Touch by Diane Ackerman, Reading Response

Touch by Diane Ackerman is an extremely interesting article that focuses on the sense of touch and the prominent effect it has on individual’s lives. Throughout the article Diane explains why touch is so unique. She say that unlike the other four senses which each have an organ they can focus on, touch is everywhere we go. In one instance, Diane dives deep and explains the benefits of touch to a newborn. Diane says that newborns who are touched and in essence, loved more, are more responsive, alert, as well as more aware of their surroundings as they grow older in comparison to those who aren't. It’s crazy to sit back and realize how significant touch is in a world where things are so reliant on visuals, etc. Speaking of visuals, Diane in the segment makes the notion that touch becomes the overpowering sense when visuals are impaired or taken away for some reason. Reasons as to why we see blind students walking around Flagler’s campus with their sticks that guide their daily travel by means of touch. In addition, whenever humans are trapped by darkness, touch is the sense that leads people out.

Within Diane’s segment, there are many examples of experiments in which the sense of touch is illuminated. One study showed that by merely touching someone’s body with our hands, it can lower their blood pressure allowing for a more stress-free moment. Another study was associated with Duke University where they tested rats and the effect of touch on a mother’s pups. Furthermore, the study showed that after the mother nurtured and groomed the infant, chemical changes were apparent in the pup and once the mother and the pup were separated, the pups hormones dropped drastically. All in all, Diane makes it clear in her article that touch is an important element of life and without it, our lives would be not as ‘hands-on’ as they are today.