What the Nose Knows
The Science of Scent in Everyday Life
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Narrated by:
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Jeff Woodman
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By:
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Avery Gilbert
About this listen
For example, contrary to popular belief, the human nose is almost as sensitive as the noses of many animals, including dogs; blind people do not have enhanced powers of smell; and perfumers excel at their jobs not because they have superior noses, but because they have perfected the art of thinking about scents.
In this entertaining and enlightening journey through the world of aroma, olfaction expert Avery Gilbert illuminates the latest scientific discoveries and offers keen observations on modern culture: how a museum is preserving the smells of John Steinbeck's Cannery Row; why John Waters revived the "smellie" in Polyester; and what innovations are coming from artists like the Dutch "aroma jockey" known as Odo7.
From brain-imaging laboratories to the high-stakes world of scent marketing, What the Nose Knows takes us on a tour of the strange and surprising realm of smell.
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Wonderland
- How Play Made the Modern World
- By: Steven Johnson
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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From the New York Times best-selling author of How We Got to Now and Extra Life, a look at the world-changing innovations we made while keeping ourselves entertained. This history of popular entertainment takes a long-zoom approach, contending that the pursuit of novelty and wonder is a powerful driver of world-shaping technological change. Steven Johnson argues that, throughout history, the cutting edge of innovation lies wherever people are working the hardest to keep themselves and others amused.
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It will delight you
- By T. Leach on 02-09-17
By: Steven Johnson
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Whiskey Distilled
- A Populist Guide to the Water of Life
- By: Heather Greene
- Narrated by: Tavia Gilbert
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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In this lively and authoritative guide, Greene teaches listeners about whiskey and encourages them to make their own evaluations. Peppered with wry anecdotes drawn from her unusual life - and including recipes for delicious cocktails by some of today's most celebrated mixologists - Whiskey Distilled will be enthusiastically greeted by the whiskey curious as well as by journeymen whiskey drinkers thirsty to learn more about their beloved tipple.
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Buy the hard copy, skip the audio!
- By P Boz on 08-20-15
By: Heather Greene
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Farmacology
- Total Health from the Ground Up
- By: Daphne Miller MD
- Narrated by: Sarah Mollo-Christensen
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Can urban farms reduce neighborhood crime? These may not sound like typical questions for a family physician to consider, but in Farmacology, Daphne Miller, MD, ventures out of her medical office and travels to seven innovative family farms around the country on a quest to discover the hidden connections between how we care for our bodies and how we grow our food. Miller also seeks out the perspectives of noted biomedical scientists and artfully weaves in their research, along with stories from her own practice. Farmacology offers a profound new approach to healing.
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Crystals and all - great book
- By Topherwayne on 02-22-20
By: Daphne Miller MD
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Fascinate
- Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation
- By: Sally Hogshead
- Narrated by: Sally Hogshead
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Why are you captivated by some people but not by others? Why do you recall some brands yet forget the rest? In a distracted, overcrowded world, how do certain leaders, friends, and family members convince you to change your behavior? Answer: fascination, the most powerful way to influence decision-making. It's more persuasive than marketing, advertising, or any other form of communication. And it all starts with seven universal triggers: lust, mystique, alarm, prestige, power, vice, and trust.
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Hog your Head with Fascinate!
- By Lanie Evans on 01-19-11
By: Sally Hogshead
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The Triumph of Seeds
- How Grains, Nuts, Kernels, Pulses & Pips Conquered the Plant Kingdom and Shaped Human History
- By: Thor Hanson
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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We live in a world of seeds. From our morning toast to the cotton in our clothes, they are quite literally the stuff and staff of life, supporting diets, economies, and civilizations around the globe. Just as the search for nutmeg and the humble peppercorn drove the Age of Discovery, so did coffee beans help fuel the Enlightenment and cottonseed help spark the Industrial Revolution. And from the fall of Rome to the Arab Spring, the fate of nations continues to hinge on the seeds of a Middle Eastern grass known as wheat.
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Delightfully simplistic!
- By Adrian on 03-30-16
By: Thor Hanson
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The Fruit Hunters
- A Story of Nature, Adventure, Commerce, and Obsession
- By: Adam Leith Gollner
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Tasty, lethal, hallucinogenic, and medicinal - fruits have led nations into wars, fueled dictatorships, and even lured us into new worlds. Adam Leith Gollner weaves business, science, and travel into a riveting narrative about one of the earth's most desired foods.
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Interesting world...
- By Henry Scalfo on 07-16-08
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Intelligence in Nature
- An Inquiry into Knowledge
- By: Jeremy Narby
- Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
- Length: 4 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Anthropologist Jeremy Narby has altered how we understand the Shamanic cultures and traditions that have undergone a worldwide revival in recent years. Now, in one of his most extraordinary journeys, Narby travels the globe - from the Amazon Basin to the Far East - to probe what traditional healers and pioneering researchers understand about the intelligence present in all forms of life. Intelligence in Nature presents overwhelming illustrative evidence that independent intelligence is not unique to humanity alone.
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Favorite part was untrue :(
- By Al A'scgh on 08-13-18
By: Jeremy Narby
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Short Course in Beer
- An Introduction to Tasting and Talking About the World's Most Civilized Beverage
- By: Lynn Hoffman
- Narrated by: Adam Verner
- Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Straightforward and opinionated, Short Course in Beer is designed to turn the novice beer lover into an expert imbiber and the casual drinker into an enthusiast. Readers will come to understand the beauty of beer and the sources of its flavor, as well as learn which beers are worth our time and which are not. With tongue in cheek, the author examines beer's historical connections to the Crusades, the Hundred Years' War, and modern-day soccer riots. He talks frankly (and joyfully) about the effects of alcohol on the body and brain, he defends beer from its enemies, and ushers it out of the frat house and into the dining room.
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An Ok Beer Book
- By AppleCedAR on 10-21-13
By: Lynn Hoffman
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That's the Way the Cookie Crumbles
- 65 All New Commentaries on the Fascinating Chemistry of Everyday Life
- By: Dr. Joe Schwarcz
- Narrated by: Walter Dixon
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Interesting anecdotes and engaging tales make science fun, meaningful, and accessible. Separating sense from nonsense and fact from myth, these essays cover everything from the ups of helium to the downs of drain cleaners and provide answers to numerous mysteries, such as why bug juice is used to color ice cream and how spies used secret inks. Mercury in teeth, arsenic in water, lead in the environment, and aspartame in food are discussed.
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Very cavalier attitude
- By Paula on 11-14-14
By: Dr. Joe Schwarcz
What listeners say about What the Nose Knows
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Lindsay
- 11-06-12
Really Great Listen!
Would you listen to What the Nose Knows again? Why?
YES! I really enjoyed Mr. Gilbert's witty treatment of this topic. I was expecting a dry and very scientific listen but mixed in with the science are hilarious jokes, witty comments and a very engaging story of the nose.
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1 person found this helpful
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- theodor
- 11-18-19
The industry history, and future of it.
A complete view to the the industry history, and future of it. The implementation in the past, and possibilities in the future.
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- Michael
- 06-10-12
Excellent when he sticks to the science
Would you listen to What the Nose Knows again? Why?
No. The information is interesting, but there is no point in hearing it a second time.
How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?
The second half of the book veers off course. He has a long, boring chapter on movie mogul Mike Todd's attempt to implement smellovision. For someone who is interested in odors and our perception of odors, this chapter, which drones on for almost an hour, is worthless.
What about Jeff Woodman’s performance did you like?
His reading is clear, lively and easy to listen to,
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
No.
Any additional comments?
The first half of the book is excellent. He writes about the science of odor perception in a manner that is easy for a lay person to understand.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Nobody's business
- 07-23-14
First half is good, second half is terrible.
I was really impressed with Avery Gilbert's work for the first half of this book. It was a more biologically-based approach than most other works that I've read about the subject. Gilbert explains why some scents are more discernable to some people than to others and why some are not discernable at all to others. He explains the inner workings of our sense of smell in understandable terms and he does so in an interesting way.
Then comes the second half of the book.
From there, it all just goes downhill. The beginning of the end comes with the introduction of the topic of smellovision and the various failed attempts of the film and theater industry to make smellovision a reality. Had this been mentioned briefly, it would have been an interesting side note. Sadly, Gilbert went on and on about it until the the book itself started to stink.
When he finally moved on, it was to discuss the grossest topics he could possibly come up with. It was as if an 8-year-old boy took over the book. Then a 15-year-old took over to bring up implications of scent in the porn industry. Really?
I will say that the last 10 minutes or so were mildly interesting as Gildbert deigned to return to actual science in his discussion of implications for genetics research.
I cannot recommend this book unless, like me, you have a fascination for all things related to scent. If that's the case, just listen until he starts talking about the film industry and then skip to the last 10 or 15 minutes of the book. If you're really interested in the film industry, you might like to listen to that part. Overall, I'm glad I heard the first and last part, but I was really disappointed in what could have been a great book.
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4 people found this helpful
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- KK
- 06-05-17
This book smells...good. A fascinating read.
Articulate performance of scientific material presented in as entertaining read for science or lay person.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Rodney
- 01-30-10
This was a "dry" nose book.
Although there was plenty of information that was scientifically relevant, I thought it lingered too long on certain topics which made it dry and boring at times. It covered topics including areas of the brain that are better and more interestingly covered in "Brain" topic specific books. It did have some good parts dispersed here and there, so I gave it 2 stars. I would have given it 2 1/2 stars if I could have figured out how.
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2 people found this helpful