The loss of one sense encourages the development of the four others. This has now been demonstrated convincingly in a study by a team of doctors. During five days, volunteers taking part in the study were blindfolded and asked to carry out exercises designed to stimulate the sense of touch. When their brains were then tested using an MRI, an area of the visual cortex was shown to have been activated as if, being underused, this area was brought in to help the subjects when they had to rely on touch. About 24 hours later, after the blindfolds came off, the participants lost this aptitude. Previously, scientists had always believed that the brain was organized into distinct and highly-specialized systems. This new study, however, shows that the human brain has the ability to reorganize itself. In addition, the rapid reversibility of the process suggests that it is not based on the creation of new nervous connections but on the activation of previously inhibited zones.