Even though I’m of a “certain age” (a baby boomer who just made it in under the wire on the high end) and it may be assumed that the shine is likely off my love of the avante-gard, I just want to say that I’m still interested in meaningful innovation — like new advances in natural medicine, environmentally-safe ways to end poverty, and healthy, life-enriching foods to feed humanity around the planet. What bugs me to no end, though (as you already know, we seniors can get really cranky) is when great inventive minds fritter away their gifts by coming up with things like “rootbeer-scented” roses. The research is apparently aiming towards “custom-designed flower fragrances and even better smelling, and tasting, fruits and vegetables.” I kid you not!
If we, humans, pulled by our noses by unconscionable scientists, hadn’t been so busy chemical-coating and irradiating natural fruits and vegetables (and at this point and the current growing methods, I use the term “natural” loosely) after growing them in mineral-depleted soil or confining them to artificially-lit greenhouses, fruits and vegetables today would taste fabulous (the way they used to…even before I was born), and it goes without saying that they would be far more healthy for the human body.
Perhaps it would be more advantageous for every living thing on the planet, if scientists would just come up with a way for industrialized human beings to be “tricked” into feeling satiated and satisfied with the naturally diverse and abundant cornucopia that is health, itself, within their reach every day in the industrialized world. Maybe they could just be “zapped” so that they would once again love the smell of roses, appreciate the taste of broccoli, and savor the taste of strawberries to such a degree that the overfed and over-pampered classes wouldn’t continue to crave more and more. Instead of the recurrent chant “give me something I don’t have,” (like a rose that smells like rootbeer!) there would appear a quiet contentment. Then scientists and researchers could focus on those things that have transformative power, ways to assist the rest of the world’s people who every moment are lacking even the basic necessities of life.
Great post! How weird is engineering smells.
Link | February 28th, 2010 at 3:36 pm
I have to say this smells fishy so to speak.
Link | March 23rd, 2010 at 10:37 pm
Our sense of smell is responsible for over half of our sense of taste. So this all makes sense!
Link | March 27th, 2010 at 3:58 pm