their knowledge acquisition and critical thinking capabilities.

Essentially, this methodology could be another institution-enforced learning style which is not

conducive to how children think. Overall, this would only exacerbate the original issue. Finally,

there is the educational question of how teachers would be trained to adapt to a new curriculum

adjusted to a synesthetic experience, since they are all unique to the individual induced. Obviously,

these issues are all hypothetical, so it remains, and will continue to remain uncertain what the

answers are to these questions as long as no research is done on the effects of induced synesthesia

in educational settings.

On the ethical side, it is important to consider how permissibility of induced synesthesia

will affect future decisions related to behavioral corrections. As a society, it is vital to tread

carefully on trailblazing in this field of study, for these decisions can be cited for research and

implementation of similar corrections across the board. This idea of a slippery slope is especially

pertinent when considering issues where we already permit behavioral correction, such as

rehabilitation for prisoner treatments (to return offenders back into society as productive law-

abiding citizens) and treatments for patients with mental health issues. In some circumstances, we

permit behavioral correction in neurological malfunction situations and already accept this as
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morally permissible, so does that mean that alterations for induced synesthesia are also morally

correct? Thus, is it morally correct to alter people’s behaviors at all? If we have been provided the

opportunity to improve our mental capacity, to what extent are we obligated to intervene in child

development to become similar to people with synesthesia for their enhanced learning and

memory? Lastly, is it morally permissible to use synesthesia to reap the (academic) benefits or

should it be studied for its own sake?

In the sciences, these are some of the benefits inducing synesthesia in early development

may have: a greater understanding about synesthesia and determining a biological basis for the

phenomena. However, there are pressing ethical issues considering employing this tactic in

education. Why should we invest in this field over others issues that are important right now, such

as cancer research? Could synesthesia be connected to an existing field and contribute to solving

those issues? For example, if we permit behavioral correction in an attempt to enhance cognitive

abilities (either through biological modifications or sociological treatments), then we may offer a

reason to correct other behaviors, such as people suffering from mental disorders. If we give

permission to do research in this field, then would this open the door to genetic modification in

humans? Lastly, what are potential side effects and could be minimized, if not avoided?

To further understand and fully judge synesthesia as an intervention to modify children’s

access to enhanced learning (benefits or costs of induced synesthesia to potential subjects), the

reader may find an affinity with the following goal: there is value in understanding synesthesia to

change our education system. That being said, we must be cautious about the ethical implications

connected to biological modifications (i.e., gene editing) through synesthesia’s intrinsic and

instrumental benefits and disadvantages. If the educational, moral, and scientific implications are

sufficiently addressed, I believe that if the opportunity to increase our mental capacity is presented,

we ought to pursue it. As long as previous case studies and experiments demonstrate consistent
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and reliable results, then induced synesthesia could be a sound treatment option for educational

purposes. In order to come to a consensus for such a judgement, it is important to understand the

physiological impact and derivation of the phenomena. This thesis will define induced

synesthesia’s prevalence in the US, the biology that underlies synesthetic experiences, and lastly,

weigh its “intrinsic neutral”, “instrumental good,” and “instrumental bad” to determine whether

synesthesia should be pursued as an inducement tool for memory enhancement.

The Prevalence and Neuroanatomy of Synesthesia

There are at least 60 different variations of synesthesia that have been documented, which

include: lexical-gustatory synesthesia (the association between words and taste), mirror-touch

synesthesia (when an individual feels the same sensations as another person they observe),

chromesthesia (sound to color), and more (Simner & Hubbard, 2013). Five percent of the general

population are affected with either one or more types of synesthesia. There also appears to be a

genetic basis since studies show it runs in families. Brang and Ramachandran (2011) found that

children born from at least one parent with synesthesia are likely to develop it themselves. The

relationship to the type of synesthesia developed in the child versus the parent is still speculative

(Brang & Ramachandran, 2011). This thesis focuses on grapheme-color synesthesia (colors are

associated with achromatic numbers and letters) since it affects 1% of the general population,

64.9% of the synesthetic community are grapheme-color, and a large proportion of that research

that has arisen in the last two decades looks at grapheme-color over the other (Campen, 2008).

The intimate link between memory and synesthesia occurs either by virtue of synesthetic

experiences (due to enriched information) or structural changes occurring within the brain. As

more studies emerge, we realize that synesthesia is not an illusion or imagination, but rather has a

neurological basis. In 1997, Baron-Cohen et al. found that synesthesia can be measurable in the

brain using positron-emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging
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(fMRI) (Baron-Cohen & Harrison, 1997). They showed that chromesthesia has increased

activation in visual areas of the brain in response to an inducer (sound), while a person without

synesthesia does not show this activation. MRI studies show that there are three brain regions that

consistently show an association to grapheme-color synesthesia: dorsolateral prefrontal, inferior

parietal, and occipito-temporal regions (Rothen, Meier, & Ward, 2012). Rouw et al. (2011)

describe the structural and functional imaging studies further.

The human physiology of the eye permits creatures to visualize the world. This process

involves neuronal connections firing onto one another to transmit information to the brain for

processing. The eyes are comprised of rods and cones and they are responsible for vision at

lowlights and highlights (including colors) respectively. When the information is transmitted to

the brain for processing, we have learned that images are translated upside down in the human

eyes and the brain is wired to correct that. This example showcases the complexity of vision that

influences our perception of our environments. Therefore, through science, we can find evidence

that links the body and the mind, gaining a deeper insight into this concept of perception. People

with synesthesia possess a characteristic to add to the field of knowledge. This community of

people is endowed with a different perception of the world unique to each person, lending them

enhanced memory and learning. Memories are important because they allow us to perform tasks

efficiently and aid in making decisions. For example, memories allow us to take the lessons learned

in classes and apply in relevant fields, or learning foreign languages enable us to interact with

numerous societies. Memories allow us to build relationships, remember our job duties, and some

say memories make up a person’s identity. According to David Hume, our memories help draw

connections between the events and experiences in our lives, an important aspect in the way we

form our identities (Morris & Brown, 2017). Without our memories, our quality of life decreases

(e.g. we are inefficient in performing tasks and we spend our time constantly relearning).
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Memories come from strengthened synaptic connections among neurons. These connections are

most prominent in people with synesthesia according to the hyperconnectivity hypothesis;

synesthesia arises from the lack of neural pruning that happens during maturation. This is

significant because, according to research, an adult can be trained to have synesthesia; however,

the effects only last up to five weeks. Otherwise, they have to continue to train in order to maintain

it. On the other hand, children have more plastic neural connections. An adult normally loses the

connections linking different brain regions together; however, people with synesthesia somehow

retain them. This is a plausible explanation for the co-activated regions of the brain for sensory

stimuli. Consequently, if children are the target audience (because they will have synesthesia long-

term thus benefit the most), then I will investigate whether it is morally permissible for adults or

parents to intervene (when the child could have otherwise led an entirely different life) simply to

access the benefits (strong memory and learning). To answer this inquiry, one must break down

whether synesthesia is in and of itself good overall and then discuss the applications.

Figure 1. This an MRI for a person with grapheme-color synesthesia (Rothen et al., 2012). The

occipito-temporal is the site where visual perception occurs. The inferior parietal is for emotions,

sensory info, language and math. The dorsolateral prefrontal is the site where executive

functions (working memory, planning, abstract reasoning) occurs.

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Table 1. The frequency of each type of synesthesia reported in 2009.

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Intrinsic Values

Although the promises of synesthesia are appealing, one must first delve into the intrinsic

and instrumental values that accompany this phenomenon to provide a balanced review. Doing so

allows one to debate whether it is worth inducing synesthesia, specifically in children. Let us define

intrinsic value as the subject of interest having value in itself. Some examples of intrinsically good

are happiness, love, wisdom, health, friendships, etc. while pain and sadness are considered

intrinsically bad. Not because of the results they bring about, but because how they are valued

independently. However, this thesis will argue that synesthesia is intrinsically neutral thus it makes

it a compelling candidate for inducement because it is neutral because it could be instrumentally

good.

Intrinsically Neutral

When we think about health, pleasure, love, etc. we immediately attribute them as

intrinsically good without further examples or explanations. However, when we think about

synesthesia, we do not immediately attribute it as either good or bad and for that reason, it is

intrinsically neutral. Its neutrality lends support for inducement and to begin the argument around

inducement in people, one must first separate the two kinds of synesthetic experiences:

developmental and acquired forms. Developmental synesthesia arises from birth or early

childhood while acquired synesthesia forms in adulthood through pharmacological drugs (i.e.,

LSD), accidents/concussions, or training/hypnosis. This distinction will identify how important

the synesthetic experiences are to the individuals who can experience them.

This thesis will consider a situation where a person with synesthesia lost their synesthetic

experiences. From there, one can clarify if synesthesia is a valued form of experience because

living a life without it may heavily change one’s life, even for the worst, and if adjustment is

possible. To add to the complexity, one can ask how influential losing one’s synesthetic
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experiences may be, if it is tied to an existing passion. This is important because we can distinguish

how synesthetic experiences are tied to identity, preference, and if the adjustment is possible. An

example about Sean Day, a musician with multiple synesthesias, will be described to showcase

that while inducement may not be clear, if the synesthesia was lost, the transition is possible, but

there may be a cost.

Developmental Synesthesia. This form is neutral because the benefits and drawbacks are

balanced. We can look at the benefit (normalcy as valuing and missing the synesthesia when it is

lost) and balance it with the drawback (there are unknown ramifications if lost where additional

important matters are also lost and missed whether or not they miss the synesthesia). We can

identify things that are instrumentally valuable by seeing what people value because it can bring

more intrinsically good outcomes. One way we can see what people value is by looking at what

people would miss if they lost it. Things that are a normal part of someone’s life tend to be missed

if they are lost, suggesting that they are valued to that person. So, if people with developmental

synesthesia find it normal, then this gives some initial reason to conclude developmental

synesthesia is intrinsically valuable.

First, we identify things as being instrumentally valuable by seeing what people value

because it can bring more intrinsically good outcomes. For example, we value health and that is

an intrinsically good feature to attain health. To attain it, we use money, but money alone is

meaningless unless we can use it. In this case, we can use the money to purchase medicine and

medicine contributes to good health. Another reason why we value health is because good health

means that we can live longer. Living longer allows one to form relationships with people and

forming relationships or having friendships is an intrinsically good matter. All in all, money leads

us to intrinsically good features and it is a natural tendency to pursue intrinsically good items.

Given this information, it is normal to value intrinsically good items. For synesthetic experiences,
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their natural state of being is different and they have a reoriented view of normalcy. Normalcy is

a standard by which behavior is measured and provides social coherence in organization, but, can

also marginalize those that don’t fit within the norm. However, artists operate outside of the

mainstream culture and we applaud them for this and their creativity, thus we appreciate the

artwork more. Although synesthesia is abnormal to non-synesthetic community members, we can

still appreciate the instrumental outcome/benefits just like how we can appreciate artists for not

fitting the norm. They have a different view of normalcy which means that we have to redefine

normal. The benefit to this is that the definition is flexible, so if we value typical mainstream items

such as money because it has instrumental application that leads us to other intrinsically good

items, then we can value synesthesia because it also has instrumental applications that also leads

us to other intrinsically good items. For example, education is an intrinsically good and synesthesia

provides enhanced cognitive abilities that can help them learn better. Another example is that

having relationships is an intrinsically good matter and synesthesia can enhance empathic abilities

which allows us to form those relationships.

Second, to identify what people value, we can look at what people would miss if they lost

it. We appreciate the value of something when there is a possibility that it will no longer exist. We

reminisce all the good aspects about a person and what they have done when they are on their

deathbed. We start to care for the environment when the Earth’s resources are on the edge of

depletion. We study harder for exams when we are threatened to fail. Universally, we do this

unintentionally because we find comfort of their continuous existence, but then that comfort is

suddenly stripped away. We often take advantage of matters that deserve our gratitude the most,

so when the item of value no longer exists we can fully assess how important it was. If synesthesia

is valuable, then all persons with synesthesia would miss it if/when they lost it. This is supported

by the claims on Reddit despite the fact that none of the individuals have ever actually lost their
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synesthesia. All of the responses say they had the revelation that their experiences are not universal

later on in adolescence or adulthood; the strange coloration of letters and numbers is easily

overlooked until they described their perceptions to others, or professors raise the topic around the

phenomenon. Another case that support how synesthesia is valuable if it were missed is still

supported in a case about Sean Day, a musician, who had and lost his synesthetic abilities. This

case will be reviewed more in detail later. All in all, we can evaluate how important something is

if it is missed when it is lost.

Third, things that are a normal part of someone’s life tend to be missed if they are lost

suggesting they are valued to that person. Matters that are normal to someone’s life are

unintentionally expected to have a constant presence and therefore, we do not really appreciate it

when it is there. In spite of that, when it disappears it violates our expectations and from there we

have to ask ourselves if we are okay with this change/it being gone. We live in a rapidly changing

world; however, many people fear change and even resist it. When normal parts of our lives

change, the fear of uncertainty and the failure to adjust become powerful emotions. Synesthesia is

normal to a person who has always had it (developmental synesthesia). That is because all they

know is that a certain concurrent (response) is produced when an inducer (stimulus) is present. As

mentioned before, people do not question whether their perceptions are any different to anyone

else’s, until they reach adolescence or adulthood. These sensory pairings are intimately linked to

a synesthete. A person with chromesthesia finds it normal for sounds and colors to be paired, just

as a person without synesthesia who witnesses fireworks also automatically pair these two

together. If their synesthesia is lost, then those fears settle in. So, if their synesthesia was tied to

other matters that they expect to also have a constant presence, then it may be even more difficult

to grapple and accept their loss. For example if one’s synesthesia is tied closely to music and allows

them to appreciate music more, then losing it could mean the knowledge of no longer fully
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appreciating music the same way anymore. Sean Day, a musician, wrote an autobiography of his

synesthesia and includes how he had lost it. This autobiography illuminates an instance where a

person experienced the world with both lenses: with and without synesthesia. Day had multiple

types: (he sees shapes, movements, and colors when he hears music, induced by the timbre; he

sees shapes, movements, and colors when he tastes food; and he see shapes, movements, and colors

when he smells odors). Growing up, he did not realize his skill until he turned to music to just see

the colors (at age nine or ten). In 1999, on the 17th floor of a building in Taiwan, Day survived an

earthquake (a 7.3 on the Richter scale), and the PTSD from the incident lead to subsequent loss of

all three of his synesthesias and was “immediately aware of the loss” (Day, 2013) Two months

after the incident, Day sought out to restore his synesthesia by listening to music or trying food

because he had started to “miss” it (2013). This case demonstrates an actual instance where

someone lost—not one, but three of—their synesthesias and found value in them after they were

lost. Especially considering that he is a musician and his synesthesia is tied to his appreciation for

music. Consequently, when one’s synesthesia is tied to an intimate aspect of one’s life, losing their

synesthetic experiences are difficult to endure because it can mean losing other matters that they

thought were permanent as well.

Fourth, if people with synesthesia find their experiences normal, then this gives some initial

reason to conclude developmental synesthesia is intrinsically valuable. If synesthesia is a valued

form of experience, then we can answer this question by asking how a synesthete would feel if

they lost their synesthesia. In order to provide specific claims, I turned to Reddit and posted

questions in a synesthesia community page for personal accounts because these answers are

difficult to attain in primary literature (Chapman, 2019). One response, “I would miss it if it was

gone. It would almost be like a milder version of losing a sense like sound or sight. It wouldn’t

impair my functioning in the way losing those things could, but I would be sad to lose access to
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the perceptions it gives me.” According to these accounts, there is an intimate and personal tie to

their experiences that makes it difficult to part. The responses collected say that if they lost their

synesthesia, they would do whatever it takes (within reason) to restore it, because they believe

losing it would heavily change their lives, even for the worse. This is especially the case when

their type of synesthesia pairs well to existing passions that they already attribute their identity to.

Consequently, if people with synesthesia see it as part of their identity and we value identity, then

synesthesia is valuable.

Identity is Valuable. In a scenario where one’s synesthetic skills pairs well to an existing

passion, losing their synesthesia could negatively impact one’s life because it could mean losing

other matters, such as part of their identity. One person mentions, “I like having synesthetic

experiences as I feel like it enriches my art! But I feel like it doesn’t make me ‘better’ at art, it’s

just personal to me in a way I like.” All in all, most responses pooled agree that if their ability was

taken away, they would be “heartbroken” and feel “lost” because these are the only experiences

they have ever known. Losing synesthesia is extra difficult when another commodity is also lost –

identity. This is important because identity is intrinsically good since it is an entity’s makeup. To

support this claim, individuals were asked on Reddit if they believed their synesthesia is part of

their identity. There were two types of answers: it is either part of their identity or it complements

one aspect of their identity. The first type was found with this answer: “It’s part of who I am; my

life would be completely different without it” and some add “But it’s not one of the labels I would

assign if asked to define myself” and “maybe not so much as part of my identity as being an Artist

or Christian or Transgender is to me” (Chapman, 2019). The intimate connection seems to weave

its way into components of one’s identity, yet it does not overpower the ones deemed most

valuable. So even if it was lost, at some level it can be harmful or harmless. On another level, we

can look at a response that supports that second type of answer that their synesthesia complements
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one aspect of their identity and maybe even enhances their experience of it. One said, “I’d say

more that my love of music is part of my identity and my synesthesia (auditory-tactile) is sort of

encapsulated in that. But it’s not really something I bring up when telling other people about

myself, and I don’t consider it to be a crucial part of my identity on its own” (Chapman, 2019).

From this response, while it is a constant presence in their day-to-day routine, there are other

existing features synesthetes identify with, such as love for music, which enhances their ability to

enjoy their experiences more. Consequently, losing their synesthesia does not entail losing a major

part of themselves, the experience is just no longer the same, but still pleasurable. Therefore it

seems that if it complements part of their identity, and they value their identity, then they value

the synesthesia too. Although it may not be the most valuable thing to them, it seemingly still has

some value in their lives because there was a connection that cannot be easily dissolved upon

losing the synesthesia.

More Than One Lost. When Day lost his synesthesias, he may seem to have adjusted just

fine to his new lifestyle, but he was also unable to connect to a passion that he strongly attributed

his identity to. His synesthesias did not return in its full level until seven months after the

earthquake and he was “wholly unconcerned” because he was “too stressed out and had too many

other concerns on [his] mind to care about [his] synesthesias being gone” (Day, 2013). Once it

returned to full level, he “didn’t really become depressed or anguished about [the] loss” (Day,

2013). Although Day’s synesthesias complements his lifestyle, as a musician, he was able to

recover after losing his ability and transition just fine into a new lifestyle without the

supplementary experiences. Thus, with these types of synesthesias, one can adjust to a world

without their synesthetic experiences even if it is tied to an existing passion that contributes to his

identity. Even if he missed it a little bit, it was still valuable to him at some in his life and those

emotions are more obvious when it finally did return and he said, “It was only once [his]
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synesthesia started coming back that [he] cared and realized how much [he] had missed [his]

colored music, flavors, and smells.” On the other hand, Day’s passion for composing and listening

to music dwindled immediately after losing his synesthesias. He said, “I tried to produce some by

listening to music; but...music was still unenjoyable and provided no comfort.” (Day, 2013) In that

event, when one loses their synesthesia, they also lose their passions and those passions are tied to

their identity.

The main takeaway is that people born with synesthesia are better off because they do not

suffer and if their synesthesia pairs well with something else that they cared about, then they have

a greater experience for it. The only downside is when the synesthetic experience is lost and it is

difficult to adjust because it could mean losing more to it than just that, such as identity. The

evidence so far indicates that synesthesia is valuable because it contributes to their identity and we

value identity by its very nature.

Acquired Synesthesia. For these individuals, whether their synesthesia is tied to an

existing passion, they can adjust easier compared to having developmental synesthesia. All things

considered, these individuals already know what a life without synesthesia is like. In short, it is

“easier” to let it go because they have seen the world in both lenses and can transition with more

ease if they lose it. However, the type in question is not the acquired form but the developmental

form, but we can still take away from the arguments that synesthesia is neutral because having it

then losing it is not harmful.

Summary. In summary, members of the synesthesia community agree that their

experiences are normal, at least within the populace. This is because the synesthesia community

is growing and becoming more accessible to converse commonalities. Therefore, synesthetes feel

that having synesthesia is heading towards normalcy, especially in a community that welcomes

discussion and shares their own synesthetic experiences. As the phenomenon gains more attention,
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people are more likely to be accurately diagnosed by professionals or be self-diagnosed. As they

increase their exposure to other people experiencing similar sensations, this rare condition seems

less rare. We can determine what is valuable to a person if it is missed when it is lost. Thus, matters

that are normal to one’s life tend to be missed when they no longer exist. Therefore, we can judge

the value of synesthetic experiences to these community members by creating a situation where

they lose it and claim to miss it. When another intrinsically important matter is also at stake, such

as identity, then there is even more reason to value the original matter. One of the limitations of

collecting these responses is that one cannot guarantee these individuals have synesthesia and

answered honestly. Given the substantial reports supporting the normalcy and preference of

synesthetic experiences, we must be cognizant that there may also be community members that

scrutinize synesthesia because it may not be desirable whatsoever. When analyzing Sean Day’s

case study, it illustrates that even if the synesthesia is lost, it is not entirely detrimental because it

was still possible to adjust; however, it was also at the cost of losing his enjoyment for music. The

next topic of interest is sensory obstruction which is an intrinsically bad matter that must be

calculated to show synesthesia as neutral.

Sensory Obstruction. Having addressed the value of synesthesia to members of the

synesthetic community, we can now focus on one intrinsically bad feature that accompanies

synesthetic experiences—sensory obstruction. This section will deliberate sensory obstruction as

a hindrance, then offer counter arguments that reveals it is actually intrinsically neutral. In theory,

if synesthetic experiences are involuntary, then people with synesthesia would experience sensory

obstruction because unrelated colors, textures, tastes, sounds, etc. are involuntarily supplemented.

Consequently, it potentially creates a cluttered and overloaded perception of the world. Sensory

obstruction is inherently bad and has instrumentally negative consequences that includes possible

impairment of proper cognitive function—relevant information gets lost among the co-activated
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concurrents and focusing on tasks becomes more troublesome and frustrating. If we look at the

deaf community, we can find suggestive claims against induced synesthesia. For instance, some

individuals in the deaf community report that their sensory experiences are too cluttered when they

have functioning hearing aids, so the absence of unnecessary audio or noise is peaceful and

preferable. Since synesthesia is at the opposite end of the spectrum to being deaf, one can argue if

all your experiences are cluttered, then it could be hard to control those sensory experiences and it

can be hard to pair it to what you are actually experiencing. Following this logic, synesthesia would

be undesirable.

Counterargument About Sensory Obstruction. if synesthesia was induced in infancy, then

they naturally assume their experiences are normal to everyone and learn to adapt. These

synesthetic experiences occur without their choice, so these sensations are easily assumed to be

normal to everyone else too. Even though these sensory activations are involuntary, it does not

necessarily obstruct their interactions and activities. It may be the case that synesthesia is only

seen as “cluttered” to those who have never experienced synesthesia at all, and maybe not

necessarily to those who have only ever known life this way. One synesthete, Lix Bruxton, wrote

an article describing her experience and says it is like “pleasant [music] in the background”

(Bruxton, 2016) and Day says, “I can just ‘push’ the synesthetic perceptions to my peripheral

vision, clearing my main field of vision while the colors flicker on the borders” (Day, 2013). It is

always there yet unobtrusive. In the same way that, the brain selects the most salient information

among the clutter that is most relevant to the viewer. For example, people can listen to white noise

and the brain filters out information using a passive, built-in system, so that one ignores the white

noise; however, one can focus and acknowledge the white noise again. Since sensory overload

may be more harmful to people who acquire synesthesia, it would be best to have it on the onset

of birth or early development. The reasoning is, adults that attain these new skills can face more
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difficulty adjusting because of the potentially distracting responses to stimulus, unlike children,

who believe their experiences are natural because they have only ever viewed the world through a

synesthetic lens.

Some synesthetes are more or less bothered by their synesthesia than others and they

implement techniques to diminish it. For examples, Bruxton said, “in daily life, words sing out to

me everywhere I go. Advertising boards, road signs, and posters are all brighter and louder to me.

If I zoomed in and allowed myself to see every color, it would be overwhelming.” Although the

ever-present colors pose a potential, perpetual distraction, it seems that it can be reduced by

looking at it from afar, and, if they do no concentrate on it, then it is like music in the background.

Another example was in the case study with SE where claimed she has never mixed colors between

images she actually perceived and those within her synesthetic images; thus, allows her to perform

well in memory tasks and mathematics (Mills, Metzger, Foster, Valentine-Gresko, & Ricketts,

2009). Likewise, Bruxton stated that while colors are paired with letters and numbers, it does not

distract her from enjoying the written word. The synesthetic image and the real image are separate

dimensions of objects that can be sorted and isolated. That is, one does not necessarily intrude on

the other.

The main challenge to the claim that synesthesia can produce sensory obstruction is that

there are no scientific studies measuring the level of obstruction in the synesthetic community. It

can only be observed on a case-by-case basis and even then, these findings are subjective to that

one person. Hence, the evidence may not represent the population accurately. Due to the lack of

substantial evidence, we face a difficult question: how can we make decisions about inducing

synesthesia in the absence of this sort of information? Without this evidence, inducement can only

be speculative. If synesthesia is desirable, then the results must be valid and replicable. Although

there are not many studies that show debilitating effects linked with synesthesia, that does speak
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for the case that obstruction is at a significantly low number. Equally important, one can infer that

most people with synesthesia have lived with it since infancy, thus making it less obtrusive in

adulthood, for it is just natural for the person. Unfortunately, the origins of synesthesia are still

under investigation, so we have yet to understand how many persons have had it early on versus

those that have developed it incidentally. Since we can argue the case in either direction, sensory

obstruction is intrinsically neutral.

In conclusion, synesthesia is a phenomenal experience of the world that is valued by people

who have possessed it during development. This insight is gained when we inquire if it will be

missed if it was lost because people tend to miss things that are valuable if they disappear. One

argument against inducing synesthesia is that it will lead to sensory obstruction because these

experiences are involuntary and color associations are overwhelming, thus impair a person’s

ability to pay attention to important stimuli. The objection to these claims is that sensory

obstruction is subjective, so it can only be analyzed in a case-by-case basis. And if present, there

are methods in which sensory obstruction can be reduced so that it is not a hindrance. Given that

people with developmental synesthesia automatically adjust, seeming to believe everyone else has

done so, people naturally create their own techniques to make synesthesia work for them while

they continue to reap their secondary, instrumental benefits. Subsequently, one cannot generalize

sensory obstruction as a limitation to all individuals with synesthesia, therefore endorses how

synesthesia is neutral. Thus if synesthesia is neutral, then it makes for a compelling candidate for

inducement because it is intrinsically neutral, but could be instrumentally good.

Instrumental Values

Even though the features of synesthesia are immeasurable and extensive, it is imperative

that we take into account the many facets that make up this inquiry of whether or not it is

worthwhile to induce synesthesia. One must first consider the instrumentally good and bad features
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to determine whether becoming a person with synesthesia is worthwhile. Let us define

instrumental value where the subject of interest has value because it helps us get or achieve

something else. Something has instrumental value when it serves as a means to some end. For

example, money is not valuable alone, but rather, the things that money can give you, such as

medicine to improve your health (an intrinsic good).

Instrumental Good

When looking at the instrumentally good features, some popular ones are: greater cognitive

capabilities (creativity, language learning, and memory), body and sensory awareness (of yourself,

your surroundings, and your relationships with yourself and others), emotional regulation

(empathy, improved sleep, decreased stress), and more. As part of the discussion on the

developmental aspect of synesthesia, it is essential to focus on cognitive capabilities, specifically

memory. In general, multiple pieces of evidence support that people with synesthesia have better

memory and are considered more intelligent. Long-term memories are essential for everyday

functioning, and working memory is important for reasoning, guiding decisions, and behavior. The

types of memories this thesis will focus on are long-term memories and working memory, and

although short-term memory may be important to some extent, short-term memory is not relevant

to this case. Nicolas Rothen, Beat Meier, and Jamie Ward wrote a review that compiles research

on synesthesia pertaining to memory (Rothen et al., 2012). They collected current research leading

up to 2013 on the neural basis of synesthesia, factors that may enhance memory (imagery, level of

processing, etc.), different memory tasks tested, case studies, group studies, and more. The authors

suggest that the enhanced memory found in synesthesia is due to the wider changes in the

synesthetic brain; specifically, structural and functional changes in their visual system. Those

structural changes include strengthened synaptic connections among brain regions that are

nonexistent in the non-synesthetic community. The review is relevant because it provides a

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comprehensive view of what types of memory processes had significant differences compared to

controls and what the overall results mean. To outline the memory advantage, this thesis will

discuss how 1) synesthetic experiences are consistent across time, and this is important for pattern

recognition. 2) synesthetic-inducing material supports memory, 3) memory is better when

information is congruent to one’s synesthesia, and 4) increasing trials also means increased

accuracy and speed despite incongruencies.

Consistency. One good feature behind induced synesthesia is heavily tied to its

instrumentally good values. For example, individuals that experience synesthesia all have unique,

consistent color spectrums within individual spectrums. Consistency is beneficial because that

means the synesthetic experiences are not always changing; thus, making their perceptions less

chaotic or difficult to process information. As a consequence, this natural ability does not inhibit

people with synesthesia from their ability to recognize patterns. However, when they start using

this condition to help them detect patterns, it lends an instrumental benefit.

Longitudinal Studies Testing Consistency. To outline consistency as an intrinsically good

feature within synesthesia, reported experiences from individuals will be used. In 1923, Leon

Ginsberg conducted a study testing tone-color association for his synesthesia (Ginsberg, 1923) and

he reported that the colors to text pairings were the same, if not close, five months after the initial

recording; therefore, his synesthesia was consistent. The strength and weakness of his study is the

failure to use an objective measure to determine what was correct and if that included answers that

were “close” to the initially recorded answer. Ginsberg’s early study gave insight into how he

quantified his research. For example, in the initial test, a “deep brown, almost black” was reported

as “blackish brown”. Then five months later, “deep brown, with blue tinge; almost maroon”

changed to “dark purple”. Although Ginsberg’s study was limited and susceptible to bias, it paved

a path for Baron-Cohen to pursue this research even more.

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Baron-Cohen was the first to provide concrete evidence that synesthetic experiences are

consistent across time (Baron-Cohen, Wyke, & Binnie, 1987). He studied a word-color synesthete,

named EP, and they presented 100 triggering words and asked her to describe what color(s) she

experienced. One year later, they repeated the test, and the subject retained the same color-word

associations as her initial response of more than 90% of the time. In contrast to the control group

(people without synesthesia) that were asked to create analogous color associations to the words,

they performed the same task and tested two weeks later, but they were consistent only 20% of the

time. The evidence here supports that synesthesia does not change across time except for the 10%

accounted. One limitation to this is that EP has chromatic-lexical synesthesia (she automatically

experiences a color when she hears or thinks about the word), so the applications are limited to

some extent towards other types of synesthesia. The author fails to include what the 10%

accounted. It remains unclear if the test for consistency must be exact, or if it is acceptable if it is

close to perfect recall (e.g., if EP reports a word to be orange initially, but a year later says it is a

brownish orange). This case study lends support towards consistency, but only to a limited extent.

Let us assume the 10% mismatch was due to change from orange to blue. If that is the case, then

we have reason not to induce synesthesia because it could be more harmful than beneficial. If

consistency allows us to detect patterns in the world and synesthesia is only consistent 90% of the

time, then the last 10% may make it difficult, if not impossible, to conceptualize patterns related

to their synesthetic experiences.

Pattern Recognition. People with synesthesia already experience the world with

consistent color connections which has a positive effect on one’s performance in this area of life.

According to Dzulkifli & Mustafar, colors increase our attentional level and therefore help us

memorize certain information (Dzulkifli & Mustafar, 2013). Their review provides plenty of

research to show that color indisputably enhances our attention level. This is because when certain
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stimuli are given more attention, it has a better chance to be transferred to a permanent memory

storage, in this case, colors have the potential to attract attention. An early study conducted by

Farley and Grant (1976) demonstrated that certain stimuli (i.e. colored multimedia presentations)

are given more attention to than monochrome ones, thus, the individuals tested were more likely

to recall a colored text than a monochrome one. This experiment on memory performance provided

some evidence that supports the claim that colors attract more attention. Following this research,

robust evidence from multiple studies explored the relationship between color and memory

performance. These studies can be analyzed further in Dzulkifli & Mustafar’s review of “The

Influence of Colour on Memory Performance: A Review” (Dzulkifli & Mustafar, 2013). Later

studies have uncovered that the mechanisms underlying synesthetic and real color are not identical

(Janik McErlean & Banissy, 2017). Therefore, it would be comparable but not entirely accurate to

say that these involuntary experiences are recreated by people without grapheme-color synesthesia

through proper use of highlighting text. Instead, it would be more accurate to say there is another

level of processing involved so that text does not appear too cluttered or distracting after

highlighting, just as SE mentioned how she can separate the color dimensions or how Bruxton can

read signs and books without trouble by using her own tactics. Thus, a synesthete experiencing

connections between visual stimuli and color throughout their life in consistent patterns can have

an inherent upper hand in their learning ability as a mental organization through color connections

produce better memory recall. However, not everything is colored. Instead, only specific stimuli

in the realm of the person’s type of synesthesia produces a secondary response (color) which is

discussed in Mills et al. (2006) experiment later in the thesis. An instrumental good concerning

pattern recognition is that a synesthete can make consistent predictions about life from familiar

sensations. Even though the synesthetic experience is not the same relative to type from one person

with synesthesia to another, it still enables them to detect those patterns. A salient number or word
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has a better chance to be stored in their memory. Therefore, pattern recognition is an instrumental

benefit, and it allows researchers to study cases individually. We can look at a few case studies to

demonstrate how people have recognized patterns brought by their synesthetic experiences to

understand mathematics.

Case Studies. Individuals, including the Cornell University physics professor, Geoffrey

Chester, utilized his synesthetic experiences to his benefit – he worked out mathematical formulas

until he reached the correct answer because of the vivid colors (Duffy, 2001). He “can remember

all the steps of a detailed formula [that he and his students] have been working on weeks before

[because] the numbers and colors are so clear in [his] mind.” And until the complex formulas are

worked out, we work them out and the vividly colored numbers aid to keep him focused. The

following interview with Chester gives an idea of his psyche to solve mathematical equations:

He sees Schrodinger’s Equation in quantum mechanics in varying shades of yellow. He

explains that the equations symbol H is yellow ochre, while its basic variable, often called

Greek psi, is light yellow. ‘It was a great advantage for me as child, too, in my strict

elementary school in Edinburgh, Scotland, where we needed to be ready with a quick

answer to our multiplication tables. I could see the numbers in vivid color which helped

me to do the calculations quickly.’ He still remembers the beautiful colors generated by

multiplying 362 × 20 (or yellow, blue, and white times white): a gorgeous brown 7,

followed by a white 2, pinky-red 4, and bright white 0. Similarly, multiplying bright green

8 by bright green 8 yielded a lovely combination of shiny midrange blue (6) and dark pinky-

red (4) (Duffy, 2001).

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Figure 2. Schrodinger’s wave equation in the perception of George Chester (Duffy, 2001).

Another example is Katinka Regtien, and she uses the number-color associations in mental

arithmetic (Duffy, 2001). She claims that upon seeing a simple addition problem, she can first see

the color which foretells the number. Her experience is analogous to sensing a word on the tip of

one’s tongue until it comes to mind. The following quote illustrates how she perceives the problem:

I cannot do arithmetic without visualizing the colors and the forms of the numbers. When

I add fifteen and eighty-three, I see mentally first a cream white line (the color often) and

a green line (the color of eighty). In that first moment, I already see that the outcome will

be in somewhere around the brown line, which is the color of ninety. So I start the

arithmetic with cream white, green, and brown lines, corresponding to ten, eighty, and

ninety. Then, I zoom in to the place where the smaller numbers are, and the blue five of

the fifteen gets more significance than the cream white one (which stands for ten), although

the number fifteen is normally more white than blue. The same happens with the number

eighty-three. The three is kicked three steps on top of the five and lands on the place of the

number eight. And so the outcome is ninety eight. If the sums are more complex, I put them

on paper, of course, but still, the same process happens in my mind.” (Duffy, 2001)

Both Chester and Regtien make their synesthesia work to their advantage, and for

individuals like Chester, it even propels him further in his academic career. They exemplify how

the color associations are consistent; therefore, it allows them to predict future outcomes according

to previous attempts to solve the problem and consistently reach the correct answer. By trial and
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error, not only do they understand the image in the “real” dimension, but they also deduce the

patterns to understand the image in the “synesthetic” dimension as well.

Counterarguments About Pattern Recognition. One of the downsides to this is that the

exact reasoning behind these predictions is still hazy. Although Chester and Regtien are great

examples of success stories, we equally find great examples where math and synesthesia are not

compatible, but instead, make calculating difficult.

For Margreet van der Wardt, the colors of the numbers are more of a distraction when

performing arithmetic, and for Wendy Spijkers, although she understood color theory, the

arithmetic problems would conflict with that (Duffy, 2001). She said “When I have to multiply

numbers, say, three times three—that is, yellow times yellow—which becomes a pink-red nine, I

first have to let that sink in before I can proceed. If I go too fast in doing sums, I lose the colors

and the numbers and have to start again.” In sum, this type of synesthesia impedes her when doing

simple mathematical calculations.

There are also cases where the numbers do not have a prominent color (a striking color,

pale color, hue, or no color at all) and that makes it harder to utilize their synesthesia for their

understanding. For Rhyme Wiersma, she has trouble calculating with zero because it is the only

digit that does not have a color associated with it (Duffy, 2001). She says, “it is air” because it has

no discernible color, so she does not have a “code for remembering it as she does with other

numbers.” So, Wiersma mistakes memorizing one hundred instead of one thousand.

All these anecdotes show that there are significant differences in the ways each person uses

their ability to perceive numbers in colors. While their synesthesia can be helpful as a mnemonic

aid to memorize series of numbers, such as phone numbers, when it comes to performing

arithmetic calculations, it can equally be a help or a hindrance. An important consideration is that

not all stimuli produce color. Consequently, a person with grapheme-color synesthesia is not
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continuously bombarded by unnecessary concurrents to hinder daily functions— only synesthetic-

inducing material are color-associated. However, the lack of color can derail their technique to

solve math problems because it may need to be treated exceptionally, and that could be more work

than necessary.

Synesthetic-Inducing Material Supports Memory. Numerous studies support that

people with synesthesia demonstrate enhanced memory relative to controls, but only for

synesthesia-inducing material. Mills et al. (2006) support this with the case study of a person with

grapheme-color synesthesia, named MLS. Mills et al. carried out three standardized memory tests

[Benton Visual Retention Test-Revised (BVRT-R) (Manna, Alterescu, Borod, & Bender, 2011)

(Benton, 1974), Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (CFT) (Spreen and Strauss, 1998) and the

Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT) (Spreen and Strauss, 1998)] to see if MLS’s

memory recall changes if presented with drawings instead of text. If MLS’s synesthesia aided her

memories, then she would show a significant performance with auditory and verbal memory tests

with words because it elicited a synesthetic experience. In contrast, the non-language items

(drawings and shapes) should match the control group because they do not evoke her synesthesia.

The BVRT-R and CFT test non-language memory by displaying drawings.

MLS scored 1-1.5 standard deviations above the norm or received a perfect score for the

auditory and verbal test, thus supporting the authors’ hypotheses. The authors asked what her

strategy was, and 80% of the reasons for recall were due to color associations. She “used

synesthesia for the words but not for the visual figures” (C. Mills et al., 2006). To conclude, objects

that elicit her synesthesia (numbers and letters) would produce color associations automatically,

thus aid her memory performance, while objects that do not elicit it (drawings and shapes), would

be perceived non-synesthetically and so, she would perform similarly to controls. To clarify,

MLS’s synesthesia is not voluntary. She did not pick to activate her synesthesia for the language
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items and not for the non-language items (drawing and shapes). Instead, this experiment tested to

see if a stimulus that does not align with MLS’s type of synesthesia can still give her a memory

benefit, and it does not. The synesthetic benefit only occurs within the realm of the kind of

synesthesia and not beyond that. Therefore, a grapheme-color synesthete won’t start seeing colors

from shapes because shapes are not graphemes (letters and numbers).

Congruence Supports Memory. Many authors conclude that synesthesia affects the way

stimuli are encoded conferring a specific strategy for time-space synesthetes. For example, when

a stimulus is congruent (i.e., the colors match pre-existing color associations), it can be easily

incorporated into their memory. On the other hand, not all memory tasks give synesthetes a reliable

memory-advantage (e.g., digit span and digit matrix) such as when incongruent information is

presented and tested. The visual memory advantage is heavily supported, yet limited because the

mechanisms providing enhanced memory remains unclear in terms of synesthesia (e.g., meaning

visual stimuli such as faces and scenes). Overall, the memory benefit is not necessarily related to

synesthetic experiences but rather the structural and functional changes happening in the brain.

Those changes include the strengthening and weakening of synaptic connections that are present

in people with synesthesia and not those without synesthesia. In an extension of Mills et al.’s

(2006) study, a material that does not induce synesthesia still confer a memory benefit to this

community. So, we have reason to believe that whether the stimuli are favorable to their

synesthetic experiences, overall, they confer an advantage especially when we look at long-term

memory tasks that test whether accuracy and speed increase over time in the presence of

incongruent information.

Accuracy and Speed. Bankieris and Aslin tested for accuracy and speed of response on

people with synesthesia against those without using associative learning tasks over the course of

two weeks. The tasks required subjects to learn shape-color pairings for multiple testing blocks.
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Any subject that had an existing color association to the shape (snowflake) was excluded, thus

removing prior synesthetic color experiences from the results. The authors aimed to test

association learning alone. The subjects were tested two times for their memory: one day after the

learning phase and two weeks after the learning phase. The results yielded that people with

synesthesia outperformed the controls, which support enhanced long-term memory for shape-color

associations. Following this, they shuffled the previous shape-color pairings to new color

associations and retested for memory to challenge how synesthesia may interfere with their

learning rate for new pairings. They showed no significant difference in their learning rate for new

pairings and concluded that synesthesia does not interfere with a person’s ability to memorize new

associations. Mainly, their findings support that synesthesia offers a heightened ability to learn and

retain shape-color associations. The results are relevant because it argues that synesthesia not only

enhances one’s ability to memorize pairings, but past learning experiences do not interfere with

creating new learning associations. Bankieris and Aslin (2016) lend support that people with

synesthesia perform better for long-term memory tasks and confirm previous studies investigating

synesthesia in learning and memory.

Summary. We can find comfort that synesthesia is consistent across time; therefore, a

synesthete’s perceptions are not chaotic nor impossible to carry out day-to-day tasks. That includes

making the synesthetic experiences work for their advantage if they can recognize those patterns.

Unfortunately, it is not always successfully done in terms of solving mathematical problems;

therefore, we should tread carefully in the discussion for inducement. While pattern recognition

may not be easy for all synesthetes, we can find that only specific types of stimuli confer a memory

advantage and accuracy and speed increases when in the face of making new associations. So this

gives some reason to believe that even if you can make a wrong prediction, you learn from prior

experience and avoid making the same decision again. Lastly, only stimuli pertinent to one’s
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synesthesia, such as words, bestow a memory benefit while other stimuli equate the results from

individuals without synesthesia. Overall, these studies each support how advantageous synesthesia

can be in terms of learning and memory, but to provide a fair view, one must discuss the

instrumental disadvantages.

Instrumentally Bad

Even though the research around enhanced cognitive abilities within synesthesia is

appealing, we have to equally examine the instrumentally negative effects that can follow if

induced synesthesia is worthwhile. This thesis specifically discusses how synesthesia can lead to

communication barriers and difficulties in mathematics, then counterarguments will be proposed

for each problem; however, they may not eradicate the original issue.

Communication Barrier. A major instrumentally bad feature of synesthesia reported is

that there is a communication barrier which could lead to misunderstandings or difficulty

translating (basic concepts). Similar to speaking another language, a person with synesthesia uses

syntax that is specific to their perceptions. For example, Elle Sees has grapheme-color synesthesia

and wrote an article to clarify some common misconceptions around grapheme-color synesthesia

and described her perception of the world. She begins by telling the audience how she found out,

then incorporates specific color associations she perceives daily, and how synesthesia has impacted

her life. It includes how others react when they find out about her skill and the benefits and

disadvantages paired with her synesthetic experiences. When a person without this phenomenon

hears her description of objects or events, it is comparable to a language barrier. She states, “I

recall telling teachers the gender of letters/numbers and getting curious looks. I remember telling

family or friends that a certain song sounds like winter or this one sounds like purple” (Sees, 2011).

This article offers personal accounts outside of experimental conditions which describe an

interesting and unique perspective for people without synesthesia to try to relate to. Sees’
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perspective can inform the audience how much synesthesia has impacted her for better or for

worse, and the example showcases how differently she communicates her experiences, which are

not always comprehensible to the larger community.

But people, in general, do not ever have the same experiences in the world. Even

experiences with another person are still different and communication barriers are not new. For

example, two people could be viewing the same movie, but different aspects of the information

are given more attention. One person may pay more attention to the music, while another person

is more in tune with the storyline. Emotional state also influences perception and because of this

drawback, the subject could have either a positive or negative response to the event occurring.

Everyone suffers from miscommunication and misunderstandings to some extent; therefore, we

should not be quick to dismiss synesthesia for this shortcoming. On the other hand, if it leads to

more miscommunication, then that would make induced synesthesia undesirable altogether. As a

result, one has to be considerate of the instrumentally negative effects that could develop, which

could coax existing issues. So, if more miscommunication does emerge, it would only add to the

pile of issues related to communication that we have yet to fully comprehend.

Conflicting Information & Ineffective Processing Styles. If synesthesia was induced in

children, it would raise concerns how educators can implement effective styles of learning that

would be helpful to children with synesthesia and those without. There are three options to

approach this: 1) educators can create appropriate, individualized accommodations, 2) develop

national programs for students who have synesthesia that schools can adopt, or 3) create a separate

school altogether explicitly for people with synesthesia. Given that there are more than sixty

variations of synesthesia, how can society fine-tune the lectures and teaching styles that

accommodates to a wide range, if not all, of those variations? Furthermore, the communication

barrier extends beyond a synesthete’s difficulty in carrying out conversations. It involves children
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who have a hard time processing information when the numbers and text are in the “wrong” color

and difficulty minimizing distractions or conflicting information. Sean Day’s autobiography

describes how the language barrier could be resolved through a comparison between speaking

Japanese and speaking the language of synesthesia.

Counterarguments About the Communication Barrier. In Day’s autobiography, he

compares synesthesia to speaking a foreign language (Japanese) in the U.S. Even though Japanese

is not commonly spoken, it is not “abnormal” in and of itself (Day, 2013). A person can choose to

speak Japanese, but if there are relatively few around who speak or understand it, then it would be

beneficial to speak English instead. However, if you run into another person who can speak and

understand Japanese, then you are more inclined to speak Japanese with them. Consequently, you

may find a larger community of Japanese speakers through friends and families to interact with.

Therefore, a synesthete would have to be aware of their listeners before deciding whether it would

be appropriate to use the “language” of synesthesia with them. Overall, Day describes how the

language barrier can be reduced if people are able to switch to the language that is the most

convenient or accommodating. Although his solution seems straightforward, not all thoughts can

be equally conveyed from one language to the next. For example, the Japanese word “tokimeku”

has been popularized by the Japanese author Marie Kondo to translate as “spark joy”. However,

that is not the literal translation—google translator defines it as flutter, throb, or palpitate. This

example demonstrates some concepts can be ineffable because there is a secondary experience that

is hard to convey. So hearing the word “tokimeku” is the first experience, but that alone does not

tell you enough about the meaning; therefore, there is another element at play. Thus, synesthesia

is not exactly like switching languages because the switch is not easy since some concepts are lost

in translation. To that end, Day’s solution still does not eradicate the communication barrier

problem.
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Mathematical Performance. One instrumentally bad matter that has raised concern

among parents and educators is that people with synesthesia, specifically types that are related to

numbers, perform poorly in mathematics. I will address what underlies these difficulties and how

significant poor mathematics skills are in day-to-day use if we were to consider inducing

synesthesia in children. Generally, mathematical processes are viewed differently by synesthetes,

especially with grapheme-color synesthesia because letters and numbers are associated with

colors. For example, a person can view 2 + 3 = 5 as just pink + green = red (Synesthi & Swaner,

2012). If they know what color theory is, then it can cause confusion that red is a primary color

which cannot be created from two secondary colors. However, a solution suggested is that they

disregard their colors temporarily, if possible; otherwise struggle in performing basic arithmetic.

In an attempt to reduce the problem, there exists an online toolkit called “The MULTISENSE

Adaptable Synesthesia Toolkit” for parents and educators, to learn why this matter is important

and ways to mitigate the potential problems. One of the techniques for dealing with struggles in

mathematics is to be aware of the trouble and enforce how they can remember the color associated

with a number when attempting to recall a list of digits. Or encourage the child to spend more time

with the multiplication tables or use a verbal style of teaching. Although this toolkit has good

intentions, the solutions to the issues are superficial and does not actually eliminate problems with

performing mathematics. Therefore, parents and educators do have reasons to be concerned about

their child’s education.

Congruent Color Associations Yields Better Performance. One famous case study

followed the subject nicknamed SE who had extraordinary memory capabilities and grapheme-

color synesthesia. One researcher looked into the accuracy and efficiency that grapheme-color

synesthetes have when the colors either mismatch the digits or match the digits (C. B. Mills,

Metzger, Foster, Valentine-Gresko, & Ricketts, 2009). For example, when a synesthetes typically
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sees seven as yellow in the “synesthetic” dimension, a matched condition is where math problems

are presented where seven is colored yellow in the “real” dimension. On the other hand, a

mismatched condition is where math problems are presented where seven is colored purple in the

“real” dimension instead. They found that color in addition problems are caused by automatically

binding the digit to the color (photism), so when the colors are mismatched, the subject takes

longer to solve the problems. The researchers suggested that when the mismatch occurs, color-

digit binding not only challenges their visual perception of the digits but also their cognitive

perception. SE was making new relationships in her brain that separated out her previous

understanding of the colors. The incongruencies take longer for SE to solve the addition problems

because it goes against her expectations; however, the accuracy increases with time (Ghirardelli et

al., 2010).

Congruent, Incongruent, or Black. Ghirardelli et al. (2010) pursued this case study and

investigated color-digit synesthesia on numerical representation on the subject, SE, and control

group without synesthesia. Three experiments were conducted to test them in mathematical

equations. The first test tested color congruences where addition problems were either matched or

mismatched to SE’s color-digit photisms or were black. The second test, the addends were

mismatched, but the answer was presented in black. The reverse was shown as well (black addends

and colored solution). The third experiment matched SE’s color-digit photisms, but they were

multiplication and addition problems instead. The conclusions show that SE responds significantly

faster when the colors matched her photisms than when they mismatched. The control groups did

not show a difference between matched and mismatched. This study demonstrates the best

conditions in which synesthesia permits good results, but it did not compare the control group’s

speed or accuracy to properly gauge the relevance to the non-synesthetic community for further

application. Moreover, the subject can adjust to the incongruent colors from the digits and increase
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the speed of response while accuracy remains the same among the experimental and the control

groups in all situations (Ghirardelli et al., 2010). There was no difference in the control group

when shown congruent or incongruent graphemes (Simner & Bain, 2018). In this same study, SE

was compared against eight undergraduates that did not have synesthesia (control group) and found

that SE was significantly more accurate in the matched conditions (98%) than mismatched (89%)

and also against a black condition (91%). The control groups had a 97% accuracy overall with no

significant change with all other conditions (Ghirardelli et al., 2010).

Counterarguments About Poor Mathematical Performance. We cannot always blame

synesthesia for poor performance. It can be the case that people are simply not good at math and

not because they have synesthesia. In fact, some individuals use their synesthesia in order to

maximize their performance and we can see this with Geoffrey Chester, where his synesthesia

allowed him to not only remember names and numbers in color but apply his synesthesia in

mathematics and physics. “I could see the numbers in vivid colors which helped me to do the

calculation quickly,” said Chester (Duffy, 2013). Chester likes his synesthesia because it is what

he perceives as natural and he believes it makes his quality of life better. Chester benefits from his

synesthesia because it aids his competence in mathematics. So, synesthesia and mathematics

should be analyzed on a case-by-case basis. As previously addressed in the instrumental good

section, Chester sees the Schrodinger’s Equation in varying shades of yellow, so when he’s solving

formulas, he uses the colors to keep him focused until he reaches the final answer. Another

important drawback about these experiments is that people in general are not typically tested in

this way day-to-day, so these tests do not simulate real-life situations. Lectures, textbooks,

homework, etc. are not written in rainbow letters and numbers; therefore, one’s synesthesia is not

challenged to the same degree as these tests. This may pose as a complication while in elementary

school since classrooms are designed to be colorful, thus, one’s synesthesia is repeatedly
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INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS ENHANCED MEMORY
challenged. However, when one moves out of those colorful settings, their synesthesia is no longer

challenged. All in all, synesthesia does not directly affect mathematics skills but rather challenges

the congruences (matched) and incongruencies (mismatched) that the numbers have to one

another. To repeat, this is all subjective, so not all synesthetes experience trouble with

mathematics.

Applications from Adults to Children

Although numerous studies of synesthesia have occurred in adults, very little has

investigated the cognitive effects in children, which is important if they are the target population

to induce. Green & Goswami were the first to study synesthesia in children and found similar

results consistent with adults. When digits are paired incongruent to their photism, they experience

involuntary difficulties in the numerical tasks (Green & Goswami, 2008). Green & Goswami

pioneered research of synesthesia in children to see if the studies found previously in adults can

be extended to children to some degree. The researchers examined three features of synesthesia in

children: consistency, involuntariness, and linked with a number concept. The ages ranged from 7

to 15 years old. The results of reported synesthetic children (experimental group) were compared

to children without reported synesthesia (control group). Their findings show that the experimental

group faced difficulties in numerical tasks when the numbers were incongruent to their personal

photisms. Green & Goswami (2008) support Ghirardelli et al. (2010); therefore, the applications

found in the adults can be assumed so far to be true. However, some of the weaknesses of their

methods pose serious dilemmas. The authors fail to report how the children with and without

synesthesia were recruited because that information may tell us whether there may have been some

bias. We look at additional research from Simner et al. (2018) that aims to repeat these findings

and correct those methodological errors.

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Simner et al. investigated how children with synesthesia compare to their peers (control

groups made up of non-synesthetic children) in memory-based tasks (Simner & Bain, 2018). This

study aimed to advance Green & Goswami’s (2008) findings that children demonstrate similar

results as adults when testing features about synesthesia by correcting their methodological

oversight. Simner et al. (2018) screened more than 600 primary schools to randomly sample a

cohort of children with synesthesia and those without. The issue brought by Green & Goswami’s

(2008) experiment is that the children with synesthesia were brought forward voluntarily by their

parents’ belief that they had it. This may question the validity of the results because of possible

bias. The children (ages 10-11) with synesthesia were tested in a series of cognitive tasks (and

compared them to matched controls) and purposely refrained from telling which child had

synesthesia or not and what synesthesia is. Their results showed that some tasks show no

significant difference than controls (receptive vocabulary test and memory matrix task), but the

other tasks showed that they significantly performed above average [processing-speed task, letter-

span task (memory/recall task of letters)]. Simner et al. (2018) conclude that synesthesia gives an

overall advantage. The findings show that there is no significant difference between children with

grapheme-color synesthesia and children without synesthesia in the memory tests in all cases.

Their work supported Green & Goswami’s results that children with synesthesia significantly

performed better in the task at hand than the control group, but in some cases, they performed

equally.

Weighing the Results. Although there are a number of instrumental downsides, one can

determine whether the instrumental goods outweigh them or not by measuring the consistency of

the results. In sum, the findings are inconsistent and unpredictable given the large range of factors

involved. For example, different types of memory tasks confer a memory advantage while a select

few are not significantly different (e.g. digit matrix and digit span). Smilek et al. (2002) tested a
 43
INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS ENHANCED MEMORY
subject, named C, for her memory for digits displayed in a matrix (spatial position). C experienced

colors with the following inducers: sight, sound, and thinking of the digits and was tested on the

onset of displaying the matrix in the black, the congruent, and the incongruent matrices. Then she

was tested again 48 hours later. C’s performance did not decrease, whereas the controls did. It

supports that C was able to retain the memory of the spatial position of the digits even two days

after learning it. However, no other studies were able to replicate Smilek et al.’s results (Rothen &

Meier, 2009, Rothen et al., 2012).

As for digit span, Baron-Cohen et al. (2007) described the case study of Daniel Tammet

and his ability to memorize pi to 22,514 decimal places from memory; however, Rothen and Meier

(2009) and Gross et al. (2011) showed no evidence for a memory advantage with digit span in

other individuals with synesthesia compared to control. The case with Tammet was exceptional

and it is apparent that synesthesia does not confer the digit span memory benefit to all cases. Yet,

we should keep in mind that the two memory tasks (digit matrix and digit span) involved memory

for contextual associations (digits to spatial position or position in a sequence, respectively), so it

does not reflect the real world because it is not often individuals are tested so rigorously. Even

though digit matrix and digit span memory tests do not show a significant memory advantage for

synesthesia in all cases, the memory benefit is present when the inducer is within the realm of the

type of synesthesia. The nature of the task highly influences the results per person.

Summary. In sum, when a new innovation is introduced, people either jump to try it or

wait longer after hearing everyone else’s experience. For those that jump try it are convinced they

should be open to modernity and willing to be progressive. But being a pioneer who gets to be the

first to try something does not necessarily mean a positive experience. For example, you could

volunteer to test some new piece of technology, such as a phone; however, the phone has multiple

issues and instead adds to your load of stress and frustrations. It may even crash suddenly, and you
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INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS ENHANCED MEMORY
lose valuable information that was only stored on the phone. So, for someone that is ready to try a

new innovation, they face the risk that they could have an extremely dissatisfying experience.

Now, for those that choose to wait after hearing everyone else’s experience before trying the

innovation, they save themselves from dealing with that excess load of stress and frustration if

things went sour. Although it would be practical to wait how a new innovation truly performs in

the hands of the consumer, it could be just as beneficial to be the first—you have more knowledge

about the product and greater influence with your review. Subsequently, we have to ask how can

we know whether we should be a pioneer versus a follower. In the case with synesthesia, we want

to address inducement carefully and completely before introducing it to potential consumers that

would debate whether they should be a pioneer or a follower. To do this, the intrinsic and

instrumental values were outlined to determine whether it is worth the cost of inducing this

phenomenal experience of the world at all, or if it instead would be detrimental. By analyzing the

intrinsic features, this thesis argued that people can determine the value of something if we

consider a case where it is missed when it is lost. Doing so tells us that synesthesia is valuable

because it leads to other intrinsically good items (identity); however, it also tells us that the cost is

greater once it is lost because it is not only the synesthetic experience that is stripped away—

identity is stripped away as well. Sensory obstruction is an important consideration because it may

influence a person’s ability to effectively use their synesthesia to a person’s advantage, including

if it is to access enhanced cognitive abilities. In the instrumentally good section, we find that

synesthetic experiences (color associations) are consistent and, for the most part, do not change

over time. Thus, consistency aids in pattern recognition abilities. In a case where math is involved,

physicist Chester and Regtien make their synesthesia advantageous to them by understanding the

patterns that allow them to perform well in math, including complex problems as seen with

Chester. On the other hand, synesthesia can also be distracting or confusing when the perceived
 45
INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS ENHANCED MEMORY
and understanding of the colors (color theory) do not make sense together. In the discussion about

the instrumentally bad outcomes, miscommunication and poor mathematical performance are

concerns that already exist, and synesthesia may worsen it for a person. As a result, it is important

to create education settings for youths with synesthesia and implement effective techniques for

instructors to use to help students overcome their difficulties processing information. If teachers

are truly unable to actively help in these matters, then it seems that synesthesia should be not

induced at all. In spite of that, everyday letters and numbers are not colorful. So, when synesthetes

are out into the world where lectures and text are not as colorful and vibrant, they no longer have

to be challenged (what they perceive in their “synesthetic” dimension are not perceived in the

“real” dimension). While the studies with synesthesia are mostly performed in adults, Simner et

al. (2018) showcase the same results in children as tested in adults for several memory tasks.

Although the evidence presented in this thesis present counterclaims for each benefit and

drawback, we have to consider that many of these studies are based individual results, so we have

to careful in generalizing the results to the synesthetic community.

Conclusion

The social implications of inducing synesthesia require vigilance as multiple ramifications

may emerge. These repercussions include arbitrary disclosures around sensory obstruction,

memory advantages, how often experiences are consistent versus inconsistent, etc. Although

synesthesia can offer a plethora of information and advance our cognitive abilities in multiple

ways, we must be cognizant that existing research does not show consistent evidence to guarantee

the desired outcome for all cases (low sensory obstruction and enhanced memory overall).

Furthermore, many experimental findings were supported using case studies based on one person

because these specific individuals displayed superior memory. It is necessary to be cautious about

the extent to which we can generalize the results to the general population of people with
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INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS ENHANCED MEMORY
synesthesia (Robinson, 2015). Equally important, the findings in these experiments can be

generalized to a limited extent because most of the subjects were grapheme-color synesthetes. This

is significant if induction requires training to create a specific type or whether it is just a luck of

the draw. There are too many combinations of outcomes that cannot be controlled for: type of

synesthesia, sensory obstruction, especially when the level of “obstructiveness” is subject,

therefore, it cannot be guaranteed for all induced. That means it would be a gamble, and we have

to ask whether we are willing to gamble the livelihoods of children. For example, we could induce

a grapheme-color synesthete who is unable to control their synesthesia so that their experiences

are chaotic or feel overloaded. If we cannot guarantee to have control of perceptions, then a person

cannot isolate the actual colors and the synesthetic images from one another. There are many

variations and possibilities of this condition and some individual mentioned happen to be lucky in

the matter. Although some people were lucky to have a type of synesthesia that they were able to

control and work for them, we have to consider the possibility that we could inadvertently induce

a type of synesthesia where it is harmful to have in the first place. Subjectively speaking, the most

harmful type of synesthesia is mirror-touch synesthesia where they sense the same sensations they

observe happening to others as if the sensations are their own — specifically in the case where

pain is involved.

Given all this information, if inducement was an option, then we would want to guarantee

certain results. We care about guaranteed results because we do not want unexpected and harmful

outcomes including side effects. The initial goal of inducing synesthesia is to access the secondary

benefits—enhanced cognitive abilities. Grapheme-color synesthetes have a distinct cognitive style

of learning that aids in their memory performance and creativity; however, those differences do

not dominate the current methodologies of learning and enhanced memory present in non-

synesthetic communities. In order to consider synesthesia as an inducement tool, the results must
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INDUCED SYNESTHESIA TO ACCESS ENHANCED MEMORY
be valid and replicable, and induced synesthesia seems to have to produce a large number of

unknown variables: the type of synesthesia and the color-associations. Therefore, it would be

harmful than beneficial to induce synesthesia, thus it should not be considered a permissible tool

to increase children’s access to enhanced learning and memory.

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