I love the English language. Every now and then I’ll come across an interesting new word while reading and I write it down in a notebook because I’m a language geek!
Today, I discovered the word “Aphantasia” – the inability to visualise mental images – and its opposite, “Hyperphantasia” – the ability to see extremely detailed and clear mental images.
It’s absolutely fascinating stuff – I did a bit of reading on the subject and the term “Aphantasia” was coined in 2015 by Adam Zeman, a professor of cognitive and behavioural neurology at the Uni of Exeter. He says that aphantasia can be beneficial to those who work in science and maths, while hyperphantasia is more useful to creative types, according to an article on Sciencefocus.com. Visualising images is also a big part of memory, so you can recall an image of a place or a person when remembering things. As a creative person myself, I agree it is easier to be creative when you can visualise images in your head. Ironically, I can’t image what it’s like to not see mental images, but I guess if you don’t have them in the first place, you won’t miss it!
I do wonder if being an aphant affects the ability to dream and see those weird images when sleeping?
This also reminds me of something I discovered a few months ago: that some people don’t have an internal monologue. As a person who does have an internal monologue, I find it mind-blowing that not everyone has it! I find it useful for thinking things through before I say them out loud, although it gets annoying when I can’t get my brain to shut up when I’m trying to sleep!
What’s on my mind today: The future. I had an appointment with a careers advisor in a bid to try and get myself back on track this year.
What I’m currently reading: I’ve just finished reading “The Family Upstairs” by Lisa Jewell – I thought it sounded good and it was intriguing, but it jumped around a lot between the different characters’ viewpoints and I was disappointed by the ending. I feel like there was a few chapters missing – just as it got interesting, it sort of fizzled out. It’s the first time I’ve read a disappointing book for quite a long while!
What I’m watching: “The Celebrity Circle” on Channel 4 – I watched the last series of the non-celebrity version and thought it was a bit of fun, so I thought I’d give this charity version a go. I’m not sure I’d call them all “celebrities” (I think we need a new word to describe them) but it’s been something to pass an hour! Plus, it’s the perfect lockdown show because the contestants are all in their own flats and aren’t allowed to interact in person, only through social media! I’m also watching “Masterchef” because it’s a great cooking show and I love seeing people from all walks of life and how they interpret cooking briefs.
Have a lovely week!
A World of Randomness 