Your unique body odor could identify who you are and provide insights into your health – all from the touch of a hand

Human scent could one day be used as evidence in forensics and as diagnostic information in medicine.

Vidia A. Gokool, Postdoctoral Researcher, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory • conversation
Sept. 20, 2023 • ~8 min

Smell is the crucial sense that holds ant society together, helping the insects recognize, communicate and cooperate with one another

Researchers explore what happens when ants can’t properly use smell to detect friend from foe.

Stephen Ferguson, Postdoctoral Scholar in Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University • conversation
March 13, 2023 • ~7 min

The scent of sickness: 5 questions answered about using dogs – and mice and ferrets – to detect disease

Scientists are experimenting with using dogs to sniff out people infected with COVID-19. But dogs aren't the only animals with a nose for disease.

Glen J. Golden, Research Scientist/Scholar I, Colorado State University • conversation
Jan. 13, 2021 • ~8 min

Synthetic odors created by activating brain cells help neuroscientists understand how smell works

Brains recognize a smell based on which cells fire, in what order – the same way you recognize a song based on its pattern of notes. How much can you change the 'tune' and still know the smell?

Edmund Chong, Ph.D. Student in Neuroscience, New York University • conversation
July 8, 2020 • ~8 min

What makes something smell good or bad?

Mmmmmmm. That smells delicious. Wait, how do you know that?

Weihong Lin, Professor of Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, Baltimore County • conversation
June 1, 2020 • ~5 min

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