Smellementary Capabilities

“it is both our panic and our privilege to be mortal and sense-full. We live on the leash of our senses" (xvii) 

Roses in the water to reference Ackerman's section on the smell of roses. 

Our sensations have been intrinsic in our human survival and experience and have probably changed and evolved over time. What once was integral for survival and the continuation of the species is now what shapes our human experience. According to Ackerman, our senses both limit and restrain us in our interpretations and understandings of the world in a way that isn't cerebral. Looking at animals and analyzing their senses gives us an idea of what our senses could have been. What’s the importance of the interplay between animalistic senses and our own and how much can we learn from them? Some things, in my opinion can be learned, but it must be noted that animals and humans (both actually animals) evolved and adapted in different ways that ultimately best suited them for their surrounding environments which gives way to different neurological capabilities. For example, birds have expansive auditory regions of the brain to accommodate their songs. Humans, however, pale in comparison to animals in most sensational ways, including the focal point of this section by Ackerman: Smell. 

The comparison of a human and rat brain, demonstrating the different developments through evolution of different cortical regions. 

Although humans and animals have, for the most part, the same sensations, there can be a notable difference. Humans have adapted to have larger brains for higher level thinking and processing while some animals actually have a type of sixth sense in how they "predict" oncoming natural disasters of weather phenomena. Scent however, is, in my opinion, the most animalistic sensation humans have because of it's direct connection to our primitive or "animal brain"; aka the limbic system. To me this seems to explain the lack of humans to describe and share most smells, especially if it elicits a memory of some type. Each scent is unique to each person. My idea is that it's lack of communication with other regions of the brain could be an explanation as to why we can't articulate scents when we try to describe them to others aside from "I smell gasoline" a commonplace scent. 

A mother and her calf expressing post birth rituals

The animalistic nature of sensations is still somewhat present today but I feel like we take it for granted. For example, the connection between a mother and child is further consecrated by scent. A mother can smell and detect her baby and vice versa - something present in animals and humans - a vestige of sensations' role in our evolutionary journey. Even offspring born blind can smell their mother's nipple and a mother can smell a shirt and tell whether or not their child wore it. The same cannot be said for fathers. Males in general have lesser scent skills than females - which is heightened during sex and pregnancy. A father cannot tell which shirt was worn by his child but can smell whether clothing was worn by a man or woman. What do you think this says about the difference in evolutionary journeys amongst our own species between men and women? I wonder if there is a statistic on which has a higher rate of anosmia. When women engage in sex, why do they have more keen senses of smell? vulnerability? Could the father smelling capabilities change as gender roles do with generations of change ensuing? According to Ackerman, "children like most smells until they're old enough to be taught differently" (24). Which raises my question: what is the relationship between society and our sensations?