Final answer:
Proprioception is the sense that provides the awareness of the position and movement of body parts. It is a vital aspect of somatosensation, which includes a variety of general senses and involves a topographical brain map for sensory input processing.
Step-by-step explanation:
The sense of knowing where the parts of your body are located in space is called proprioception. Proprioception is a general sensory perception which provides information about the location and movement of body parts, essentially contributing to the "sense of the self". This sense is a critical component of somatosensation, which refers to a group of sensory modalities associated with touch, including pressure, vibration, pain, temperature, as well as proprioception itself, and kinesthesia, which is the sense of limb movement.
Our brain maintains a topographical map, not proportionate to the actual space of the body, with sensitive parts like the face and fingers occupying more area on the cortex than less sensitive parts. This complex sensory system allows for the process known as sensory transduction, where sensory input is converted into electrical signals in the nervous system. Proprioception, along with vestibular sensation, plays a crucial role in balancing and orienting ourselves in 3-D space and tracking the position and movement of various body parts.