From New Scientist Tech:A substance that mimics mucus has been used by UK researchers to improve the performance of odour-sensing "electronic noses". The enhanced devices can pick apart more complex smells, the team says.
Humans detect smells using more than 100 million specialised receptors on the roof of the nasal cavity, just behind the bridge of the nose. The complex manner in which multiple receptors react to a molecule is used to identify and differentiate them.
Electronic smell sensors work on the same principal but have just tens of sensors. They are used commercially, in food manufacturing quality control, for example, and can sometimes even detect diseases like cancer.
We say: Gee, the only thing that comes to mind is sometimes science is messy. Maybe this can be featured in an upcoming episode of Dirty Jobs.
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