Many of us have experienced an urge to do something based on nothing other then a feeling. Whether it be to call a friend and learn that their father died, or to go back into a room just in time to find the dog about to eat your dinner. This feeling is often referred to as a sixth sense, or Extra-Sensory Perception (ESP). In 1999 researchers at Harvard University were examining a specialized organ in the nose called the vomeronasal organ (VNO). Many debate whether the organ still functions (in humans) and if so, whether it influences our behavior. While their research was marginally based on pheromones it got me thinking what other signals humans may be able to sense. In animals, the VNO contains many nerve cells and with the extensive abilities of nerves, the types of signals and number of signals available for them to receive could be limitless.
In modern day research there are many types of ESP, such as Clairvoyance, Precognitions, and Telepathy. But even in ancient times, before the study of ESP, many civilizations recorded having similar experiences. It is my opinion that people are experiencing ESP or a sixth sense more often, and that as we evolve we will learn to acknowledge and refine this skills more.
Photo Reference:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/daz71/90964236/
Research Reference:
http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/1999/05.20/sixth.sense.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extra_sensory_perception
Megan Dick
1 comments:
This is interesting but I think I need to know more...looking in Google with the keywords vomeronasal organ and esp gave me a few interesting hits. I also want to know more about that organ..in fact the very presence of that organ in humans seems quite controversial (found on Wikipedia). Could it be a vestigial organ? In this case it seems logical to me that ESP may not be a feature still present in humans...or maybe not with every humans.
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