/oss/taxonomy/term/403/all en /oss/article/general-science/do-some-perfumes-actually-contain-whale-excrement <p>Sperm whales subsist on a diet of squid, octopus and cuttle fish, all of which have small hard beaks. The beaks are commonly regurgitated but sometimes may work their way into the lining of the whale’s gut which then secretes a waxy substance to encase the beaks and protect the gut from irritation. Over time, the wax and the encased beaks harden into a lump called “ambergris” that is passed out along with fecal matter. It has also been suggested that lumps too large to pass out through the rectum are regurgitated as vomit, but this seems to be questionable.</p> Wed, 06 Apr 2022 18:51:57 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 9075 at /oss /oss/article/general-science/unbearable-poopness-bookstores <p>Imagine you have been walking the aisles of your favourite bookstore for an hour, letting your gaze gaily hop from one spine to the next. You smell the ink and the paper. You hear the dulcet tones of a piano over the PA system.</p> <p>And then it hits you, like a cannonball dropping in your lower abdomen.</p> <p>The acute, undeniable urge to evacuate your bowels.</p> <p>As you make a run for the nearest public washroom, you think to yourself, “Not again!”</p> Sat, 22 Jan 2022 09:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 9000 at /oss /oss/article/health/zeroing-cause-multiple-chemical-sensitivity <p>Sometimes, science doesn’t give you the answer you wanted. You may be certain you know what is causing a mysterious phenomenon, but a well-done scientific experiment denies you that satisfaction and points you in an unexpected direction. Reality can be stranger than hypotheses.</p> Sat, 25 Sep 2021 08:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8864 at /oss /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/covid-19-health/loss-smell-and-covid-19-80-those-infected-sars-cov-2-virus-report-losing-their-sense-smell <hr /> <p class="note"><strong>Take-home message:</strong><br /> -30 to 80% of people with COVID-19 report loss of smell, known as anosmia.<br /> -The likely targets of the SARS-CoV-2 virus are supporting cells in the nose that support growth of the nerve cells that allow us to smell<br /> -Anosmia treatments being studied include: Retraining the brain to smell, calming nasal inflammation and finding ways to regrow damaged nasal cells</p> Wed, 14 Apr 2021 21:44:10 +0000 Gaia Remerowski, MS, Science Journalism 8700 at /oss /oss/article/history-videos/smell-books <p></p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-1"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-osaqtsx-ck8" width="640" height="390" title="Dr Joe Schwarcz on the smell of old and new books" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/OsAqtsX-ck8?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-osaqtsx-ck8&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="Dr Joe Schwarcz on the smell of old and new books" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="">Video of Dr Joe Schwarcz on the smell of old and new books</iframe> </div> Thu, 18 Feb 2021 22:06:21 +0000 OSS 8625 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/health/covid-science-express-vanished-sense-smell-viral-origins-and-vaccines <p>A weekly explanation of the emerging science behind COVID-19 and its infectious agent, SARS-CoV-2.</p> <p><b>Loss of smell and taste could be a symptom of COVID-19 but not a very specific one</b></p> Fri, 27 Mar 2020 14:56:45 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 8199 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-technology-general-science/there-connection-between-tnt-and-scent-musk <p>Arab perfumers in the sixth century were the first to discover that diluting the obnoxious smelling dried contents of the little pod found near the anus of the male Asian musk deer not only resulted in a pleasant odour but when added to perfumes gave them long-lasting power. Musk was even incorporated into the mortar of important buildings so that it would waft a pleasant smell into the air. There was even a belief that the aroma had aphrodisiac qualities and would, therefore, enhance the pleasure of certain activities.</p> Wed, 19 Feb 2020 19:13:42 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 8124 at /oss /oss/article/videos/right-chemistry-essential-facts-essential-oils <p><div class="media-youtube-video media-element file-default media-youtube-2"> <iframe class="media-youtube-player" id="media-youtube-zvosxdvizoy" width="640" height="390" title="Dr. Joe Schwarcz: Essential facts on essential oils" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/zvoSxdVIzoY?wmode=opaque&controls=&enablejsapi=1&modestbranding=1&playerapiid=media-youtube-zvosxdvizoy&origin=https%3A//www.mcgill.ca&rel=0" name="Dr. Joe Schwarcz: Essential facts on essential oils" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen>Video of Dr. Joe Schwarcz: Essential facts on essential oils</iframe> </div> </p> Mon, 26 Aug 2019 14:57:53 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7884 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-general-science/power-suggestion-can-play-role-aromatherapy <hr /> <p><em>Shira Cohen is studying Nutrition at the School of Dietetics and Human Nutrition at ƽ���岻��, specializing in Global Nutrition. </em></p> Wed, 29 May 2019 16:42:28 +0000 Shira Cohen, Student Contributor 7784 at /oss /oss/article/health/what-makes-body-odour <p>Some of these compounds, like allyl methyl sulfide from garlic, will turn up in your breath, pee, and sweat.</p> Fri, 24 May 2019 15:00:00 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 7774 at /oss /oss/article/did-you-know-general-science/tigers-and-jaguars-are-attracted-scent-calvin-kleins-obsession-men <p>This surprising fact was initially discovered by researchers at the Bronx Zoo who compared twenty-three different perfumes’ abilities to attract tigers’ attention. One of the least successful was Estée Lauder’s <em>Beautiful</em> which kept cats occupied only for 2 seconds. Revlon’s <em>Charlie</em> worked for 15.5 seconds, Nina Ricci’s <em>L’Air du Temps</em> for 10.4 minutes, but the clear winner was Calvin Klein’s <em>Obsession for Men</em> which kept the cats concentrating on it for 11.1 minutes. </p> Fri, 25 Jan 2019 17:00:00 +0000 Ada McVean B.Sc. 7555 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