[Amazing] 25 Truths About Smelling That Will Make You Appreciate Your Nose
Smelling is one of those things that many of us take for granted. Of course, if you were going to lose any of your senses, your sense of smell would probably be the most logical choice. But don’t be fooled. It is still more important than you think. The technical term for this sense is “olfaction”. It occurs when odorant molecules bind to olfactory receptors inside your nose. So yes, whatever you are smelling is actually little pieces of that substance attaching themselves to the inside of your nose. Nice to know right? Here’s a fun fact for you – not everybody can smell the same odors. While you may be able to smell some things, your friend may only be able to smell others. All of this boils down to genetics. In order to smell something, your genetic code has to allow for it. In fact, whether or not people like certain foods has been traced back to their genes. This is because if you are (un) able to smell certain odors, it actually changes the way you taste food. That’s right, your sense of smell has a big effect on your sense of taste. These are 25 truths about smelling that will make you appreciate your nose!
Featured Image: pixabay
Elephants can smell water from 12 miles away!
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
When blindfolded, people have a hard time distinguishing between the smell of parmesan cheese and vomit
Source: enologyinternational.com, Image: wikipedia
In 1987 the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company sent out scratch and sniff stickers which were meant to let people know what gas leaks smelled like. The stickers worked so well that people actually reported false leakages (because of the stickers)
Source: wikipedia
There are bacteria on dog paws that make them smell like corn chips. This phenomenon is known as "frito feet".
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
The Vasor 136 is a device that takes advantage of bees' superior sense of smell. It basically contains a bunch of bees and each bee is trained to identify a different stench
Source: phys.org, Image: wikipedia
The smell of cut grass is actually "plant anguish". When plants are attacked, they release chemical compounds that can potentially attract predators that would feed on their attackers (the attackers are usually caterpillars or something similarly small)
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Scientists have found that body odor might help us find mates. We tend to prefer people who smell different from us
Source: ndsmcobserver.com, Image: wikipedia
Farts get their smell from chemicals such as Skatole and Indole. At low concentrations these compounds actually smell flowery and are used in perfume
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
One of the "cures" that doctors suggested for the bubonic plaque was fart jars. They told people to fart into jars and then take a whiff. Medicine has come a long way.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
The chemicals that give oranges and lemons their smell are all but the same (they are only mirror images), but our noses are sensitive enough to tell them apart.
Source: catalysis-ed.org.uk, Image: wikipedia
Meat from non-castrated pigs smells really bad. This phenomenon, known as "boar taint" means that nearly 95% of male pigs end up being castrated
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Psychopaths tend to have a decreased sense of smell due to malfunctioning in the frontal part of the brain
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
The "old people smell" is caused by a chemical known as 2-nonenal. This same chemical is responsible for the cardboard taste of stale beer.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Your nostrils take turns breathing. In something called the nostril cycle, one of your nostrils will be more open for a period of time after which they will switch.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Coffee smells different than it tastes because nearly half of the more than 600 chemicals that form its flavor are almost immediately destroyed by our saliva
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Putting dry tea bags in your shoes overnight will absorb some of their bad odor
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
East Asians (Japan, Korea, China), have less sweat glands than other groups of people. This makes them less prone to body odor.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Astronauts have described the smell of space as seared steak, hot metal, and welding fumes
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Maned wolf urine smells like marijuana. In fact, police were once called to the zoo in Rotterdam because somebody thought they smelled a pot smoker. It turns out the maned wolves had simply been relieving themselves.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Bunchosia argentea is a tree that grows in South America. It smells like peanut butter.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
That distinct smell you catch a whiff of before a thunderstorm is actually ozone. This is because the thunderstorm's downdrafts pull it down out of the sky.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Fenugreek is a supplement that increases milk production. And makes your baby smell like maple syrup.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Paleontologists have found that the part of our brain controlling hearing and smell shrank around the time that humans domesticated dogs.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
Most people produce a nasty stench in their urine after eating asparagus, but only a small portion of the population has the autosomal genes required to actually smell it.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
And finally, farts smell worse in the shower because circulating air spreads them more effectively. Also, the humidity enhances your sense of smell.
Source: wikipedia, Image: wikipedia
