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Taste Buds Research Paper

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A Sense Singled Out
Ever wonder why people prefer certain foods over others or why their cravings for certain dishes change over time? Taste buds are the organs of taste and are located within papillae of the tongue and are scattered throughout the mouth and pharynx (Steven Dowhen, 2013). The tongue's taste buds can only detect five taste groups, salty, sweet, sour, bitter and newly discovered umami. Most information about a food's "taste" is actually information about its scent and appearance integrated with taste. Some even believed that there is a relation between the color of food and its taste. No correlation between color and taste has been determined scientifically, but there is perception. In 2007, Starbursts had a mystery flavor. The …show more content…

The flavor turned out to be cherry—allegedly—a recognizable taste when associated with red just as strawberry is the assumed flavor for most drinks. The creators of this mysterious candy kenned of such a noetic correlation subsisted. For example, pink is associated with watermelon, green with lime and so forth and so on. By simply masking the color they could make deducing the flavor that much harder. If we shift from the candy world to another example, a kindred phenomenon subsists. If something is brown and not chocolate, we'd be put off, even if it tasted equipollent to its correct color. Even someone's favorite aliment, if presented in an unorthodox manner, could be dismissed as repugnant even after the individual victualed the pabulum. This alone shows the complexity of the palate, from stimulus, anatomy, sensitivity, to preference. The complication does not end there as something such as culture or pregnancy can also be connected to …show more content…

Scientist have broken down these words into four basic categories on the tongue: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. For years, it was believed that specific taste receptors were concentrated in different areas of the tongue. Sweet—pleasurable sensation—receptors were plentiful near the tip of the tongue. Sour—acidity—receptors occurred along the lateral edges of the tongue. Salt—sodium ions—receptors were abundant in the tip and upper portion of the tongue and bitter—unpleasant, sharp, or disagreeable—receptors were at the back of the tongue. However this theory was subsequently disproved, partially because of the discovery of umami. With its recognition, all tastes can be experienced all over the tongue.
Discovering Umami. In 1908 Dr. Kikunae Ikeda of Tokyo University began research into the nature of true deliciousness. This research began when kimbu (kelp) was discovered. Kombu had long been an important ingredient in Japanese cuisine. During Dr. Ikeda’s research with this ingredient, he extracted glutamate or glutamate acid. This was the active ingredient in Kombu. He in term created the term umami to describe what he had found. This fifth taste bud is also often times referred to as savory. Glutamate can also be found in some Western foods such as tomatoes and meat. (Uamami Information Center,

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