the wild curator

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multi-sensory

Does language constrain our sensory perception? Here are a few related questions and ideas from Naturalist Peter Wohlleben about the definition of the sixth sense in his book The Heartbeat of Trees (2019):

“In addition to the well-known five senses—vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch—scientists have identified other ways of perceiving the world. Some animals, for example, are able to sense electrical fields or volcanic eruptions before they happen.“

“What I find more exciting is that people have this sense, too. It’s exciting because it deepens our connection with nature…”

“Have you ever heard of a seventh sense?”

“In short, it is an interplay of many organs and nerve ells all the way up to the brain, which analyses and interprets all the data it receives”

“Even plants have one. Even they, after all, sense gravity, and trees maintain the equilibrium of trunks that weigh many tons. For example, as soon as a beech notices its crown is getting out of alignment, it grows specialized reinforcing wood to shore up one side of the trunk so it doesn't bend any farther on that side.”