Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Olfaction01:25

Olfaction

The sense of smell is achieved through the activities of the olfactory system. It starts when an airborne odorant enters the nasal cavity and reaches olfactory epithelium (OE). The OE is protected by a thin layer of mucus, which also serves the purpose of dissolving more complex compounds into simpler chemical odorants. The size of the OE and the density of sensory neurons varies among species; in humans, the OE is only about 9-10 cm2.
The olfactory receptors are embedded in the cilia of the...
Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure01:03

Olfactory Receptors: Location and Structure

The process of olfaction, also known as the sense of smell, is a sophisticated chemical response system. The specialized sensory neurons that facilitate this process, known as olfactory receptor neurons, are situated in an upper segment of the nasal cavity, known as the olfactory epithelium. Olfactory sensory neurons are bipolar, with their dendrites extending from the epithelium's apex into the mucus that lines the nasal cavity. Airborne molecules, when inhaled, traverse the olfactory...
Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway01:20

Physiology of Smell and Olfactory Pathway

Humans detect odors with the help of specialized cells located in the upper part of the nasal cavity, called olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs). ORNs possess hair-like structures called cilia, which are receptive to sensations from the inhaled air. When an odorant molecule binds to a specific receptor on the cell of the cilia, it leads to a series of events that ultimately cause the ORN to send electrical signals to the olfactory bulb in the brain through the olfactory nerves.
The olfactory...
Tactile and Chemical Senses01:27

Tactile and Chemical Senses

Tactile senses encompass touch, temperature, and pain, each mediated by specific receptors. Touch receptors detect mechanical energy or pressure against the skin. Sensory fibers from these receptors enter the spinal cord and relay information to the brain stem. Here, most fibers cross over to the opposite side of the brain. The touch information then moves to the thalamus, which projects a map of the body's surface onto the somatosensory areas of the parietal lobes in the cerebral cortex. This...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Intimation as a potentially useful subjective human Experience: Insights from cognitive psychology 100 years following Wallas's (1926) The Art of thought.

Consciousness and cognition·2026
Same author

The biological role of local and global fMRI BOLD signal variability in multiscale human brain organization.

Nature communications·2026
Same author

Distributed fMRI Patterns Coupled to Low-Frequency Cardiorespiratory Dynamics Provide Markers of Aging.

The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience·2026
Same author

Distributed fMRI patterns coupled to low-frequency cardiorespiratory dynamics provide markers of aging.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2025
Same author

Multivariate Resting-State Functional Connectivity Features Linked to Transdiagnostic Psychopathology in Early Psychosis.

Biological psychiatry·2025
Same author

Modulation of functional network co-activation pattern dynamics following ketamine treatment in major depression.

Imaging neuroscience (Cambridge, Mass.)·2025
Same journal

Limited protective effects of multilingualism against age-related cognitive decline.

Memory & cognition·2026
Same journal

Validation of illustrated texts: Can pictures raise awareness of inconsistencies?

Memory & cognition·2026
Same journal

4I remember (and forget) your happy smiling face: Directed forgetting of emotionally expressive faces of in-group and out-group members.

Memory & cognition·2026
Same journal

Identity in the spotlight: Matching faces without overlapping features.

Memory & cognition·2026
Same journal

Test delay and change awareness moderate retroactive and proactive memory effects.

Memory & cognition·2026
Same journal

The Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) illusion in short-term memory: Opposite effects of retention interval on true and false recognition.

Memory & cognition·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 12, 2026

A Free-breathing fMRI Method to Study Human Olfactory Function
10:42

A Free-breathing fMRI Method to Study Human Olfactory Function

Published on: July 30, 2017

Odor recognition without identification.

Anne M Cleary1, Kristen E Konkel, Jason S Nomi

  • 1Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado 80523-1876, USA. anne.cleary@colostate.edu

Memory & Cognition
|June 3, 2010
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Experiencing odor recognition without identification occurs when individuals have previously smelled the scent. This perceptual phenomenon is linked to memory recall, even when the specific odor name is forgotten.

More Related Videos

Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase
09:53

Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase

Published on: April 23, 2019

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation
10:42

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation

Published on: August 18, 2014

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 12, 2026

A Free-breathing fMRI Method to Study Human Olfactory Function
10:42

A Free-breathing fMRI Method to Study Human Olfactory Function

Published on: July 30, 2017

Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase
09:53

Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase

Published on: April 23, 2019

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation
10:42

A Lateralized Odor Learning Model in Neonatal Rats for Dissecting Neural Circuitry Underpinning Memory Formation

Published on: August 18, 2014

Area of Science:

  • Cognitive psychology
  • Neuroscience of olfaction
  • Sensory perception

Background:

  • Odor identification is challenging, yet odors can evoke a sense of familiarity.
  • The phenomenon of recognition without identification is a known cognitive effect.
  • Understanding odor memory is crucial for explaining sensory recognition.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate odor recognition without identification using a specific experimental paradigm.
  • To determine if prior olfactory exposure is necessary for this effect.
  • To explore the relationship between odor memory, identification, and tip-of-the-tongue states.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a recognition-without-identification paradigm with odor names and scratch-and-sniff stickers.
  • Participants studied odor names with or without corresponding scents.
  • Tested participants on odor identification, recognition likelihood, and tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) states.

Main Results:

  • Odor recognition without identification was observed only when participants smelled the odor during the study phase.
  • The effect was absent when participants only studied odor names without scent exposure.
  • Recognition ratings were higher in tip-of-the-tongue states compared to non-TOT states.

Conclusions:

  • Odor recognition without identification is an episode-specific, perceptually driven memory phenomenon.
  • Direct olfactory experience at encoding is critical for this effect.
  • Tip-of-the-tongue states enhance odor recognition, indicating a link between memory retrieval and familiarity.