In the book The Heartbeat of Faith: Fifty-Nine Poems, Fingerplays, and Prayers that I wrote for little children is this poem:

My Nose

With my nose I smell things like these:

Bacon, popcorn, and Christmas trees,

Babies, roses, and apple pie.

And this is probably the reason why

My nose has such an important place —

Right in the middle of my face.

The Sense of Smell

The sense of smell, one of our five senses, is an ingenious invention that you might thank God for. Together with our sense of taste, it creates flavor and helps us enjoy food like bacon and wine. It protects us from danger as when a whiff tells us that milk has gone sour, our supper is burning, or there is a skunk in the neighborhood. Smells whet our appetite and affect our mood. Lavender sprayed on our pillow might help us to sleep.

Some smells are pleasant like lilac air freshener, the fragrances of flowers, and the mingled scents in a wine’s bouquet. We use perfume, cologne, and deodorants to smell better. Still other smells are repulsive like stinky feet, dirty clothes, or garbage.

Smell even plays a role in mating among animals and humans as well. You’ve probably heard of pheromones.

Aromas can evoke memories. The smell of today’s freshly baked bread reminds me of the delicious loaves my mother made.

In the past it was thought that our nose could identify 10,000 different smells. However, recent research shows that our noses can detect one trillion difference odors. Yes, one trillion! (To compare, our eyes distinguish only about ten million colors and our ears detect just ½ million tones.)

One of the Best Aromas

How This Sense Works

The mechanisms involved in smelling are complicated, and different theories are advanced to explain the process. Essentially, odor is carried by molecules of chemicals floating in the air. When these enter our noses, neuron receptors with hair-like projections detect them. We have 450 types of receptors, while dogs have twice as many. These receptors send electrical impulses to the brain, which interprets them as specific smells in an amazing tenth of a second. Different people have different sense of smells, depending on their genes.

More complete explanations of the biology of smelling can be found on the Internet.

When the Sense of Smell Disappears

Glasses or contact lenses improve our sense of sight, and hearing aids improve our sense of hearing. What about the sense of smell? During a cold not being able to smell is annoying and affects our taste too, but eventually it comes back. Some people lose their sense of smell more drastically, for instance, from COVID. Retraining therapy may work. This consists of smelling about eight of strong smells like peppermint and peanut butter every day, each for about two minutes, and recalling times you have experienced that odor. Memory will jog your brain to start identifying the smells.

Memory and Smells

Here is a little experiment:  Imagine how each thing listed smells. Although you are not actually sensing it, your brain will recall it, sort of virtually.

The smell after rain

A rose

Your favorite wine

A pine tree

A cedar chest

An orange

An onion

Freshly baked bread

A skunk (sorry!)

Your favorite perfume

Sense of Smell in Other Creatures

Here is some information you probably don’t need to know: snakes smell partially with their tongues, which they constantly project. Fish smell by taking in water through their nares, roseate-shaped circles on the sides of their head. Insects smell with their antennae. Birds have a poor sense of smell, while whales and dolphins apparently have none. Elephants smell with nostrils at the end of their trunks and can detect water twelve miles away!

Types of Noses

Noses come in different shapes and sizes. People who aren’t satisfied with theirs can modify them through surgery. Shapes of noses have been associated with certain kinds of personalities.

Noses in Idioms

Since words fascinate me, I wondered how many expressions are related to noses. As a child, often I heard my mother describing me as having my “nose in a book.” Here are few of the dozens of ways we use “nose.”

• Cut off your nose to spite your face
• Have your nose in the air
• Keep your nose clean.
• On the nose
• Powder one’s nose
• Right under one’s nose
• Rub someone’s nose in something
• Put your nose to the grindstone
• Stick your nose in
• Get your nose out of joint
• Have your nose in a book
• Thumb one’s nose at
• Won by a nose
• Count noses
• Look down your nose at
• Can’t look past the end of your nose
• Plain as the nose on our face
• Turn your nose up

An Unrelated Bonus

While getting rid of excess documents and videos on my computer, I came across this video that has nothing to do with noses, but is fascinating. Enjoy …

• What are some of your favorite fragrances?