Humans can distinguish at least one trillion different odors
Friday, March 21, 2014 - 13:02
in Biology & Nature
Humans are capable of discriminating at least one trillion different odors, new research shows. Scientists determined that our sense of smell is prepared to recognize this vast olfactory palette after testing individuals' ability to recognize differences between complex odors mixed in the laboratory. It has been said for decades that humans were limited to distinguishing only 10,000 different odors.