Whether it’s football, Pumpkin Spice Lattes, or premature Christmas excitement (58 days everyone) there is always something to look forward to at the start of fall. However, it’s not merely a coincidence that autumn draws a special type of excitement into our stomachs when it crosses our mind. Why does the smell of apple pie excite you? Why do we love it when the leaves change colors? All of these questions can be answered through simple psychology.

“I love fall,” junior Maddie Dixon ’18 said. “The things that are associated with fall make you feel warm inside; it’s a familial scent.”

The color of the leaves during fall is a staple for the season. Everyone loves walking outside to see vibrant shades of orange, red and yellow as opposed to the usual green, lighter green, and darker green that adorns the trees during the other seasons of the year. Our involuntary response to seeing the leaves changing plays a huge role into our emotions. Brains interpret dramatic changes as a type of signal: turning around when we hear a loud noise, shutting our eyes with a flash. The same principles follow with the colors of the leaves. When we see a unique stimulus, we pay attention to it, thus making them more meaningful.

According to Psychology Today, “Heavy visual contrast, saturation, and brightness are perceived as pleasantly exciting,” assistant professor of psychology at Biola University in California, Jason Brunt, said. The lively colors of the leaves for a short period of time encourages us to pay close attention and enjoy them for as long as possible.

There are many scents that we associate with fall as well; the most popular scent being cinnamon. One aspect that affects our response to certain smells is called “fragrance memory”, which means we experience the same emotions as we did when we were first introduced to the smell. Unless you were terrified of apple pie as a child, the smell of cinnamon and apples is a pleasing one. Furthermore, cinnamon itself provides a universal response to everyone, no matter the past implications that follow. The strong smell of cinnamon provides benefits to your cognitive function. A study done by Wheeling Jesuit university found that a whiff of cinnamon improved participants visual motor response, attention span and memory. (For those who are solely excited for Christmas, that same study also found that peppermint can improve mental and physical athletic performance, digestive processes and pain tolerance). Cinnamon not only excites us because of happy memories we associate with it, but also because of the effects it has on our brain.

While it may seem like your obsession with fall might borderline crazy, the excitement is normal. The various scents and colors that surround us during this short season have a lasting effect on our mind and body. This impact could revive past memories or simply draw attention to beautiful things we normally don’t notice.