Odor mapping in neuroscience and design
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Other Contributors
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Engineering and Management Program.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical Engineering.
System Design and Management Program.
Advisor
Venkatesh N. Murthy and Maria Yang.
Terms of use
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Show full item recordAbstract
The olfactory system remains one of the least well understood out of the five senses. In this thesis we examined the mappings of the odors to pathways in the brain as an initial assessment for the feasibility of digital odor. The results confirmed previous findings that each odor activated 1-6 neurons. Next, we looked at a controversial theory of odor detection using vibrations popularized recently by Luca Turin and its implications using Human Centered Design (HCD). We analyze the viability of products that could result from synthesizing digital smell using frequencies in the infrared range produced by vibrations and the general public's perceptions of these products. The results show that the technology is not readily accepted by users at the present time.
Description
Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Engineering, System Design and Management Program, Engineering and Management Program, 2019. Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 2019. Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (pages 120-122).
Date issued
2019.2019.
Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Engineering and Management Program; Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Mechanical EngineeringPublisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Keywords
Engineering and Management Program., Mechanical Engineering., System Design and Management Program.