We have invented devices to record what we can see, and devices to record what we can hear.
Why haven’t we invented something to record what we can smell?
How would this work if we did?
\[When I am travelling I really wish I could record the way things smell, because smell is so strongly evocative of memories and sensations.\]
In: Technology
Perfumes are a record of the scent. You can also do spectroscopy to record the contents of the scent. One may say that Perfumes are not an accurate representation, but all recording methods are flawed to some degree
We can, using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. It’s expensive and requires some technical expertise and likely a healthy knowledge of chemistry.
We can! It is called an Olfactometer. From what I gather they are used for detecting airborne chemicals, but can be used in the reproduction of smells accurately. Additionally there are specialized movie theaters that are famous for reproducing smells, most notably Soarin’ at Epcot (Disney world).
So in short: the technology exists but it is either too expensive, impractical, or unwanted as a feature to be mass produced for the masses.
you mean like a candle or incense or perfume or cologne?
We CAN record scent using things like a SUMMA canister, but can only use it to smell again one time
It always has amazed me that with today’s technology, we can’t develop a robot who can smell better than a dog or other animals like them.
Smells can take you back faster than a time machine. Recording scents could be like saving memories in a jar. Imagine reliving that grandma’s apple pie or the salty air of a beach day, anytime you want. It’d be like a personal nostalgia playlist, but for your nose.
I’d love to see how tech could capture those moments – maybe with tiny smell cameras or scent-recording gadgets. Until then, I guess we’ll just have to rely on our noses and hope they never fail us.
You ever seen a scratch and sniff homie? We can definitely record scent.
They actually tried to do this in the 50s with **[Smell-O-Vision](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smell-O-Vision)**, though it was a lot more gimmicky and less sciencey than one might’ve hoped. Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t a hit.
Humans have become experts in manipulating energy. It helps us get work done. Sound and light are energy transformations.
Smell is chemical detection. We are able to detect different chemicals and that can be used as smell recorders but to recreate them post recording is currently beyond us right now.
I feel that electrical nerve/sensory simulation might be closer then actual smell reproduction.
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