odors

A University of Otago study revealed that sensory cues from the opposite sex, such as smells, can affect aging and health in animals, showing reduced fertility and increased mortality in male mice exposed to female odors. This underscores the significant impact of sensory experiences on long-term health and aging processes.A study led by the University of Otago has discovered that sensory signals from the opposite sex can influence how animals age. Lead author Associate Professor Mike Garratt, of the Department of…

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Rolling Stone may receive an affiliate commission. Pets can be your best friends, until all the shedding and dander start to trigger your allergies. Not only do you have to worry about all the various odors that go along with pet care (litter boxes, carpet accidents, trailing dirt through the house), air quality is an issue you may not have considered. Don’t suffer for your fur baby — getting an air purifier is an easy…

These new interfaces are a notable development that could change how we experience VR. Olfaction is a powerful sense and a prerequisite for our mouths to detect flavor. The possibilities range from the obvious—sniffing a virtual flower field or inhaling VR food—to some less obvious applications. For example, perfumeries could test fragrances virtually. Medically, scent-equipped VR could be helpful for people who have anosmia, or an inability to smell, according to Yu. Scents can also be therapeutic for patients with…

While we've heard about a number of "electronic noses," the devices are rarely as sensitive as their natural counterparts. That's why Israeli scientists have taken a new approach, by incorporating a locust antenna into an odor-identifying robot.So first of all, yes, locusts do indeed detect smells via their antennae. In fact, they're so good at doing so, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis previously explored the possibility of turning the insects into explosives-sniffing cyborgs.For the new study, a team at…

Put away the Little Trees air freshener, Panasonic has a more advanced solution the next time you want to make your car smell its best. At this year’s CES, the company showed off a portable air purifier that can fit in the cupholder of nearly any car, and filter out odors and even some pathogenic viruses and bacteria. The device uses Panasonic’s Nanoe X technology, which employs hydroxyl radicals, a diatomic molecule that’s known to act as a “detergent” when it comes into contact with pollutants, to clean the air.…

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain A trio of researchers, two from Southern Medical University, in China, and the third from Technische Universität Dresden in Germany, has found a connection between people who place high importance on olfaction and body odor sniffing and a strong sexual desire. In their paper published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, Zi‑lin Li, Thomas Hummel and Lai‑quan Zou, describe…

Mosquitoes are the world's deadliest animal. Over 1 million deaths per year are attributed to mosquito-borne diseases, including malaria, yellow fever, dengue fever, Zika, and chikungunya fever.  How mosquitoes seek out and feed on their hosts are important factors in how a virus circulates in nature. Mosquitoes spread diseases by acting as carriers of viruses and other pathogens: A mosquito that bites a person infected with a virus can acquire the virus and pass it on to the next person it bites.For immunologists and…