Professor Sommers Smith’s lecture about the science behind sound and music was quite timely as the weekend after that lecture I had gone back home for the weekend to see one of my favorite bands in concert with my best friend. To me it is always so interesting to hear the science between the senses I take for granted like sight and hearing. Like in Professor Conway’s lecture, Sommers Smith’s provided a new perspective on how I, and people in general process stimuli. When I listen to music or hear people talking I don’t think I have ever thought about the sound waves travelling through the cochlea and tympanic all to be analyzed by my cerebral cortex. I always think of science and art as very separated in my daily life but it just goes to show that your brain’s consumption of art is all based in science.
At the concert I went to Professor Sommers Smith’s lecture was still resonating in my thoughts and while I was enjoying the music I noticed how so many people reacted so differently to the music they were hearing. The idea of perception and sensation was stuck in my mind and I was incredibly aware of the contrasting ways people process their music. There were people standing in the back simply bobbing their heads, people singing along as loudly as possible up front, people dancing, people stage diving, and people trying to capture every moment with their iPhones. It was really interesting to see how music can affect different people. Despite the fact that we all have the exact same structure of neurons, cochleas, hammers, anvils, and stirrups, the way people hear music makes them react differently.
It’s so fascinating to think about how everyone in the world can be exposed to the same stimuli, process it through the same organs, and yet the analysis that their minds make is completely different from anyone else’s. Thinking about how others think about their own worlds is really confusing but definitely an important thought to have. Empathy and sympathy are extremely important for forming the social connections that people thrive on. Realizing the disparities in how people perceive and think is definitely important and something that Sommers Smith’s lecture brought to my attention.