第1798期:The power of smell

Have you ever caught a whiff of something and been strongly reminded of a person or place? It seems there is a deep psychological link between smells, our personality and our memory. Some research even suggests that smells can influence our cognition.

您是否曾闻到某物的气味并强烈想起某个人或某个地方？气味、我们的性格和我们的记忆之间似乎存在着深刻的心理联系。一些研究甚至表明气味会影响我们的认知。

So, why do smells take us back? Roja Dove, a perfumer, told the BBC that when we are born, the olfactory bulb, which is the area in our brain that processes smell, is empty. Therefore, our responses to smell are learnt and very personal to the individual. This means that when we smell an odour again, the original and unique memory comes flooding back because of the association.

那么，为什么气味会让我们回味呢？调香师 Roja Dove 告诉 BBC，当我们出生时，大脑中处理气味的区域嗅球是空的。因此，我们对气味的反应是后天习得的，并且对个人来说非常个性化。这意味着当我们再次闻到一种气味时，由于联想，原始而独特的记忆又涌了回来。

Our awareness of smells is primarily unconscious, according to Andreas Keller from the Department of Philosophy at City University of New York. This means we are not actively aware of them unless they are extremely strong. But, low-level smells are still picked up because the scent receptors in our brain are so powerful that we unconsciously register them. In fact, various studies have found the olfactory bulb sends more neurons to more areas of our brain than our hearing or vision.

根据纽约城市大学哲学系的安德烈亚斯凯勒的说法，我们对气味的认识主要是无意识的。这意味着除非它们非常强大，否则我们不会主动意识到它们。但是，由于我们大脑中的气味感受器非常强大，以至于我们会在不知不觉中记录下来，因此仍然会闻到低级气味。事实上，各种研究发现，与我们的听觉或视觉相比，嗅球将更多的神经元发送到我们大脑的更多区域。

Research suggests that the power of smell can also affect how the brain performs, especially when it comes to the aroma of essential oils. Mark Moss, from the Department of Psychology at Northumbria University, found that sage and peppermint show general positive effects on cognition while the smell of rosemary can enhance our memory. He also investigated lavender which he says "tends to impair memory and slow down reaction time. But research by others have [has] shown it to be useful in reducing pre-treatment anxiety in dental and medical situations".

研究表明，嗅觉的力量也会影响大脑的表现，尤其是当涉及到精油的香气时。诺桑比亚大学心理学系的马克莫斯发现，鼠尾草和薄荷对认知有普遍的积极影响，而迷迭香的气味可以增强我们的记忆力。他还调查了薰衣草，他说薰衣草“往往会损害记忆力并减慢反应时间。但其他人的研究[已经]表明它有助于减少牙科和医疗情况下的治疗前焦虑”。。

So, don't take your nose for granted. It really is powerful!

所以，不要认为你的鼻子是理所当然的。真的很强大！

词汇表

whiff （一股）气味
psychological 心理的
smell 气味
cognition 认知
take (someone) back 唤起（某人的）记忆
perfumer 调香师，香水调配师
olfactory bulb 嗅球
odour （尤指难闻的）气味
flood back （回忆）涌现
unconscious 无意识的
low-level 低水平的，（此处指气味）淡薄的
pick up 捕捉
scent receptor 嗅觉感受器
neuron 神经元
hearing 听觉
vision 视觉
aroma 香气，芳香
essential oil 精油
sage 鼠尾草
peppermint 胡椒薄荷
rosemary 迷迭香
lavender 薰衣草