How do we use senses in our everyday lives?

Our Sense-Sational Power Point!

Our senses

You are walking, exploring Park Slope. You walk slowly, enjoying every sight, smell, and sound. You hear the birds singing in the garden. You touch the bark of a tree, feeling the texture. You see the flowing rivers, that end in a lake. You smell the flowers as you walk by. At the end of your journey, you sit down and eat a sandwich. Mmmm! It tastes delicious! But wait, how does it all work?

Sight

Without sight, we would not be able to see the desk in-front of us, or able to look at our fellow students. We use our eyes everyday, and it is a very important organ. Humans protect their eyes vigilantly, in order to see.

Sight• The visual cortex is at the back of the brain.• Some react to specific cues like shapes and colors.• Others pick up signals and put the parts together to

sense the whole.• The entire process can happen in one –fiftieth of a

second. Eyelashes keep dirt out of our eyes, and our eyebrows help to absorb sweat.

TouchWithout the sense of touch, you wouldn’t feel your feet

hitting the floor as you walk. You wouldn’t know when you’re hurt. You wouldn’t know what to wear when it is hot, and you wouldn’t feel the sun on your skin. The nerve endings and touch receptors in your skin that control the sense are called the somatic-sensory system.

Touch

Tiny nerve endings gather information of things your body touches.

The information is neatly organized sensory nerve cells in your brain.

Some parts of your body have more nerve endings and are more sensitive

Smell

• Your nasal passages contain olfactory nerves that sense odor molecules in the air. Those nerves then send a message to the brain and it recognizes the odor.

Smell (Continued)

• Everyone has a different sense of smell!• The sense of smell is powered by the

olfactory bulb. The bulb recognizes the smells and sends the stimuli to the brain, where it is interpreted.

Taste

Taste allows us to distinguish bad food from good food. It not only allows us to pleasure ourselves, it is a vital part of survival. Our tongue is the organ of taste, and is can sense many flavors. From sweet ice cream to savory roast beef, taste is something very important for out body.

Taste• We receive tastes through taste buds. • Taste buds are located on the top of the tongue.• Your taste is categorized into 5 sections which are:

sweetness, bitterness, saltiness, sourness, savory.• Bitter-this taste is very unpleasant. Each taste bud has

approximately 150 receptor cells.• Humans have about 10,000 taste buds.• Receptor cells live for only 1-2 weeks. After they get

replaced by new receptor cells.• There are two cranial nerves that innervate the tongue

in order for your tongue in order to taste.

Sound

Sound is something that is nearly as vital as touch or sight. It allows us the sense the area around us, distinguishing dangerous objects and good ones by their sound. We use it to listen to music, and the hear a speech, or a friend helping you with advice. It is a vital part of our body.

Sound• Sound allows us to sense the area around us. The organ

used to sense sound is the ear.• The outer ear is made out of skin and cartilage.• The eardrum is a flap of skin, that when vibrated causes

three tiny bones to vibrate.• These three tiny bones are the smallest in the body, and

are called the anvil, the hammer, and the stapes.

Fun Facts• A human eyeball weighs about 28 grams and is the size of a ping

pong ball.• Humans can distinguish five-hundred shades of the color grey.• All babies are color-blind when they are first born• The least sensitive part of your body is the middle of your back.• There about 100 touch receptors in each of your fingertips.• Taste is one of the weakest senses.• Girls have more taste buds than boys.• A person cannot taste food unless it is mixed with saliva.• 80% of what we taste is actually what the food smells like.• When we are hungry, our sense of smell becomes stronger• If you play Metallica at 50,000 decibels, it is the same as playing

Beethoven at 50,000. You still have the same amount of ear damage.

Pictures!

More Pictures!

Bibliograpy

en.wikipedia.com

amnh.com

www.sightandhearing.org/news/healthissue/.../hi_0802.asp

http://www.eyebeautytips.com/beauty-tips/interesting-eye-facts/

http://news.softpedia.com/news/8-Amazing-Facts-About-Taste-70253.shtml

http://library.thinkquest.org/3750/touch/touch.html

http://www.bellasugar.com/10-Interesting-Facts-About-Scent-Smells-15169338

Museum of Natural History Brain Exhibit

The Science Textbook

Presented By…Gigi,

Kelsey,Sean,

Thomas,and

Tess.Thank you!