Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Debunking A 19th Century Myth: Humans Actually Have A Great Sense Of Smell
Los Angeles Times: The Human Nose Has Been Underrated For 150 Years, But Science Is Setting The Record Straight
We’ve been led to believe that our sense of smell is sadly deficient compared with our mammalian cousins such as rodents and dogs. What does the world smell like to a bloodhound, we might wonder. What scents — glorious or gross — can a twitchy little mouse nose detect that are passing right by us. You can stop wondering because it turns out that our sense of smell is not so bad after all. (Netburn, 5/11)
NPR: Humans Are Pretty Great Smellers, Neuroscientist Argues
Smell, the thinking goes, is not our strongest sense. Our lowly noses are eclipsed by our ability to see the world around us, hear the sound of music and feel the touch of a caress. Even animals, we're taught, have a far more acute sense of smell than we do. But one scientist argues the idea of an inferior sense of smell stems from a 19th-century myth. (Harris, 5/11)
The Washington Post: Your Sense Of Smell Is More Powerful Than You Think
In a review published Thursday in the journal Science, John McGann, a professor of psychology at Rutgers University in New Jersey, argued that this is a flawed perception dating back to the 19th century. He blamed pioneering French anatomist Paul Broca, who wrote that, given the comparatively small olfactory organs in the primate brain, “it is no longer the sense of smell that guides the animal.” As for smelling in apes, humans included, “All that exceeded the needs of this humble function became useless.” (Guarino, 5/11)
