sense
[sens] 1. a faculty by which the conditions or properties of things are perceived. Five major senses were traditionally considered:
vision,
hearing,
smell,
taste, and
touch. In addition,
equilibrium,
hunger,
thirst,
malaise,
pain, and other types of senses have been distinguished. The operation of all senses involves the reception of stimuli by
sense organs, each of which is sensitive to a particular kind of stimulus. The eyes are sensitive to light; the ears, to sound; the olfactory organs, to odor; and the taste buds, to taste. Various sense organs of the skin and other tissues are sensitive to touch, pain, temperature, and other sensations. On receiving stimuli, the sense organ translates them into nerve impulses that are transmitted along the sensory nerves to the brain. In the cerebral cortex, the impulses are interpreted, or perceived, as sensations. The brain associates them with other information, acts upon them, and stores them as memory. See also
nervous system and
brain.
sense of equilibrium the sense of maintenance of or divergence from an upright position, controlled by receptors in the vestibule of the ear.
light sense the faculty by which degrees of brilliancy are distinguished.
muscle sense (muscular sense) the faculty by which muscular movements are perceived.
position sense (posture sense) a variety of muscular sense by which the position or attitude of the body or its parts is perceived.
pressure sense the faculty by which pressure upon the surface of the body is perceived.
sixth sense the general feeling of consciousness of the entire body; cenesthesia.
space sense the faculty by which relative positions and relations of objects in space are perceived.
stereognostic sense the sense by which form and solidity are perceived.
Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.