# Does This Happen To Anyone Else? (sounds -\> light) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 26, 2001, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836 "2001-07-26T07:36:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/1 "2001-07-26T07:36:58Z")
I’m betting most people will think I’m crazy, but I’ll ask anyway. This happens to me fairly often, and I can’t find a logical reason why: I’ll be lying in bed with my eyes closed, when something electrial will make an odd sound, frequently it was my mini-fridge’s generater kicking on but occasionally the tv now that the fridge isn’t in my room, a sound that’s slightly abnormal for it, and when it does there will be a flash of white light behind my eyelids, almost like what you’d see if someone turned on a very bright (higher than 100 watt) light on in your face when your eyes are closed. It’s gone in a second, but very noticable not to mention annoying. Has \*\* anyone \*\* else ever experienced something like this? ---
**Author:** ![Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wonko_The_Sane)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/2 "2001-07-26T12:24:24Z")
Does it happen with other sounds, or just electrical devices? ---
**Author:** ![Rue\_DeDay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/41988e/32.png) [@Rue\_DeDay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rue_DeDay)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/3 "2001-07-26T12:34:08Z")
**elfkin477** , I wish I could just call you a nut-job and be done. Kinda funny (to me), kinda insulting (for you). Quick and easy. Alas, I cannot. I get that too. Not very often, but enough to notice it. I also get it the other way. If I see a flash of light, I “hear” a soft _pop_. Sometimes I can rationalize it. “I ain’t nuts, camera flashes do go _pop_ when they go off.” Other times I just _know_ that whatever made the light didn’t make a noise. I keep quite about this, though. As long as I don’t see men on the wings of planes trying to rip off the engines in flight, I guess I’m alright. Unless it’s some kind of brain tumor. Then, you have it too. Ha ha. -Rue. ---
**Author:** ![RalfCoder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f1d935/32.png) [@RalfCoder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RalfCoder)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/4 "2001-07-26T12:40:17Z")
Do you think it might be [synesthesia](http://www.discover.com/dec_99/featsyn.html)? This is when a stimulus to one sense evokes a response from another. Sounds evoke a color, or certain foods always taste like the same number. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/5 "2001-07-26T12:47:11Z")
Yup, me too! No big deal though… My theory? It’s a mild form of [Synesthesia](http://psyche.cs.monash.edu.au/v2/psyche-2-10-cytowic.html). I have absolutely no evidence of this, just a guess… To further my guess, I would guess that a lot of people experience this, but do not experience full-blown synesthesia. BTW: You and **Rue** are nut-jobs!😃 And **Wonko** too! ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/6 "2001-07-26T12:54:37Z")
Yeah, it’s synesthesia. Not as bizarre, with its implication of rarity, as the link suggests. Nothing to worry about, either. Wife tastes colors and uses it on the job, but she doesn’t like talking about it. I see flashes of light when I hear sharp, surprising sounds. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/7 "2001-07-26T13:30:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Astroboy14 \* > \*\* > BTW: You and **Rue** are nut-jobs!😃 > > And **Wonko** too! \*\* **dropzone** ’s wife is a complete nut-case… and, what the hell? **dropzone** as well!! For the record: I haven’t been sane for a LONG time, if it’s any consolation… My brothers and sisters! Let us unite in our insanity and, uh, like, take over the SDMB or something! **WE WILL BE HEARD!!!** 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/8 "2001-07-26T13:35:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Astroboy14 \* > **dropzone’s wife is a complete nut-case… and, what the hell? dropzone as well!!** The latter is proven on a regular basis, but when did you meet my wife? You sound like you know her! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/9 "2001-07-26T13:44:17Z")
It happens occasionally to me, usually when I’m going to sleep. Both ways, in fact. Sometimes the sounds and flashes can get quite loud. I think it’s my brain’s sensory faculties getting bored by the sensory deprivation and flexing their muscles. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/10 "2001-07-26T13:45:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Astroboy14 \* > **My brothers and sisters! Let us unite in our insanity and, uh, like, take over the SDMB or something! WE WILL BE HEARD!!!** [rimshot]Yep, and some people will see us too.[/rimshot] I experience something similar: when I listen to music, I get visuals in my head that correspond to the beat and tone of the song (beat -\> shape, tone -\> color). ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/11 "2001-07-26T13:56:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by dropzone \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Astroboy14 \* > > **dropzone’s wife is a complete nut-case… and, what the hell? dropzone as well!!** > > The latter is proven on a regular basis, but when did you meet my wife? You sound like you know her! 😉 \*\* Nope, never met her (as far as I know…), I’m just extrapolating from available data: Married **dropzone** ( a known whack-job), ergo, nut-case! 😃 FTR: **slortar** and **ultrafilter** are bananas also! Though **slortar** , I think, has a point when he says “I think it’s my brain’s sensory faculties getting bored by the sensory deprivation and flexing their muscles.” That may be a good explanation, from a looney!😃 ---
**Author:** ![Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/258eb7/32.png) [@Wonko\_The\_Sane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wonko_The_Sane)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/12 "2001-07-26T14:02:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ultrafilter \* > > I experience something similar: when I listen to music, I get visuals in my head that correspond to the beat and tone of the song (beat -\> shape, tone -\> color). \*\* I have the same thing, I was just wondering if it was the /sound/ or the fact that it was an electronic device. I have synesthesia in both sounds, and flavors. I did not realize that not everyone had this until I mentioned that Goldings Hops had a flavor that was blue, and triangular. I got some odd looks, and the car got silent. I don’t mention it to my family anymore. ---
**Author:** ![lno](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a8b319/32.png) [@lno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lno)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/13 "2001-07-26T14:07:26Z")
No synesthesia for me, but I sneeze whenever I start to daydream. That is, unless I’ve sneezed recently. Refractory period, or something like that. It’s a great party trick. I’ll just begin a daydream and I can feel a sneeze building up. One armchair diagnosis is that daydreaming uses a different section of the brain, which accidentally triggers a sneeze. It makes enough sense for me to stop worrying about it. (Of course, that probably means I have a tumor, but, eh, whatcha gonna do.) ---
**Author:** ![Pnuk\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Pnuk\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pnuk_Guy)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/14 "2001-07-26T14:10:18Z")
Electromagnetic pulses. You know the ones, when having your computer on messes up your radio reception. Or your neighbours lawnmower causing your TV reception to go screwy. Well, flicking the light switch does strange things to your brain/nerves/whatever and causes the ‘flash’ behind your eyes. and stuff… ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/15 "2001-07-26T15:55:18Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Wonko The Sane \* > \*\*I have the same thing, I was just wondering if it was the /sound/ or the fact that it was an electronic device. I have synesthesia in both sounds, and flavors. I did not realize that not everyone had this until I mentioned that Goldings Hops had a flavor that was blue, and triangular. I got some odd looks, and the car got silent. I don’t mention it to my family anymore. \*\* Hmm…I definitely hear colors in people’s voices. I’ve experienced mixing of other senses, but not like you describe. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/16 "2001-07-26T16:27:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Astroboy14 \* > **I’m just extrapolating from available data: Married dropzone ( a known whack-job), ergo, nut-case! 😃** STAYED married to me for twenty-five years: However nutty she was to begin with, is nuttier now. ---
**Author:** ![FalconFinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@FalconFinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FalconFinder)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/17 "2001-07-26T16:56:22Z")
The closest thing I have to anything like this is that sometimes streetlamps turn on or off (depending on their state) when I walk or drive by. It won’t happen for a long time, then suddenly one day everywhere I go a lamp will go on or off when I go by. It happens enough to really freak me out! On those days, I can sometimes predict when the light will go on or off. I’ve heard it called something like “Sliders” (I know it made me think of the old Fox TV show), but it’s been a while since I saw anything about it. Most likely, it’s all just coincidence… ---
**Author:** ![turner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/22d042/32.png) [@turner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turner)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/18 "2001-07-26T17:20:05Z")
There was a whole article on this in Smithsonian Magazine about 3-4 Months back ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/19 "2001-07-26T17:40:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by FalconFinder \* > \*\*The closest thing I have to anything like this is that sometimes streetlamps turn on or off (depending on their state) when I walk or drive by. > > It won’t happen for a long time, then suddenly one day everywhere I go a lamp will go on or off when I go by. It happens enough to really freak me out! > > On those days, I can sometimes predict when the light will go on or off. > > I’ve heard it called something like “Sliders” (I know it made me think of the old Fox TV show), but it’s been a while since I saw anything about it. > > Most likely, it’s all just coincidence… \*\* Same thing happens to me occasionally. Purely coincidence. But that running feud I have with that traffic near my apartment that refuses to change color when I’m alone at the light is absolutely REAL, I tell ya. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Drastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Drastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drastic)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2001, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836/20 "2001-07-26T17:50:15Z")
Sudden and unexpected sounds are often accompanied by a pulse of light for myself, as well. I don’t think it’s the sound so much as the element of startledness. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-this-happen-to-anyone-else-sounds-light/73836.md?page=2)