Question 1

Stu cooked two wild pigs over a fire outside his restaurant.The first night, he cooked one of the pigs and told customers the aroma was a wild swamp pig, and most of them asked to sit away from the smoking area because it smelled disgusting.The second night, he cooked the other pig the same way and told customers he was cooking free-range organic pork.Those customers asked to sit nearer the smoking area so they could take in the rich aroma.Briefly explain what has happened to Stu's customers' olfactory perceptions.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Stu cooked two wild pigs over a...

Question 2

Briefly describe how experience of flavor and taste differ.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Briefly describe how experience of flavor and...

Question 3

Which of the following foods would a supertaster avoid?
A)mushrooms and tomatoes
B)cookies and donuts
C)potato chips and dried nuts
D)coffee and Brussels sprouts

Accepted Answer

Supertasters are individuals who have a heightened sense of taste, especially for bitter flavors. Coffee and Brussels sprouts contain compounds that are perceived as bitter, making them less appealing to supertasters.

Question 4

The regeneration of olfactory receptor neurons can compensate for damage to the cribriform plate and restore a lost sense of smell.

Accepted Answer

The cribriform plate is a critical structure that supports the olfactory receptor neurons. Damage to the cribriform plate can sever the connections between these neurons and the brain, and while olfactory receptor neurons can regenerate, they cannot bridge a physically damaged cribriform plate to restore the sense of smell.

Question 5

Ageusia is the hallucinatory perception of odors.

Accepted Answer

Ageusia is actually the loss of the sense of taste, not the hallucination of odors.

Question 6

Tranel and Welsh-Bohmer (2012) identified a patient with extensive damage to his limbic system and orbitofrontal cortex.They found ______.
A)complete anosmia; the patient could smell nothing
B)impaired taste, but there was no deficit in sense of smell
C)intact detection of odors but severely impaired naming, recognition, and discrimination of odors
D)the patient was highly depressed but had a healthy appetite

Accepted Answer

Tranel and Welsh-Bohmer (2012) identified that the patient had intact detection of odors but severely impaired naming, recognition, and discrimination of odors. This suggests that the patient had damage to the areas of the brain responsible for higher-order processing of olfactory information, rather than a complete loss of sense of smell (anosmia) or impairment in taste. There is no information in the study about the patient's appetite or level of depression.

Question 7

Jana is working on her car in the garage because it is cold outside.She begins to feel sleepy and nods off.Just then her father comes into the garage and tells her she forgot to shut off the kerosene heater, and she is lucky to be alive.She exclaims that she did not smell any fumes.Briefly explain how her olfactory system let her down in this instance.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Jana is working on her car in...

Question 8

The primary angulate core zone is the part of the temporal lobe that serves as the primary taste cortex.

Accepted Answer

The primary gustatory cortex, responsible for taste, is located in the insula and frontal operculum, not in the temporal lobe. The term "primary angulate core zone" does not refer to a recognized brain area related to taste processing.

Question 9

Basal cells are the receptor cells located in the olfactory epithelium that detect specific chemicals in the air and transduce them into a neural signal.

Accepted Answer

Basal cells are stem cells in the olfactory epithelium that can develop into new olfactory receptor neurons, not the receptor cells themselves.

Question 10

Donovan is deep in the woods on vacation to an unfamiliar area, and he is very hungry.He sees a large fruit, sniffs it, and feels somewhat disgusted by its odor.Briefly explain how olfaction is working for Donovan, and what should he do?

Accepted Answer

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Question 11

Turbinates are bony knots of tissue that serve to disperse air within the nasal cavity.

Accepted Answer

Turbinates, also known as nasal conchae, are bony structures that extend out from the walls of the nasal cavity and help to humidify, warm, and filter incoming air. They also increase the surface area of the nasal cavity, facilitating greater contact between the air and the nasal tissue. Additionally, they play a role in directing air flow within the nasal cavity, ensuring that the most air comes into contact with the mucous membranes, where impurities can be trapped and removed.

Question 12

Joshua damaged the cribriform plate in his nose.Since then, he has been unable to smell anything, leading to a loss of appetite.Because he is aware of his situation, he forces himself to eat healthy foods, though they are no longer as satisfying for him.What would be the most likely diagnosis of his condition?
A)ageusia
B)resplendent paranosmia
C)anosmia
D)phantom nose syndrome

Accepted Answer

Anosmia is the medical term for the complete loss of the sense of smell. In this scenario, Joshua damaged his cribriform plate, which houses the olfactory nerves responsible for the sense of smell. As a result, he is unable to smell anything and no longer enjoys eating. Therefore, the most likely diagnosis is anosmia. Ageusia (A) would be the complete loss of taste, not smell. Resplendent paranosmia (B) is a rare condition that causes a distorted sense of smell, not a complete loss. Phantom nose syndrome (D) is a condition where people continue to experience sensations of smelling odors even though they have lost their sense of smell, which is not the case with Joshua's presentation.

Question 13

Presenting test subjects with a vial of colored liquid can cause them to report smelling something even when no odorants are present.

Accepted Answer

This phenomenon is known as "suggestion-induced smell responses" or "olfactory suggestion". It happens because our sense of smell is interconnected with our other senses like vision and expectation, and can be influenced by contextual cues. Seeing a vial of colored liquid may suggest a certain scent, which the brain then creates, even if no odorants are actually present.

Question 14

The TAS2R38 gene has been associated with the______.
A)development of taste perception in young infants
B)perception of bitterness in certain foods
C)role of pain in flavor
D)appeal of umami in hungry people

Accepted Answer

The TAS2R38 gene has been associated with the perception of bitterness in certain foods. People with different variations of this gene may perceive bitterness differently.

Question 15

Identify an animal that is microsmatic, and briefly describe what that means, using a person for comparison.

Accepted Answer

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Question 16

Foliate papillae are found along the very back of the tongue in a virtual row; they respond to all five basic tastes.

Accepted Answer

Foliate papillae are located on the sides of the tongue, not the very back, and they are involved in taste, but the papillae at the very back of the tongue are the circumvallate papillae.

Question 17

The olfactory bulb is a part of the brain just behind the nose; it is the first place in the brain where olfactory information is processed.

Accepted Answer

The olfactory bulb is indeed a part of the brain behind the nose, and it is responsible for processing olfactory information.

Question 18

The macrosmatic nerve is a nerve that is associated with the feel of odorants, also known as the fifth cranial nerve.

Accepted Answer

The macrosmatic nerve is not associated with the sense of smell in humans. The fifth cranial nerve, also known as the trigeminal nerve, is responsible for sensations related to the face, including touch, pain, and temperature. The olfactory nerve, a separate nerve, is responsible for detecting odors.

Question 19

As long as she can remember, Lynn has suddenly caught whiffs of odors that are not there.She swears she smells certain foods or perfumes, but upon investigating, she finds no physical source for these smells, and other people with her do not smell them.Lynn has a condition known as ______.
A)ageusia
B)anosmia
C)agnosia
D)phantosmia

Accepted Answer

Lynn has a condition called phantosmia, which is also known as olfactory hallucinations. It is a condition where a person perceives smells that are not actually present. Anosmia refers to the loss of the ability to perceive smells, ageusia is the loss of the ability to taste, and agnosia is the inability to recognize and identify sensory information.

Quiz 15: Olfaction and Taste