Author Archives: Kara C. Hoover
Androstenone
Genetic variation in the ability to perceive and smell androstenone was first discovered in 2007. Androstenone is a possible sex hormone: when male pigs secrete it in their gonads, sows become sexual receptive. Humans also secrete it in their sweat … Continue reading
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Sugar
Here’s something interesting: our main sweet taste receptor is a heterodimer, meaning two receptors have products that work together to detect the ‘sweet’ taste sensation (TAS1R and TAS3R). When working as a homodimer, TAS3R is less sensitive to sweet and … Continue reading
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Smell of the week: Allspice
A fitting final installment in the spices of mince pies, allspice’s name hails from its blending scent characteristic of cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Allspice, however, is its own spice and comes from the Myrtaceae family (like cloves and others in this series), … Continue reading
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Smell of the week: Clove
In a continuing series on the spices of mince pies, cloves (Syzygium aromaticum) pick up where we left off last week with the genus Myrtaceae, from which we get our nutmeg and mace. Cloves are also native to Indonesia (the Maluku islands to … Continue reading
Filed under Olfaction, Senses, smell of the week
Smell of the week: nutmeg
In a continuing short series on mince pies, today’s spice is nutmeg. Nutmeg and it’s aromtically ‘lighter’ sister mace both come from trees in the genus Myristica. On the left is nutmeg in fresh form: the seed is nutmeg and … Continue reading
Filed under Olfaction, Senses, smell of the week
Starch digestion, stress, and human evolution
While reading a great Smithsonian article on the history of potatoes, I began thinking about a recent lecture I gave in my human genetics class at UAF. A copy number variation reading referenced human variation in amylase copy number. Amylase is … Continue reading
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Smell of the Week: Cinnamon
Now that I have a ticket out of Alaska with an upcoming mid-December departure, I am thinking about holiday baking. In particular, I am thinking about my favorite holiday goodie–mince pies. So, the next few posts will feature the spices … Continue reading
Filed under Olfaction, Senses, smell of the week
Smell of the week: peppermint (Mentha piperita)
With cold winter days and waning daylight, I love flavouring my soy latte with peppermint from time to time or having a hot chocolate laced with mint schnapps by the evening fire. This is an odd choice in the winter … Continue reading
Filed under Olfaction, Senses, smell of the week
Smell of the week: Coffee
I infrequently drink more than one cup of coffee a day (and always black)–usually because my enjoyment increasingly diminishes to the point that I don’t finish my cup. I have always perceived my coffee to be primarily an olfactory experience with secondary … Continue reading
Filed under Olfaction, Senses, smell of the week
Clandestine trysts and human evolution
Recent advances in the field of paleogenomics (the study of ancient genomes) have uncovered the story of inter-species mating in those early days out of Africa before dispersal into Eurasia. Prior to these studies we’ve had little evidence supporting either cultural … Continue reading
Filed under anthropology, Anthropology and Evolution, Denisovan, Neandertal, race, Science, sex
Kara C. Hoover
