Thanksgiving Science!

Here is a fun intersection of science and Thansgiving. 

Imagine if this Thanksgiving you could trick your brain into thinking that the plate of green beans in front of you actually tastes like chocolate cake! That day might be here sooner than we think thanks to the growing field of neurogastronomy. This new science merges the science and culinary worlds by studying the human brain and the behavior that influences how we experience eating and drinking. More importantly, researchers are studying if advances in taste and odor perception could make it possible to one day manipulate taste perception neurologically.

Gordon M. Shepherd, a physiologist and professor in the neuroscience department at Yale is leading the charge in this field by studying the sense of smell and how odor is processed by neurological circuits in the brain. To learn more about his findings and contributions to neurogastronomy as profiled by the Wall Street Journal click here.

So as you sit down to your Thanksgiving meal this year, take comfort in knowing that perhaps one day, in the not too distance future, that macaroni and cheese you’re eating and feeling totally satisfied with is actually broiled broccoli!

I hope you have a wonderful thanksgiving with your loved ones this year!