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The olfactory system, or sense of smell, is the sensory system used for olfaction (i.e., smelling). Olfaction is one of the special senses directly associated with specific organs. Most mammals and reptiles have a main olfactory system and an accessory olfactory system .
Sensory organs are organs that sense and transduce stimuli. Humans have various sensory organs (i.e. eyes, ears, skin, nose, and mouth) that correspond to a respective visual system (sense of vision), auditory system (sense of hearing), somatosensory system (sense of touch), olfactory system (sense of smell), and gustatory system (sense of taste).
The human tongue can distinguish only among five distinct qualities of taste, while the nose can distinguish among hundreds of substances, even in minute quantities. It is during exhalation that the smell's contribution to flavor occurs, in contrast to that of proper smell, which occurs during the inhalation phase of breathing. [ 19 ]
The sense of smell is called olfaction. All materials constantly shed molecules, which float into the nose or are sucked in through breathing. Inside the nasal chambers is the neuroepithelium, a lining deep within the nostrils that contains the receptors responsible for detecting molecules that are small enough to smell. These receptor neurons ...
The odor detection threshold is the lowest concentration of a certain odor compound that is perceivable by the human sense of smell. The threshold of a chemical compound is determined in part by its shape, polarity, partial charges, and molecular mass. The olfactory mechanisms responsible for a compound's different detection threshold is not ...
Olfactic communication is a channel of nonverbal communication referring to the various ways people and animals communicate and engage in social interaction through their sense of smell. Our human olfactory sense is one of the most phylogenetically primitive [1] and emotionally intimate [2] of the five senses; the sensation of smell is thought ...
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Different populations speaking the same language and sharing cultural traditions may still display varied perceptions of an odour, based on its prevalence and most common source in each location. For example, one study showed that French speakers in Quebec find the scent of wintergreen more pleasant and edible than speakers in France. [8]