14:00 - 15:50
Wed-Hall 1-6A
Hall 1
Podium Session
Neuroscience-Inspired Multisensory Design in the Cosmetics Sector
Keynote Lecture
Presented by: Charles Spence
Charles Spence
Crossmodal Research Laboratory Oxford University, Oxford
In this talk, I will demonstrate how what we smell can influence all manner of perceptual experiences. I will show how techniques adapted from the field of human psychophysics are increasingly being used by those working with fragrance to support functional claims around olfactory stimulation: Everything from the use of fragrance to make your clothes feel softer through making people look more attractive, and their skin younger-looking/feeling. I also want to look in the reverse direction and show how what we feel, see, and even what we hear can modulate what we think we smell. I will discuss some of the latest research from the Crossmodal Research Laboratory around the synaesthetic matching of olfactory stimuli to shapes, sounds, and palettes of colour in normal consumers (while highlighting relevant cross-cultural differences). I will show how the neuroscience-inspired approach can help make sense of the plethora of such crossmodal interactions, and provide some intriguing examples to illustrate how such results have been used in the field of neuroscience-inspired multisensory design in the cosmetics sector. Finally, I will highlight the role that cosmetics products can play in helping to hack the senses in order to enhance our sense of well-being.