/oss/taxonomy/term/1258/all en /oss/article/nutrition-general-science/king-fruits-needs-deodorant <p>“Your breath will smell as if you’d been French-kissing your dead grandmother.” Anthony Bourdain, chef, journalist, travel documentarian certainly had a way with words. Here he was describing the consequences of partaking of the flesh of the durian, known in Asia as “The King of Fruits.” The problem, as Bourdain discovered, is that the king needs a deodorant. I once had the pleasure of getting close up and personal with a durian, and never having French kissed a corpse of any sort, I would describe the fragrance as a blend of locker room aroma and car-squashed skunk.</p> Fri, 21 May 2021 19:37:16 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8741 at /oss /oss/article/nutrition-environment/sweet-potatoes-and-some-sweet-chemistry <p>In November 2019, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-53946-0">a study</a> published in <em>Scientific Reports </em>showed a fascinating defense mechanism possessed by a certain variety of sweet potato named TN 57, which was known to be much more resistant to pests than other strains. Researchers found that when one of the plant’s leaves is attacked by insects, or damaged in any other way, it releases a strong odour that serves to alert the rest of the affected plant’s leaves, as well as those of neighbouring plants, that danger is nearby.</p> Fri, 11 Sep 2020 16:25:30 +0000 Caitlin Bard, OSS Intern 8402 at /oss /oss/article/environment-did-you-know-general-science/scents-and-sensibilities <p>It is quite amazing how very small changes in an odourant’s chemical structure can radically change our perception of its scent. For example, octanol, a synthetic compound used in perfumes and flavourings smells sweet and fruity, while its very close relative, octatonic acid, smells rancid and pungent.</p> Fri, 07 Aug 2020 15:19:51 +0000 Caitlin Bard, OSS Intern 8357 at /oss /oss/article/history/myrrhy-christmas <p>Both frankincense and myrrh are natural exudates of certain trees found in the Middle East. When the bark is injured, a sap containing a variety of natural fungicides and bactericides oozes out and prevents the entry of microorganisms into the trees' circulation. The stuff eventually hardens into a resin which can be scraped off.</p> Tue, 18 Dec 2018 16:47:32 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7504 at /oss /oss/article/environment-general-science/can-rain-extract-blood-stone <p>When the land has been dry and it starts to rain, there is a peculiar smell in the air, an earthy scent called petrichor. In the 1960s, two Australian scientists, Isabel Bear and Richard Thomas, began to steam-drill rocks exposed to dry conditions and they discovered the oil that serves as a precursor to petrichor. This oil is secreted by plants during the dry season and seeps into rocks and clay-based soils. When it finally rains down on the porous ground, small air bubbles containing this oil form and migrate to the surface of the soil and become air borne.</p> Tue, 20 Nov 2018 17:23:31 +0000 Jonathan Jarry, MSc 7457 at /oss /oss/article/you-asked/why-can-i-taste-saline-when-its-injected-my-iv <p>Someone recently asked me if I had ever heard a patient complain that they could taste saline and medications when injected into their IV. Truth is, I had never heard of this before, but apparently it is quite common for patients to complain of a funny taste in their mouth when their IV lines are flushed with pre-prepared syringes of saline in order to keep them open and avoid clotting.</p> Tue, 18 Sep 2018 15:24:30 +0000 Christopher Labos MD, MSc 7360 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-general-science/sperm-whale-perfume <p>Sperm whales produce a black, smelly substance called ambergris which changes to a pleasant smell when exposed to air. It is rare and expensive but is used as a base in some perfumes. Ambergris also has a folk reputation as a soothing odour for nervous complaints and inhaling ambergis based products is believed by some to increase brain function. Judging by how much these people shell out for ambergris based products, if anything, it seems to impair brain function.</p> <hr /> <p><a href="http://twitter.com/joeschwarcz">@JoeSchwarcz</a></p> Wed, 10 May 2017 18:11:15 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2425 at /oss /oss/article/environment-health-household-products-quirky-science/odour-removal <p style="text-align:justify"> </p> <p> </p> Wed, 06 Nov 2013 18:26:30 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2027 at /oss