News From the Field Odorant Shape and Vibration Likely Lead to Olfaction Satisfaction
September 19, 2012
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A new study lends support to a controversial theory of olfaction: Our noses can distinguish both the shape and the vibrational characteristics of odorant molecules. The study, published in the journal Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, demonstrates the feasibility of the theory--first proposed decades ago--that the vibration of an odorant molecule's chemical bonds contributes to our ability to distinguish one smelly thing from another.
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Source University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
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