Explain The Five Basic Human Senses

The human body has the ability to understand the environment around it by using its senses. The five basic human senses are hearing, sight, touch, smell, and taste. Anytime one of these senses is triggered by a specific stimulus the signal is transmitted to the brain in order for the information to be interpreted. This transmission process is known as perception. First the body will experience an external stimulus, the sensation. Then this information will be transformed into electrical stimulation in order for the brain to understand it. At this point the brain has the ability to communicate to the body its course of action for the specific stimulus. Sensation is the button-up process by which our senses, like vision, hearing and smell, receive
Sight starts when light bounces of objects and into the eye. Light is electromagnetic radiation waves, but the human eye can only detect a portion of these wavelengths. Wavelengths that are visible to the eye are known as the visual spectrum. Once light bounces off an object it passes through the transparent protective covering of the eye, which is the cornea, and into the pupil. The pupil is black center of the eye that is surrounded by the colored portion, the iris. The pupil changes size according to the amount of light that is passing through it. The more light the smaller the pupil. Light passes through the pupil and into the lens, which bends and refracts light to focus it properly to the retina in the back of the eye. The retina is a collection of two main different types of nerve cells, cones and rods. Rods are used mainly in dim lighting conditions and help with peripheral vision, while cones provide the ability to see details and color when the light is bright. Cones are located near parts of the retina known as the fovea, while rods are more spread out. The trichromatic theory of color vision states, “that the retina houses three specific color receptor cones that register a certain set of wavelengths red, green, and blue.” (C. 2014, March 03). While the opponent- process theory of color vision states “ that we perceive color in terms of opposite ends of the spectrum: red to green, yellow to blue, and white to black.”
Skin can detect touch, pain and changes in temperature and pressure. Each of these senses is created by nerve receptors that are located all over the skin. The sensation of touch can alert the body to the presence of something on or near the skin. While pain alerts the body of an outside force that may be harmful. Minor pain can also be signals for major health problems. The gate-control theory of pain says that certain nerve receptors lead to specific parts of the brain. When an area is alerted to a problem a gate to the brain is opened giving the sensation of pain. This gate can be closed in a few ways; other nerve impulses can drown out the original stimuli or the brain can send a signal to the affected area to reduce pain. The body cannot only sense the world around it, but it can sense itself as well. Kinesthesis is the way your body senses its own movement and positioning. This sense allows the body to move around without needed to rely on the other senses. (C. 2014, March