All vertebrates possess five senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch through which they can experience and make sense of world. Without our senses, we wouldn't have any idea what was going on around us and the human body would be functionally useless. Each of the senses therefore provides important functions and serves an intended purpose. The sense of smell is a chemical sense. It is called chemical sense as it detects the chemicals in the environment and it works on larger distances. The sense of smell is a primal sense for humans as well as animals. From an evolutionary standpoint, it is one of the most ancient of senses. Smell (or Olfaction) allows vertebrates and other organisms with olfactory receptors to identify food, mates, predators, and provides both sensual pleasure (the odor of flowers and perfume) as well as warnings of danger (e.g., spoiled food, chemical dangers). For both humans and animals, it is one of the important means by which our environment communicates with us (John & Leffingwell, 1994)
Smells are the perception of chemicals in the air or in our food. The
…show more content…
An odorant acts on more than one receptor, but does so to varying degrees. Similarly, a single receptor interacts with more than one different odorant, though also to varying degrees. Therefore, each odorant has its own pattern of activity, which is set up in the sensory neurons. This pattern of activity is then sent to the olfactory bulb, where other neurons are activated to form a spatial map of the odor. Neural activity created by this stimulation passes to the primary olfactory cortex at the back of the underside, or orbital, part of the frontal lobe. Olfactory information then passes to adjacent parts of the orbital cortex, where the combination of odor and taste information helps create the perception of flavor. (Brain facts
Smells connection to emotion was also discussed, it turned out to be molecules with receptor signals capable of triggering memory through the olfactory part of our brain and the hippocampus, the site of memory
The term sensation is used when referencing the process of sensing the environment through taste, touch, sound, smell, and sight (Goldstein, 2014). Moreover, it is the process that occurs once the sensory receptor experiences stimulation, which in turn produces nerve impulses that are sent to the brain to be processed in its raw form, then perception comes into play (Goldstein, 2014). Perception is used to describe the way people interpret these sensations and tries to make sense of everything around them on a daily basis. Perception is the occurrences of the brain
There are five common senses that are discussed and learned from an early age: sight, hearing, taste, touch, and smell. The I-function, the conscious part of the brain, is very aware of these senses. It voluntarily checks information obtained by these senses in order to experience the environment, and also when a strong enough stimuli has signaled attention to these specific receptors. There are other equally important sensory systems set up that are essential for normal body functioning, but these are not so easily recognized by the I-function because the nervous system keeps the input unconscious.
How Outside Stimuli are affected by the Five SensesAP1 ProjectShelby HardenSo, many things use the 5 senses. Each sense controls something different. Without having one of the five senses, can turn your whole life around. Treasure them all. Each function provokes every step you take in life. Outside stimuli can be received by the five senses which are sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste. Sight is very important to everyday life. Light waves off an object is what lets us see. The brain connects the light wave to memories or what it might be associated with, which then allows us to precept what the object is. This process happens so fast, you never see it coming. The stimuli you get from seeing is the colors the make an object and projects feelings. Sound is precious.
Smell, on the other hand, is the sense that comes from odor molecules attaching to the olfactory nerve. Air carries the odor into the nose. Then odor contacts the olfactory nerves at the top of the nasal passages. The the olfactory nerves send a signal to the olfactory bulb of the brain, and the nerve sends a signal to the front of the brain. The forebrain translates the signals of the odor into a specific smell (Swindle, Mark).
Perception is how an organism detects and interprets the external world. There are five senses - smell, taste sound, touch and sight. Of the five senses, sight is highly complex and requires the largest proportion of total brain power. The brain dedicates much of the cerebral cortex, directly and indirectly, to support visual processing with senses like proprioception and memory (Al-chalabi, Turner, & Delamont, 2006).
In 1-3 sentences what is the most important point of this week’s readings, and why do you feel that was the most important point.
The smell receptors interact with the molecules of these vapors and transmit sensations to the brain. We need only a little amount of molecules of substance to trigger an impulse of smell in a nerve end, and we can smell more than ten thousand different scents. If it is a new scent it is possible to remember the scent and identify it again later. The scent captures one’s memory of the place; the nose makes the eyes remember. For the blind people, the sense of smell can help awareness of one’s location. Odour can also relate to hunger and the desire to consume. Since it is not possible to name all the odours, spatial qualities or experiences are often associated with scents. Positive experiences of smell can be used in design to induce positive memories or associations to a space, while negative smells can do the opposite. Bringing certain smells into a designed space can immediately stimulate emotions, guide us, or distract us. Designer Valerie Trent cites research that connects smell and memory; “People can often recall aromas from childhood or a distinctive odor they’ve only smelled once. Whatever your particular nose prefers, smells do enhance comfort and
First, the axons carry the stimuli to the olfactory bulb where the axons and dendrites synapse at the mitral cells. The stimulus then travels from the bulb to the primary olfactory cortex which is responsible for identifying the scent. Neurons within the olfactory cortex relay information to parts of the limbic system. When the smell is processed it triggers several reactions such as emotional responses or even memories. Then process of olfaction is not as simple as smelling an odor and receiving a response; the odor must travel through pathways and stimulate receptors in order for the brain to interpret it (Amerman,
Sensory processing develops naturally and is done without effort (What is, n.d., para 2). The brain’s “ability to process and organize sensations begins to emerge in the womb and continues into adolescence” (Bolles, 2001). “The human body takes in sensory input from several different sensory systems, organizes it in the brain for functional use, and then sends out signals to the rest of the body to activate” adaptive response (An Introduction, 2014). There are eight sensory systems found in the human body (SPD, n.d, para 1). Five of the eight sensory systems are known as the
It’s the smell of your grandma’s house, the scent of wax crayons and Elmer’s® glue, the aroma of your favorite home-cooked holiday cookies that your mom baked only once a year when you were a kid. Smells and odors have a natural tendency to transport you back to the rose-colored years of your childhood. Before you know it, you’re suddenly caught up in thoughts of who you were and how you’ve changed or perhaps reflecting on which decisions brought you to where you are in that particular moment in life. It’s in that moment, those short-lived moments, that one deeply appreciates the ability to smell and maybe wonders how such an arbitrary smell can have such a strong emotional response. Most of the scents that have strong emotional connections, nowadays, originate from inside of buildings and houses, just as most of the population lives indoors and spend most of their time in their homes or office buildings or schools.
This whole process is what then initiates a neural response. Our odorants act on more than just one receptor but does on different levels. Also, a single receptor will interact with more than just one different odorant on again many different levels. This means that each odorant has its own pattern on which it acts, this all being set up in the sensory neurons. From here the patterns of activity are then sent to the olfactory bulb. This is where the other neurons are then activated, done so to form a unique spatial map of the odor. The neural activity we experience is then created by this stimulation and passed on to the primary olfactory cortex that’s located at the back of the underside or “orbital” part of the frontal lobe. Finally, the olfactory information is then passed on to adjacent parts of the orbital cortex where the combination of odor and taste information help to create the perception of flavor!
Smell can also play a crucial part in the development of babies. Very soon after a baby is born, the baby can identify its mother by its mother's scent. Something that I stunned me about my sense of smell is that, one of many scents can trigger a ton of memories. This stuns me because although this happens all the time, I've never actually thought about it. It was also interesting to be informed that one average odor can have more than one molecule. The sense of smell interacts with the brain similarly to the way that vision does.
This can be effectively utilized to escape from the oncoming danger. Along with means of survival, the senses create the world around us in their own unique way. Each person may see, hear, or touch the world in a different way. Taste buds differ between each person. The