Food Studies features the voices of 11 volunteer student bloggers from a variety of different food- and agriculture-related programs at universities around the world. You can explore the full series here.
Hops and habaneros.Photo: Erin RossI feel like I’ve always known that the nose plays an important part in the way that we taste. I have a childhood memory of my mom asking my sister and I to do an experiment where we pinched our noses and, with our eyes closed, ate something (a raspberry, I think) and had to guess what it was. I still remember that it was curiously hard to discern what I tasted, although back then I didn’t understand why.
That ignorance continued through subsequent bad allergy attacks or head colds, which also seemed to deaden my taste buds — and take my appetite away with them. Now, after the first two weeks of my “Food and the Senses” course (a core class for all Boston University gastronomy majors), I’m finally beginning to understand the importance of smell in creating the nuances that make eating such a delightful and complex experience.
The first week of readings for the class ranged from excerpts... Read more
