tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post6912755575046964730..comments2024-02-20T16:10:31.948-07:00Comments on First Nerve: How to Become a Better Smeller: Train Your BrainAvery Gilberthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18104017679971839738noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-4796768313494452592011-06-01T10:36:52.907-07:002011-06-01T10:36:52.907-07:00Testing professionals on specialty aromachemicals ...Testing professionals on specialty aromachemicals seems like doing it the hard way. Why not test on baby powder, chocolate, cinnamon, coffee, mothballs, peanut butter and/or soap? (BTW, there are the fragrances that Richard Restak recommends for testing odor identification ability in Think Smart. He carefully does not say that improving your ssense of smell might prevent or postpone Alzheimer's.) Professionals and non-professionals will be familiar with them. Surely the professionals can recall them at least as well beta-ionone.<br /><br />The most interesting result would be if the same area of the brain is not active in imagining a smell as in direlty experiencing it. That might help identify differences in smell, sight, sound, ...EdCnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-79734043327089937832011-06-01T05:24:12.495-07:002011-06-01T05:24:12.495-07:00EdC:
An fMRI study of high-imagers and low- or no...EdC:<br /><br />An fMRI study of high-imagers and low- or non-imagers showing brain activity in the expected areas of the former but not the latter would be another brick in the wall. In other words, it would confirm that olfactory imagery activates the same brain areas as actual odor perception. But it would not take us further.<br /><br />Why hasn't it been done? Because magnet time is expensive and because you would have to find some clean way to select non-odor-imagers who were equally familiar with the test odors. The nice part about this study was that perfumery training equated for that.Avery Gilberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18104017679971839738noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8125354955146250762.post-71202906005465426392011-05-31T06:11:39.806-07:002011-05-31T06:11:39.806-07:00Is there an fMRI study comparing the experts to th...Is there an fMRI study comparing the experts to those who cannot reexperience a smell by remembering it or imagining it? I would expect a part of the brain to be active when either group smells something but only active when the experts are asked to remember one of the smells. Surely this is the easier study and must have been done first (?)EdCnoreply@blogger.com