Cell Sub-Magazine: Behind the Scenes? The brain can transcend the body's positioning touch boundaries.

The progress of human civilization is the invention of various tools. When you write hard, you can feel the joy of writing on paper. Even different brands of pens and ball point pens have different writing feelings. You are actually "touching" the paper with the tip of the pen. However, the sensory system of our hands is only at the edge of the palm skin, and there is no sensor in the tool we hold How can a detailed experience like touch be produced? The latest research shows that when we touch the object we hold, we can not only feel the change when the pressure is transferred to the fingers, but also determine the exact location of the contact on the object. Even if we do not touch directly on the body, our brain can detect the location of the touch.the tools we hold are almost like extensions of ourselves.the results of the study were published in current biology.in more than 400 tests, a number of study participants held the wooden pole, felt and determined the position of the two taps on the pole.in addition, the researchers used electroencephalogram (EEG) equipment to record the participants' brain activity.the results showed that participants recognized two touches correctly 96% of the time, and the brain used similar neural mechanisms to detect feelings on our own skin and objects we held.hypothetical neural mechanisms for perceiving the position of touch on skin and tools. The researchers believe that we may be able to determine the location of the vibration before the object stops vibrating.according to the computer model built and run by the team, this can happen in just 20 milliseconds.after the Pacinian receptors in our skin receive information, the part of the brain responsible for this function can find out where objects have been hit, and even we may have adjusted the way the tools are held to better feedback on how these tools work.the tools we use extend the somatosensory boundary of the body at the neural level, and somatosensory sensation not only stays on the skin, but also extends beyond the nervous system, including the tools we use.one of the possible applications of this research in the future is the design of prosthesis. If we understand how the body contacts certain materials to transmit information to our brain, we may be able to use this as a sensor to better benefit the disabled.end reference: [1] tool use: two mechanisms but oneexperience [2] the human brain can locate the sensation of touch ever beyond the body. Here's how