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| In humans, the sense of taste is conveyed via three of the twelve cranial nerves. The ] (VII) carries taste sensations from the anterior two thirds of the ], the ] (IX) carries taste sensations from the posterior one third of the tongue while a branch of the ] (X) carries some taste sensations from the back of the oral cavity. Information from these cranial nerves is processed by the ]. | In humans, the sense of taste is conveyed via three of the twelve cranial nerves. The ] (VII) carries taste sensations from the anterior two thirds of the ], the ] (IX) carries taste sensations from the posterior one third of the tongue while a branch of the ] (X) carries some taste sensations from the back of the oral cavity. Information from these cranial nerves is processed by the ]. | ||
| As a general rule taste is a global fuzzy assessment of the interaction of fundamental taste systems of sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and |
As a general rule taste is a global fuzzy assessment of the interaction of fundamental taste systems of sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and ]. Location is not a characteristic of this system. However, the tongue can be stimulated with electrial shocks drawing a picture and a person can learn to see with his tongue. Once he has done this the electrical shocks can be placed on his back to draw a picture and he can see it with no training. | ||
| If half of the tongue is blocked from sending information to the brain, people will report that a doubling of psychological perception has occurred for sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Salty taste will be reported as being at the correct one half level. Salt slows down the firing frequency of nerve cells on the tongue. Salt can be used to reduce the bitterness of foods. | If half of the tongue is blocked from sending information to the brain, people will report that a doubling of psychological perception has occurred for sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Salty taste will be reported as being at the correct one half level. Salt slows down the firing frequency of nerve cells on the tongue. Salt can be used to reduce the bitterness of foods. | ||
Revision as of 07:23, 8 July 2004
Taste is one of the most common and fundamental of the senses in life on Earth. It is the direct detection of chemical composition, usually through contact with chemoreceptor cells. Taste is very similar to olfaction (the sense of smell), in which the chemical composition of an organism's ambient medium is detected by chemoreceptors. In a liquid medium, taste is often used to describe this act as well.
In humans, the sense of taste is conveyed via three of the twelve cranial nerves. The facial nerve (VII) carries taste sensations from the anterior two thirds of the tongue, the glossopharyngeal nerve (IX) carries taste sensations from the posterior one third of the tongue while a branch of the vagus nerve (X) carries some taste sensations from the back of the oral cavity. Information from these cranial nerves is processed by the gustatory system.
As a general rule taste is a global fuzzy assessment of the interaction of fundamental taste systems of sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami. Location is not a characteristic of this system. However, the tongue can be stimulated with electrial shocks drawing a picture and a person can learn to see with his tongue. Once he has done this the electrical shocks can be placed on his back to draw a picture and he can see it with no training.
If half of the tongue is blocked from sending information to the brain, people will report that a doubling of psychological perception has occurred for sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Salty taste will be reported as being at the correct one half level. Salt slows down the firing frequency of nerve cells on the tongue. Salt can be used to reduce the bitterness of foods.
There two types of chemoreceptors, direct and distance. Direct focuses mainly on taste, blood, and senosor. Distance focuses on smell and anntannae for some organisms. Peromores would be a type of distance chemoreceptors, smell; a "organic chemical released from one individual that causes a physiological or behavioral changes in another indivial (Perkins 11-24-03)."
For example, the Bombyx mori is a silkworm that uses pheromores in its female in which the male, with two anntannaes that have over 20,000 receptors, detects the location of the female from afar.
See also Flavor, Basic tastes
Taste in aesthetics
Taste can also refer to one's appreciation for aesthetic quality. Paul Graham notes, "I think it's easier to see ugliness than to imagine beauty. The recipe for great work is: very exacting taste."
Taste as a metaphor for experience or knowledge
To taste can also be another way of saying one can "experience" or "know" what something is by investigating its characteristics and innate qualities through direct physical interaction, so as to make distinctions. Examples: "I've had a taste of that kind of situation and I would never willingly do it again"; "It left a bad taste in my mind, I know it wasn't a mentally healthy thing for me to do." A good synonym would be "test".