Science and Engineering, Extra-ocular Vision

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 196u-uu-uu.

This episode of Science and Engineering discusses research of extra-ocular vision, or the ability to see with skin. A particular test subject, 22-year-old Rosa Kuleshova, exhibited this ability, while blindfolded, by determining colors on a spectroanomaloscope and in one case deciphering printed text.

An 11-year-old girl, [Larisa Parebaynos], and another test subject, [Natasha Bershadskaya], also exhibited this ability by correctly identifying colored squares while blindfolded. The blind were studied for this ability by selecting colored pencils out of a light sensitive bag, but it was hypothesized that the subject needed direct contact with the object.

An interview with a Dr. Nikolai Sudakov describes his experiments with students to determine the color of sheets of paper through opaque, sealed containers.

"Some experts believe that invisible infrared rays, or x-rays, reflected from the surface of the substance, act on the fingertips. Others see in it a sensitivity to an electrostatic field. Still, others define it as a sensitivity of the skin to light."

The program concludes with a few news items on space exploration, electrical engineering, and glaciers.

[Recorded in 1963-1964?]

Audio courtesy of the NYC Municipal Archives WNYC Collection

WNYC archives id: 150287
Municipal archives id: T4057