Synesthesia is an inherited condition that gives rise to a 'merging of the senses'. For those who experience it, everyday activities such as reading or listening to music can trigger extraordinary impressions of colour, taste, and other sensations. Synesthesia research can tell us much about normal sensation because all people experience cross-sensations to an implicit degree (e.g., all people match high pitch sounds to lighter and smaller shapes). Synesthesia has
a considerably broad appeal, and in recent decades the field has experienced a remarkable resurgence of interest. These developments have painted a detailed story about the development, inheritance,
psychology, history, and neuroscience of synesthesia, and provided a contemporary source of study for a new generation of scientists. In addition, the condition has been of great interest to those psychologists and philosophers interested in consciousness. The Oxford Handbook of Synesthesia brings together this body of knowledge into one definitive handbook, to provide a broad overview of the field. It includes a large number of concisely written chapters, each tackling
specific research questions of current interest, placed under broader headings that unite these topics into coherent themes (e.g., Origins of Synesthesia; Neurological Basis of Synesthesia).