Ch 8 : Making Scents

The last chapter to post and I get the honor to post it myself (china blocks it, in Taiwan)! This was the shortest and most straightforward chapter in the entire book. The beginning of the chapter explains the simplicity of collecting DNA, which was indeed interesting (my mother would think im wasting meat). However, the most was when Shubin was explaining the lock and key system thats able to differentiate thousands of different sents. Also, that a certain odor is also a combination of molecules, but the brain conceives it as a single smell. Looking at fish in a pond and seeing nostrils, I have always wondered if fish could actually smell, and this chapter confirms it. It is suprising though, that dolphins and Whales do not have the luxury of having the complete taste of krill and fish because their nasal passages are converted to breathing, which is a necessity more than smelling. I have the habit of smelling my food before tasting it, and its interesting to know that 3% of my DNA is devoted for that process. To end my last post, I'd like to thank my ancient fish friends evolving and providing the organs I need to becoming what I am today. See everyone in class!'

Ian Tang