How to master your sense of smell - Alexandra Horowitz

View full lesson: ed.ted.com/lessons/how-to-mast...
Some perfumers can distinguish individual odors in a fragrance made of hundreds of scents; tea-experts have been known to sniff out the exact location of a particular tea; and the NYC Transit Authority once had a employee responsible only for sniffing out gas leaks. But can anyone learn to smell with the sensitivity of those experts? Alexandra Horowitz shares three simple steps to a better nose.
Lesson by Alexandra Horowitz, animation by Black Powder Design.

[@ARandomMagician]

TED-Ed should do one of these videos for each sense.

[@davidsonjoseph8991]

ARandomMagician Common sense included?

[@ARandomMagician]

hahaha, might be useful for some people

[@MetronaJ]

Davidson Joseph what is this "common sense" you speak of? I only know of "uncommon sense"

[@davidsonjoseph8991]

Justin Baker Getting high with Dad jokes now?

[@orekihoutarou730]

lets thumbs up this comment to let ted ed see this

[@robindiamondhands6416]

Learning to taste is also really awesome. I know they kind of go together but they are a bit different. I used to be a coffee taster on different coffee from around the world. We would taste or known as cupping in the coffee industry everyday after roasting the coffee the previous day. Basically the more you practice the better you get at deciphering the smells and tastes. Not to mention its kind of classy to be able to give tasting notes on different drinks. Dang I miss that job haha

[@hsbswjwsb]

Just another one why did you quit? Or did you get fired?

[@cheyneeddy5162]

J Cole they said coffee tasting, not coffee gulp down lmao

[@robindiamondhands6416]

yeah we drank upwards of 6-7 actual cups of coffee through out the day. That's including the cupping portion of the day. My coworker and director of coffee nearly always had a cup in their hand haha. And I decided to leave to go back to school full time. I was only making 4$ more than minimum wage in California. It was probably the most enjoyable job I'll ever have. It's worth it for me to go back to school though.

[@hugedark38]

Just another one

[@abigwhale1043]

Why'd you quit then??

[@ThomasG_]

Follow-up video: How to master your sense of smell without looking like a creep.

[@sarielsworldella1723]

True so true

[@brysonmcknight2296]

Im just here bc i finished demon slayer

[@chocomilk5957]

@@brysonmcknight2296 ....so did i

[@brysonmcknight2296]

@@chocomilk5957 LMFAO

[@quandeldingle4672]

@@brysonmcknight2296 omg me tooo

[@protrashinator6467]

3:43 "To get started, take ingredients from the kitchen: spiced, vanilla, or fruit, but never anything toxic." Okay. *snorts cinnamon*

[@nightlight7204]

nice

[@abigwhale1043]

Continuation: **dies**

[@MinecraftCutiepie]

I'm gonna freak people out by sniffing at every object in my proximity now

[@aookami9581]

Good idea, I will too :D ! Lets' all sniff the entire world together, hahaha !

[@zoeywolf1118]

me too

[@woonko3300]

I'm on board with ya ;)

[@lukeskywalkerjediknight2125]

BlueBerryKing xD

[@gurdi]

I love the fact that smells can bring up so many specific memories. It sounds weird but I loved the smell of my ex-boyfriend's breath. I can distinguish all of my grandparents just because of their smell! A specific perfume of mine reminds me of an specific stage in my life (when I would wear it often). I love how each person has their own unique smell. It may sound nasty to many but I actually like a lil bit of a sweat smell on men. (Am I sharing too much here? Just throwing facts)

[@sbyoutub3]

me too!! i can smell everyone with my eyes closed and i can tell who they are! i can even tell if my boyfriend changed his perfume lol. not to mention i can guess a lot of scent in a room full of food or flowers, ANYTHING! altho i freak some people out but im really proud of my "talent"

[@Yathuprem]

I just smelled my USB drive, Keyboard and Phone !! I gotta say tacos everywhere

[@gamingguygwilym5202]

this video made me sniff chocolate milk powder now its stuck up my nose

[@Mr_Creasy_]

Theres nothing wrong with a little nose candy ;)

[@brittania8969]

Gaming Guy Gwilym Sniffing any kind of powder is not the ideal thing...

[@ThePrikoki]

sniff coke, it should take care of your problem(s) right away

[@sarielsworldella1723]

Oh my god

[@viddhi8015]

I sniffed my phone. So if it gets lost i can find it. It's probably my first priority

[@madf8507]

i sniffed my phone and that ish smell kinda wack im ngl

[@DanielGarcia-ib3wl]

Wait is that possible?

[@remaniant]

@@DanielGarcia-ib3wl over the years a lot of scientific things about the sense of smell has been coming like I saw one saying if you train your nose good and long enough you can actually smell emotions

[@malandan]

finally, someone who has their priorities straight. great minds think alike

[@apowers7783]

Alfie, what are you doing sniffing the door knob?

[@AnstonMusic]

I'm too self-aware to try out these steps. Fuck that would look goofy in public.

[@alsoandanswer]

Anston [Music] then do it at home dumbass

[@aprilelrod7228]

Anston [Music] It actually does look pretty goofy, but I get called on it all the time. Especially at convenience store checkouts where they always have air fresheners and leather wallets and things like that. I'm always picking stuff up and smelling it. Then I get that look (or those brave souls that actually ask) "Did you just smell that? Weird..."

[@eerolehtonen7318]

hei anssi

[@blanmorrison1794]

How do you manage to use the worst cuss word and the most childish word in the same sentence?

[@validalready]

+Blan Morrison you're so matured to use 'cuss' instead of 'curse' cz it totally censors it and noone fucking knows the actual rudeness just like how fxxked up this is

[@salmiakki7652]

Ever since I was a kid smell really had a strong place in my senses, I have kind of a list of smells that I associate with people I've been close to in my life. I work with different types of explosives and I totally get why sniffer dogs are good at what they do, each one has a really unique odour before and after detonation. Before my current job I use to work in the emerge department and some diseases you could smell from a mile away, diabetes is the perfect example because if it's poorly managed they kind of smell like nail polish remover. You can smell when a person has a fever almost to the level that if your use to the smell you can kind of gather a hunch as to if they are fighting off a virus or a bacterial infection. You can smell a person sweating out drugs, both illegal and prescribed and when people die, or just before they die you can smell death, the expression "the sweet smell of death" is totally true imagine a steak with a very light spritz of perfume and that's the right idea

[@fool4343]

I can smell an orange from the opposite room of house It would be awesome but I hate everything about oranges

[@carstairsstatehospital8484]

My grandad is like that with bananas

[@kevina.2269]

No Pomegranates !

[@mayven1556]

@@carstairsstatehospital8484 I AM LIKE THAT WITH BANNAS

[@vusiliyK]

Love this video and love the animations. Great work!

[@NiamhAllStar21]

My friend always says I have oddly specific descriptions of smell. Not exactly strong sense of smell but I can distinguish lots of things in one smell. One time I smelled a soap in lush that smelled of my grans perfume, superglue, and purple starburst. It was kind of gross.

[@Mr_Creasy_]

YES! I've always wanted to smell like Dr. Hannibal Lector!

[@TripleGatan]

Mr. Creasy... Was that a bad pun or a typo?

[@Mr_Creasy_]

You tell me... Jey??? 👀 👃 Ahhhhhhhhhhhh

[@ChrisPPotatoIDC]

Dad?

[@privatebunjijumper]

I thought the same thing as well LOL

[@dead-indise7263]

I know right, I'd love to be able to smell wine or when someone has auto immune encephalitis since Hannibal said its scent was warm, poor will tho and his beautiful dogs, love Winston the most

[@Not_what_it_used_to_be]

I was never able to breath through my nose as a child due to allergies, and for the majority of my life I've just ignored the sense. I am terrible at distinguishing between scents and I often confuse them.

[@zhiyarali557]

day 2 Smoke-free. tomorrow I'll be able to smell like a non-smoker. I'm so glad

[@TripleGatan]

ZHiKA GO FOR IT! I BELIEVE IN YOU!

[@360flyby]

good luck. stay strong, it's worth it.

[@d_wang9836]

ZHiKA Day 2 fap free. Tommorow I'll be able to fap and feel good like a nonfapper

[@chadatchison145]

Nonfapper's are a myth. :)

[@zhiyarali557]

Abslon, Lol that was a good one. Thanks guys for the support!!!

[@mistressolive]

I've linked my appetite with smell. My moto is "If isn't doesn't smell good, it doesn't taste good". After all, we learn more from our world as we smell it, which ultimately helps us to make decisions.

[@eunaofaloalemao995]

Olivia Anderson So you don't eat most cheese

[@mistressolive]

Tio Luffy that actually kind of true because where I live we're only limited to popular demand

[@demandy1]

I applaud you Ted-Ed, great video, great work

[@extremesubtlety]

Time to begin my sniffing adventure. Wish me luck.

[@MrErensarier]

first step: stop smoking

[@josephdol1845]

I love this animator, I wish you guys could Black powder on here more often

[@thegamingcube3355]

Tried smelling some white powder, high now

[@user-ci2lg1lw5b]

우리의 후각을 단련하는 방법에 대하여 배워보는 시간이 되었습니다. 우리가 어떻게 냄새를 맡는지에 대해서도 배웠습니다. 유익하고 재미있는 시간이 되었습니다. 감사합니다.

[@thesleepyginger1856]

I like to think that I have a higher than average sense of smell to compensate for my hearing. I can smell chunky peanut butter from smooth peanut butter, rice and it's relative age, and much more. I once smelled a friend who I've met only a couple of times from across an auditorium at a jazz concert, even when there was a bowl of chinese food in front of me. And if I'm smelling right, you're bored.

[@jakemeloney4366]

Lol yea remember scent is just energy

[@thestreetscent]

Great video

[@FreakyBo0o]

I love this.

[@michaelyadchuk6172]

This was a quite interesting topic. Thanks

[@moserbear221]

Oh yeah

[@harshsharma5894]

Good Information☺☺

[@Azmina_the_warlock]

I work in a library, I'm not smelling books. Sometimes you can't help but smell them anyway >.< lol

[@Helvetica09]

I found this candle that smelled exactly like my favourite book and stationary shop in my hometown :D it literally looked like out of a ghibli movie because there where soo many things all over the little shop and the woman that owned it ( literally the oldest woman in our town) lived over the shop and she had the most beautiful rural backyard :D i really need to find that candle again because that store closes years ago :( amazing what scents can do :D

[@SWatchik]

I love the blend of proper science, and culture.

[@sion-dafyddlocke9913]

Good video but I would suggest adding continual qualification into the mix, I.e. Smells like read fruit, cherry, fresh cherry, fresh black cherry and so on. I've had people get very frustrated when they here experts speak very specifically and they don't realize there's a process to it. Also I have to disagree about sharp sniffing. I've always gotten more types of scents and better descriptors when taking deep, controlled even breaths. I would compare sharp sniffing to going into a museum and walking as quickly as possible up to a painting. Also should keep in perspective molecular size. When smelling wine, I'm not trying to smell big fat ethanol chains, I want to smell tiny little polyphenol rings first. I'd suggest also what I call environmental smelling, where you start off just breathing in and try and hone into a certain smell. Can be done blind or known, but it helps explore intensity as well as experiencing it in combination with other smells, since rarely do we ever smell just one thing at a time. It's also a great way to explore directionality with smell and play with how we use scent in mapping our environment.

[@JolinHard]

I'm like this! When I came home from school I would always guess correct what my mom was cooking. She would get surprised and It made me feel like a boss because no one else could do it.

[@mkjbawi9308]

I have a very strong sense of smell even I can smell what are the ingredients in some kind of foods I'm proud of it ❤

[@naasirosman8975]

The animated guy looks so funny

[@echogaybaldfith7466]

The nose is so great I really liked this video Well done here, TED-ed :)

[@rachitabrol3633]

I wanted you all guys to make video on cosmos or on quantum mehanics . will you guys do it?

[@samarmohammedrashed7353]

thanks God I have realy good sense of smell ..I can even understand allot of dlsmell

[@mohamedaboelfotoh7692]

Good video

[@mollyhoffman7313]

All of the old books my dad brought from his childhood home (like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Dr. Seuss books, etc.) have a distinctive smell.

[@poque48]

Thanks for explaning those sniff training i sniffed every moments and keep practicing because i want to be a perfumer Thanks for uploaded it

[@ipadgirl72]

actually im really good at smelting food and the ingredients in them i also can smell differences between people

[@senpaifriendzonedme]

knew where this one was going

[@deshundontae23]

can you do this for sight and hearing

[@zuzu-the-boozoo]

I’m boutta become tanjirou in a few seconds.

[@hellocoo6406]

same letss gooooooooooooooooooo

[@donellebullock7404]

So I've been training myself this whole time and never knew it.

[@Kceam]

Very fitting Video because i am reading "The Perfume" by Patrick Süskind at the moment :D

[@earlessroboticcat7102]

I love the smell of cold cold breeze. I don’t know why but when I go food shopping, I pick up some steaks and smell the refrigerator instead of the meat. 😂

[@daetwaanfraser4890]

this smells fishy

[@vexhion5294]

Daetwaan uchiha n1

[@daniyalshah1503]

it doesn't

[@abedfadila9266]

you know what else smells fishy? ( ͡° ͜ʖ)~

[@abedfadila9266]

fish

[@daetwaanfraser4890]

Abd Alrahim Fadila . dank memes

[@kle1sky]

If I can make a subtitles in another language, can I add them to the video?

[@kimchikoalaa714]

Don't do this in chemistry class, when reacting ammonium salts with alkali ( OR ANY CHEMICAL BASICALLY)

[@annonnymoose20]

Did anyone else sniff their phone?

[@ilooklikemonalisarightnowl816]

annonnymoose20 me!!!!!

[@joytagle5833]

I didnt. But in my mind, I did 😅

[@lunareclipse-]

I sniff my hand cream

[@charmagne2102]

To recognize a smell I try to bring up the memory that is linked to that smell, this is the hardest part, then I slowly go through the memory sequence and look at everything that could have possibly emitted a similar smell. Plus...The Channel NO. 5 perfume just smells like baby powder, with some jasmine.

[@raqueltome1543]

I guess would be a good perfumer 😁🌺

[@auburneytuckerson2959]

My trick: wet the tip your nose. The moisture draws in more smells. That's why your sense of smell increases after you get out of the shower.

[@jmanj3917]

It seems that my Smell Vocabulary has me sniffing at a third grade level.

[@amansinghbhadauria2818]

narration and topic is good ,but what had happened to ted ed's animation ?

[@user-ez5vq9fd2t]

I love the way girls smell. Their hair and shampoo. Their natural skin aroma :)

[@malandan]

this would be incredibly creepy without context. neverless, this is still creepy.

[@meganmyhre2537]

Unless you are me since I apparently don't have as many olfactory receptors. If you have packets of salad pas (probably bad spelling) you know they are VERY minty. I can inhale through my nose deeply in these packets and only have a minor reaction to it being minty instead of feeling like my nose is on fire.

[@godxavior]

I always sniff things before eating or drinking them, I consider it as important as tasting. I get weird looks sometimes though and the occasional question, often "has it gone bad?". people don't like to see you sniff things even discreetly

[@michaelborch2432]

there's a norwegian artist that came up with a vocabulary for smells

[@BaBooTubeVideos]

The thumbnail caught my *eye.*

[@pikminlord343]

an interesting video

[@liltrump799]

I used to have such an insane sense of smell but after I gott COVID it haven't been the same since.

[@paw9122]

If there wasnt a sniffing sound effect every 2 seconds I would be able to watch this video lol...

[@antonioxaxafilho7178]

Na qualidade de iniciante houve pouco compreensão do texto.

[@scottg4520]

This reminds me of the panel of smell experts in Hannibal.

[@luke5398]

I would do this but I'm scared I'll become ill from all the germs I suck up with my nose.. Any way to prevent this?

[@AmesiesCorner]

Thumbs up if you started smelling things around your keyboard..

[@lukeskywalkerjediknight2125]

Amesie's Automotive Corner lol

[@morenasexy809]

I actually smelled the keyboard lol

[@TheAdriyaman]

2:01 She is like, "WTF, dude!!"

[@woopywop]

I suddenly remember the movie, The Story of tbe Murderer, I don't know if that's the exact title

[@theicedragon100]

Why is their film grain?

[@itudor]

0:25 that hissing sound scared the hell out of me

[@mollykins8h]

I could never

[@notsigma888]

Thanks , now I am the real Tanjiro

[@AnaMaria-nj9zk]

cooooooooool

[@sammie8262]

my best sense is touch, and one time my friend closed my eyes gave me five things, bread, a marker, a bottle, her ring, and a pen, and I got them all right.

[@ivanbrekalo6757]

But how can I smell if my nose is always blocked or half-blocked.

[@ChrisPMadden]

What about those of us who have no sense of smell? Due to a head injury, i have not been able to smell anything (zero percent) for over 20 years. Have those memories of places and people vanished?

[@lennoxchen8646]

How to get rid of oily skin?

[@sashsash1111]

Thank you now i'n dizzy from sniffing

[@cron0xmax]

I smell things all the time and my friends think that it’s weird, but I don’t care because smelling is my superpower 😌

[@amytran1402]

Thanks for the tip now I can smell good water or bad water

[@brandt7898]

Vladimir Horowitz still the best Horowitz

[@mirellaferwerda]

what if youre Born and cant smel allmost anything

[@nealwarren8878]

is It possible for my brain to trigger smells like I imagine burning plastic and I smell burning plastic because that's something I can do for some weird reason

[@sandrawong6787]

Sniffing makes your experience more enjoyable And it makes your nose bigger

[@rachelhahn4461]

Anyone else thought the olfactory epithelium looked like a cute little caterpillar stuck horrifyingly up our nose?!?!!!

[@calebtaylor4153]

cool

[@shafickrahman88]

I gotta buddy who is the best in smelling. If you fart he will tell exactly what dish you ate 🤣

[@nickyam8474]

My family are looking at me weirdly... 😂

[@TCTCyou]

why am I watching this? I can already smell the morning coffee breaths and people who didn't brush their teeth breath from across the subway car. I don't wanna train to smell those even stronger

[@FalkoJ89]

Honestly, I feel like a majority of people can't smell their food well enough (and I mean when it's inside your mouth). Kids would appreciate vegetables a lot more if they used their smell more than their taste. I know people who literally can't tell the difference between frozen and home made food (like pizza).

[@Lukas-kh5gu]

*video summary:* pay attention to your environment because there is always some scent of something around and sniff actively. well, i would have expected a bit more in-depth and tricks or certain ways to actively increase your sense of smell. for example, as a cigar smoker you do not - since we don't inhale - blow out the smoke through your nose. however, there's a technique that allows you to do blow the smoke that is "sitting" in your mouth through the nose, which is called a retro hale. there's lots of stuff to it.

[@desertknights5003]

What if you lost the whole sense? How would you treat it?

[@ldyprlshn9422]

I feel like sherlock now. Thanks ted

[@clari2790]

So, its 2020 now and Demon Slayer be epic.I know there are weebs here....And for all of the weebs, Im watching you...

[@norinchey]

Hey dude! Ok...

[@Mrhansmagnus]

How did you know

[@sharlinechoi4151]

You really called me out 😂✋

[@ethanjorgensen6754]

And I'm watching you

[@viktoracimovic1459]

Actually its beastars but i watched demon slayer too

[@carlyann3497]

when it said to put your nose right on the thing you want to smell I looked around and saw a blanket and in like "idc lets use that"