If your left index finger suddenly grew about an inch longer, you’d have good reason to freak out. Your brain, however, within seconds would calmly adapt to this bizarre circumstance by altering its map of the body’s surface, a new study suggests. The elongated finger’s sense of touch would change, according to an experiment led by neuroscientist Patrick Haggard of University College London.
The researchers’ conclusion rests on observations of people who underwent arm manipulations that create illusions of finger growth or shrinkage.
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