Synaesthesia in podcasting

I have never heard of the term “audio synaesthesia” until reading this blog post by Jon Udell. Apparently it refers to a reaction where one type of sensory input triggers another reaction.

This happens frequently to me when I hear an old song, and I can remember a place and time from my youth (oh so long ago now it seems) when I either first heard the song, or memorably heard it.

Jon is theorizing that podcasting may lead to the same phenomenon when people are introduced to terms, concepts, or ideas for the first time. Listening to podcasts on long bike rides, as he was doing, may enhance the effect– who knows?! It seems likely that being in a new or different environment is important to the effect. I am not sure how brain research would line up on this theory, but the connection of affective responses and stimuli to ideas, words, music, etc. is something that I think is regarded as scientifically sound.

So should students go on “walkabout” when they are listing to podcasts from their professors, in the hope that they’ll better retain new information and ideas if they have novel environments on which these concepts can be imprinted? Interesting to consider. WikiPedia has a fairly extensive entry on synaesthesia, though without reference to podcasting contexts. (yet!)

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On this day..

• iPad Screen Recording for Narrated Sketchnotes – 2022
• MinecraftEDU House Spanish Labeling Challenge – 2016
• Sortable, Mobilized Google Spreadsheet with Student Photos and Information – 2013
• Documenting Adventures in Shanghai on an iPhone – 2011
• Internet Safety and Digital Citizenship in Alva, Oklahoma (SlideShare Slidecast) – 2010
• Helping more teachers and students access a Ning website via a subdomain and a CNAME entry in DNS – 2008
• Marketing flyer for K12Online08 – 2008
• Good morning, your WordPress blog has been hacked – 2008
• Entroute to Shanghai – 2007
• Giving Tiger Mail a try – 2006