Device Allows Colorblind Artist to “Hear” Colors

Posted by clnews Science, Technology Sunday, July 29th, 2012

(CBS News) A man who has never been able to see color before is now able to perceive it thanks to a device that lets him listen to colors.

Artist Neil Harbisson suffers from a visual condition called achromatopsia or total color blindness. Harbisson can only see things in shades of grey. So, he partnered with some computer scientists at the in 2003, who created an “electronic eye” for him.

Neil Harbisson

The device – which Harbisson wears on his head – detects the color frequency of the item that is passed in front of it, turns it into a sound frequency and passes the information to a chip installed at the back of Harbisson’s head. He then is able to hear the color through bone conduction, or sound waves that are created as they pass through the bones of the skull to the inner ear.

“I’ve been hearing color for eight years since 2004 so I find it completely normal to hear color all the time,” he explained during his TED Talk (click here for video) in June. “At the start, I had to memorize the names you give for each color, so I had to memorize the notes, but after some time this information became a perception. I didn’t have to think about the notes, and after some time this perception became a feeling.”

Now, the artist can go to an art gallery – which he compared to listening to a concert – and hear the paintings. He also enjoys walking in supermarkets, which he likened to going to a nightclub.

“It’s just full of different melodies,” he said excitedly.