I live on a road which is a main route into the city. I like it, but at a couple of times a day it is a bit noisy and there's a bit of a smell of petroleum.
It went amazingly quiet during lockdown.
As combustion vehicles are gradually replaced by electric I've been listening and sniffing for a change, and I think it is here.
Not yet large, but coming on.
(The new rubbish trucks being electric made a separate and particular difference, much appreciated.)
Super interesting article on research in to the sense of smell from Quanta Magazine:
Smell is strongly linked to memory, and we may not even consciously notice the memory being created, but may be triggered later with that scent.
Very cool!
The only thing that smells worse than an oil refinery is a feedlot. Texas has a lot of both.
Molly Ivins (1944-2007) American writer, political columnist [Mary Tyler Ivins]
Essay (1972), “Texas Observed,” Place
Sourcing, notes: wist.info/ivins-molly/77291/
Today's post on ErosBlog is about a conversation I found on TikTok where a dark romance author is looking for pleasant and non-cliched ways to describe vagina scent. But that's not why I'm here. It reminded me of that weird time in 2019 in which I spent 1100 words explaining -- to nobody in particular, which is precisely who asked me -- why I don't really accept the idea of "nasty pussy".
Why does a rose #smell like a rose? Scientists have analysed the chemical composition of floral #odours, whose volatile compounds serve not only to attract but also to repel. Scent is used for #communication.
"Agreeable #fragrance results from a subtle balance between ionones, oxylipins and 2-phenylethanol, while terpenes are associated with fruity scents. Oxylipins are already well known for their anxiety-reducing effects in humans and animals."
https://news.cnrs.fr/articles/the-secret-behind-the-scent-of-roses
"On 22 January 1957 as all Frankfurt daily newspapers unanimously’ reported, passers-by staggered around in the streets and telephoned from pubs, gasping for a doctor. What had happened?"
Pt. 2 of my blog post series 'From London Fog to Frankfurt Smog' on the German Historical Institute London Blog: https://ghil.hypotheses.org/4377
Fun #smell fact: #petrichor, the distinctive odour that occurs when it rains after periods of dry weather, is caused by a chemical (geosmin) emitted by bacteria in the soil. For reasons that are unclear, humans are extraordinarily sensitive to geosmin, being able to detect concentrations as low as four parts per billion. Perhaps somewhere in our evolutionary history this ability helped our ancestors detect and seek out water, much as camels do today. #olfaction
Malodorous flowers: the plant lineages - Asarum, Eurya, and Symplocarpus - each independently evolved the ability to mimic the smell of rotten flesh through disulfide synthase activity. The ancient, underlying gene is related to bad breath in humans.
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adx4375#f1 #plantscience #flowers #smell
@sciencemagazine
“Woody,” “spicy” and “sweet.” These are not words you would expect to hear describing the smell of an Egyptian mummy. And yet, it is how researchers who indulged their curiosity in the name of science experienced it. @AssociatedPress has more:
https://www.europesays.com/1815251/ Stench invades valley, Intermountain Gas says it’s likely not natural gas #AdaCounty #Boise #gas #GasPrice #IntermountainGas #Kuna #LiquefiedNaturalGas #lng #LNGPrice #NaturalGas #smell
#GoblinWeek day 3
Noot is among the most accomplished smellists goblinkind has ever seen. Humans even come to her from time to time to procure particularly obscure scents.
my features published in #CurrentBiology this year, issue 2: Reconstructing ancient #OlfactorySensors may help solve the #structures of the modern ones
https://proseandpassion.blogspot.com/2025/01/on-origins-of-smell.html #science #smell #structuralBiology #proteins #nanoworld #alphaFold
Tim Schwanitz and Lukas Weiss have uploaded a #postLight. 
They revisit work (from Einat Couzin-Fuchs & team) exploring the neuronal basis of olfactory-mediated foraging behaviour in locusts, published in #NatureComms 
"Sniffing, searching, naming: These actions enable us to more thoughtfully engage with our environment. The more I sniffed at bark, the more confused I became. What did pine even smell like, anyway? It was only when I stepped back that the forest came into view. Iconic and piney, certainly, but also so much more." —Katy Kelleher for Nautilus Magazine
##Brain scans of people who’ve had #SARS-CoV-2 show a pattern of brain shrinkage that is distinct from normal aging. The orbitofrontal cortex and parahippocampal gyrus are the regions most likely to be affected post-#infection.
The ORBITAL FRONTAL CORTEX generates much interest because of some of the roles it is speculated to play in higher-order cognition, such as #DecisionMaking . It connects other regions of the brain to the sensory regions, #memory, and #emotion centers. Notable in #covid infections, this part of the brain processes #taste and #smell perception.
Cognitive functions usually associated with the orbitofrontal cortex include:
- Affective responses (emotional reactions)
- Decision making
- Impulse control
Damage to the orbitofrontal cortex may cause changes in social #behavior (how you interact with others and situations), decision making, and #personality.
People with damage to the orbitofrontal cortex may show -
MORE:
- Aggression
- Childish conduct
- Disinhibition
- Apathy
- Risky behavior
and LESS:
- #Motivation
- #Empathy / concern and for others
- Impulse control
Damage to the orbitalfrontal cortex may alter how the body reacts to emotions, leading to impulsivity and bad judgment. For instance, when making a bold decision, healthy patients exhibit physical symptoms of worry, such as sweaty palms. Patients with injury to the orbitofrontal cortex, however, did not.
Studies show that the orbitalfrontal cortex aids in forecasting decisions based on experience. If this part of the brain is damaged, people may make bad choices even though they are aware of the consequences.
ON THE BRIGHT SIDE, some people find that the changes in their brain make them feel happier, unnhibited, less prone to worry, and more animated.
New: #Video explains #brain scans of those who’ve had #SARS2 vs never #infected
People who had covid showed BRAIN SHRINKAGE - usually in the orbital frontal cortex & parahippocampal gyrus (#memory #smell)
#Samara #SamaraHealth #SamaraSARS
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/brain-shrinkage-linked-to-covid-19/vi-AA1wLy7H
"Smell
It’s the only sense for which we can create a new stimulus that’s never been on the face of the earth and we can perceive it."
—Linda Bartoshuk
Smellosophy What the Nose Tells the Mind by A. S. Barwich, 2020
A pioneering exploration of olfaction that upsets settled notions of how the brain translates sensory information.
Barwich interviews experts in neuroscience, psychology, chemistry, and perfumery in an effort to understand the biological mechanics and myriad meanings of odors.
