Science Café Fort Collins — November 12, 2008

A discussion about the difference between taste and smell, using the scientific medium of jelly beans! We talked about the different taste qualities – sweet, salty, bitter, sour, and umami – and the nutritional significance of each. This is the 100-year anniversary of the discovery of umami as the fifth basic taste. Many people are less familiar with umami than the other primary tastes, so these distinctions will be explored. We also discussed the anatomical and functional bases of taste, including taste buds and taste cells and what we know about taste receptor proteins. Dr. Kinnamon shared some of the projects her lab is working on.