The fifth sense

Outside/In

Once again, it’s that wonderful time when scientists everywhere hold their breath as the team opens the Outside/Inbox to answer listener questions about the natural world. Today’s theme is smell: how it works in the nose, the mind, and how much is still unknown about the fifth sense.

Question 1: Does it gross you out to know that every time you smell something, a little bit of that thing… is in your nose? What happens to the molecules we smell?

Question 2: Why do smells have such a powerful connection to memory?

Question 3: How do pheromones work in humans? Do ‘ideal mates’ really ‘smell better’ to us?

Question 4: Why does the smell of florals sometimes precede a migraine?

Question 5: What’s anosmia?

Featuring Rachel Herz, Bob Datta, Katie Boetang, and Tristram Wyatt, with thanks to Stephanie Hunter.

Outside/In seeks your questions for an upcoming Outside/Inbox.

What questions should the Outside/In team explore about the U.S. presidential election? What do you want to know about what this election means for climate change or environmental regulation? Maybe you’ve got questions about Project 2025, or maybe you’re curious about presidential transitions more generally.

You can send your questions to [e-mail] or leave a voicemail on our hotline, 1-844-GO-OTTER.

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LINKS

Rachel Herz is the author of several books, including “Why You Eat What You Eat” and “The Scent of Desire.”

Tristram Wyatt is the author of “Pheromones and Animal Behavior.”

Katie Boetang hosts The Smell Podcast.

More on the connections between smell, memory, emotion, and health, featuring Bob Datta and Herz.

In the 1990s, one company claimed to have found human sex pheromones and tried to market them for use in perfumes.

Research on the connection between olfactory loss and depression, smell triggers for migraines, and an explanation of how COVID-19 causes loss of smell.

CREDITS

Outside/In host: Nate Hegyi

Reported, produced, and mixed by Justine Paradis, Catherine Hurley, and Felix Poon, with help from Marina Henke.

Edited by Taylor Quimby

NHPR’s Director of Podcasts is Rebecca Lavoie

Music by Daniel Fridell, Caro Luna, Lofive, bomull, Jahzarr, Mindme, and John B. Lund.

Outside/In is a production of New Hampshire Public Radio.