Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Somatosensation

Somatosensation

The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.

Tactile and Chemical Senses

Tactile and Chemical Senses

Tactile senses encompass touch, temperature, and pain, each mediated by specific receptors. Touch receptors detect mechanical energy or pressure against the skin. Sensory fibers from these receptors enter the spinal cord and relay information to the brain stem. Here, most fibers cross over to the opposite side of the brain. The touch information then moves to the thalamus, which projects a map of the body's surface onto the somatosensory areas of the parietal lobes in the cerebral cortex. This...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Food Industry By-Products as Natural Preservatives: Supporting Adolescent Food Literacy and Critical Food Choices.

Nutrients·2026

Same author

Mediterranean Diet and Nutrition Literacy: Translating Evidence into Food Choices, Health, and Sustainability.

Nutrients·2026

Same author

Long-term surveillance reveals hybridization by nuclear reassortment and intercontinental spread as major evolutionary drivers in wheat yellow rust.

The New phytologist·2026

Same author

Affordances are for life (and not just for maximizing reproductive fitness).

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026

Same author

Improving genomic prediction in wheat with random regression models with genotype-specific phenology-driven environmental covariates.

The plant genome·2026

Same author

Golimumab for the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Narrative Review of Pivotal Randomized Trials and Real-World Studies.

Rheumatology and therapy·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 15, 2026

Design, Fabrication, and Administration of the Hand Active Sensation Test (HASTe)

Design, Fabrication, and Administration of the Hand Active Sensation Test (HASTe)

Published on: September 8, 2015

Haptic selective attention by foot and by hand.

Alen Hajnal¹, Sergio Fonseca, Jeffrey M Kinsella-Shaw

¹Center for the Ecological Study of Perception and Action, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269-1020, USA. alen.hajnal@uconn.edu

Neuroscience Letters

|April 17, 2007

Summary

The human foot can perceive an object's length as accurately as the hand. This study shows that both upper and lower limbs possess similar selective muscle-based perception capabilities.

More Related Videos

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator (TSPAS)

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator (TSPAS)

Published on: July 30, 2020

Measurement of Vibration Detection Threshold and Tactile Spatial Acuity in Human Subjects

Measurement of Vibration Detection Threshold and Tactile Spatial Acuity in Human Subjects

Published on: September 1, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 15, 2026

Design, Fabrication, and Administration of the Hand Active Sensation Test (HASTe)

Design, Fabrication, and Administration of the Hand Active Sensation Test (HASTe)

Published on: September 8, 2015

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator (TSPAS)

Tactile Semiautomatic Passive-Finger Angle Stimulator (TSPAS)

Published on: July 30, 2020

Measurement of Vibration Detection Threshold and Tactile Spatial Acuity in Human Subjects

Measurement of Vibration Detection Threshold and Tactile Spatial Acuity in Human Subjects

Published on: September 1, 2016

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Human Perception
Biomechanics

Background:

Nonvisual spatial perception relies on invariant mass distribution properties.
Haptic perception during wielding involves muscle, tendon, and ligament mechanoreceptors (dynamic touch).
Previous research demonstrated selective haptic perception of object properties using the hand.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate if the foot can achieve similar selective haptic perception as the hand.
To compare the accuracy and reliability of length perception between hand and foot wielding.
To explore the generalizability of selective muscle-based perception principles across different limbs.

Main Methods:

Participants wielded a rod using either their foot or hand.
The rod was attached at an intermediate point, and participants reported its full or fractional length.
Magnitude production was used to quantify perceived length for both whole and partial extents.
Perception accuracy and reliability were measured for hand and foot conditions.

Main Results:

The foot demonstrated a comparable ability to differentiate between full and partial object lengths as the hand.
Measures of mean perceived length, accuracy, and reliability were similar for both foot and hand perception.
Selective perception of spatial properties was achieved with equal facility by both lower and upper limbs.

Conclusions:

The human foot exhibits selective muscle-based haptic perception comparable to the hand.
Principles of selective perception are consistent across the upper and lower limbs, despite anatomical and experiential differences.
This suggests a unified mechanism for dynamic touch across different body parts.