you can train your nose against a baseline of different notes. I have been doing that ever since I started growing roses and both my (formerly poor) sense of smell and my discernment of different notes have improved immeasurably with practice.
To train yourself, you need a sensitive reliable nose, a good scent memory and a good scent vocabulary, and wide experience.
Bédé, that’s the wrong way round - you don’t need those things (reliable nose, scent memory, vocab, experience.) to train yourself. You embark on training in order to develop them. If you were already in possession of those things you wouldn’t need to train!
Although some noses undoubtedly have a home advantage, training through self-directed research and field practice is perfectly doable. There are plenty of excellent free resources out there to help you and then it’s simply a case of practice, practice, practice.
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
I'm one of 4 siblings. 2 of us can't smell the other 2 can. On holiday my OH can smell food from several streets away, handy if you're not sure you're going in the right direction.
Colour reception is much simpler, based for humans on only 4 colour receptors. How we turn light wavelengths into perceived colours and which, is completely unknown.
There are many thousand aroma and taste receptors, some have chemical groups that only interact with part of the odour-giving groups of a target aroma molecule. All sweetners have a common base smell but differ distinctively: sucrose, glucose, fructose, saccharine, stevia ... I use Lactulose medically; it has a sugary taste, but I can tell when the batch changes. (That will be due to impurities.). The same with food acids, they share a sourness taste but have distinct differences.
By the way, my lemon plant has citrussy leaves, but the flower smell to me is not citrussy, more orange bossom.
Your observations on color reception and olfactory senses are certainly thought-provoking, but I would like to clarify a few points:
Humans primarily have three types of color receptors or cones that are sensitive to different wavelengths of light: S-cones (short wavelengths, 420–440 nm), M-cones (medium wavelengths, 530–540 nm), and L-cones (long wavelengths, 560–580 nm). These cones enable us to perceive a broad spectrum of colors. The idea of a fourth cone exists but is quite rare and is known as tetrachromacy. The brain's visual cortex processes the signals from these receptors, transforming them into the colors we perceive. This process is well-studied and understood to a significant extent, contrary to the statement that it's "completely unknown."
You are correct that the human olfactory system is incredibly complex, with around 400 different types of receptors that can detect many thousands of odors. These receptors are G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that are activated by specific molecular features in odorant molecules. The olfactory bulb in the brain processes these signals, leading to the perception of different smells.
Taste perception, especially with sweeteners, is indeed a complex subject. Sweet taste receptors, such as T1R2 and T1R3, can detect various sweeteners, including sugars and artificial sweeteners. The slight differences you perceive might be due to the binding of different ligands to these receptors, creating subtle variations in taste.
Acids are primarily tasted by their action on ion channels, specifically the hydrogen ion (proton) channel, which leads to a sour taste. Different acids may act differently on these channels, and other receptors, leading to variations in the sour taste.
The scent of plants, including citrus, can be quite complex and often depends on a mixture of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The perception of these scents can vary among individuals due to genetic differences in olfactory receptors.
Your inquiry into these subjects highlights the fascinating complexity of our sensory systems. While we continue to unravel these complexities, there is a wealth of scientific research that has already shed light on many of the mechanisms underlying these perceptions.
We were out at some gardens yesterday, and as we passed one tree, the scent was overwhelming. It almost floored me. Flowers, I expect. Even shrubs too. But this enormous tree was something else. But yes, how does one describe a scent or aroma? My wife also commented on how strong the scent was, but neither of us could describe it - then or now. Nor could we be sure we were experiencing the same scent! But it definitely WAS the same tree. Thinking about it now, I should have taken a photo to post up here - not that I could have posted up the scent, but someone might have been able to tell me what the tree was. It wasn't some tree of 10, 20 or even 50 feet high. It was taller. Deciduous, red-green leaves (okay, I'm red-green colour blind, so that may not be of great help). Darn, how could I be so foolish as NOT to take a photo?!!😵💫
, that’s the wrong way round - you don’t need those things (reliable nose, scent memory, vocab, experience.) to train yourself. You embark on training in order to develop them. If you were already in possession of those things you wouldn’t need to train!
Some people
location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand. "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
I have just been forced to fell a Catalpa for safety reasons. Bang in the middle of peak flowering. The flowers used to hang down at nose level and smelt very similar to sweet peas. Nor surprising as they are pea-family.
It will be greatly missed.
location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand. "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
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MOST unpleasant. They don't fruit in my garden every year, but the neighbours help out.
This one is current; a bit early.
"Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
Although some noses undoubtedly have a home advantage, training through self-directed research and field practice is perfectly doable. There are plenty of excellent free resources out there to help you and then it’s simply a case of practice, practice, practice.
Your observations on color reception and olfactory senses are certainly thought-provoking, but I would like to clarify a few points:
Humans primarily have three types of color receptors or cones that are sensitive to different wavelengths of light: S-cones (short wavelengths, 420–440 nm), M-cones (medium wavelengths, 530–540 nm), and L-cones (long wavelengths, 560–580 nm). These cones enable us to perceive a broad spectrum of colors. The idea of a fourth cone exists but is quite rare and is known as tetrachromacy. The brain's visual cortex processes the signals from these receptors, transforming them into the colors we perceive. This process is well-studied and understood to a significant extent, contrary to the statement that it's "completely unknown."
You are correct that the human olfactory system is incredibly complex, with around 400 different types of receptors that can detect many thousands of odors. These receptors are G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) that are activated by specific molecular features in odorant molecules. The olfactory bulb in the brain processes these signals, leading to the perception of different smells.
Taste perception, especially with sweeteners, is indeed a complex subject. Sweet taste receptors, such as T1R2 and T1R3, can detect various sweeteners, including sugars and artificial sweeteners. The slight differences you perceive might be due to the binding of different ligands to these receptors, creating subtle variations in taste.
Acids are primarily tasted by their action on ion channels, specifically the hydrogen ion (proton) channel, which leads to a sour taste. Different acids may act differently on these channels, and other receptors, leading to variations in the sour taste.
The scent of plants, including citrus, can be quite complex and often depends on a mixture of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The perception of these scents can vary among individuals due to genetic differences in olfactory receptors.
Your inquiry into these subjects highlights the fascinating complexity of our sensory systems. While we continue to unravel these complexities, there is a wealth of scientific research that has already shed light on many of the mechanisms underlying these perceptions.
But yes, how does one describe a scent or aroma?
My wife also commented on how strong the scent was, but neither of us could describe it - then or now. Nor could we be sure we were experiencing the same scent!
But it definitely WAS the same tree. Thinking about it now, I should have taken a photo to post up here - not that I could have posted up the scent, but someone might have been able to tell me what the tree was.
It wasn't some tree of 10, 20 or even 50 feet high. It was taller. Deciduous, red-green leaves (okay, I'm red-green colour blind, so that may not be of great help). Darn, how could I be so foolish as NOT to take a photo?!!😵💫
"Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
It will be greatly missed.
"Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
@Liriodendron