Jacobson's Organ: And the Remarkable Nature of Smell (ISBN 0452282586)

Amazon.com Review:
The nose knows, says Lyall Watson, and in Jacobson's Organ, he sets out to prove that a humble, often overlooked set of nasal pits helps us decide whom to hit on, and whom to hit. First identified in 1811 by Danish anatomist Ludwig Levin Jacobson, the vomeronasal organ has been implicated in the reception of pheromones, those ephemeral chemical signals animals use to communicate nonverbally. Watson organizes his thesis around the seven broad classes of smells identified by pioneering naturalist Carolus Linnaeus: floral, goatish, musky, foul, nauseating, spicy, and garlicky. In each section, Watson presents evidence of a surprising and unacknowledged role of smell and pheromones in human life. Is it possible that first impressions are the result of chemical signals? Watson thinks so, and also that pair-bonding, fistfights, love of offspring, and memories may have more to do with our humble nose than we think. In what is bound to be one of his more controversial stretches, Watson implicates nasal plastic surgery in postoperative mood changes: Every time a surgeon slices away at a nasal septum in the name of fashion or vanity, both sides of Jacobson's organ are at risk of being damaged or even removed entirely, without thought for the consequences.... If you are considering cosmetic surgery on your nose, know that it could deprive you of the very things in life which having a new, cute, little button nose were supposed to improve. Jacobson's Organ is full of Watson's pithy opinions and conjectures. Some are supported by science, some are not. But as we learn more about the role of the vomeronasal structures in human chemical communication, it becomes clear that a nosey approach is nothing to sneeze at. --Therese Littleton

Sense and Nonsense:
I first became aware of this book while listening to an NPR interview with Lyall Watson some years ago; I didn't in fact know that it was Watson at the time, and if I did, I probably wouldn't have listened. My prior experience with Watson hgad been via his book "Supernature", and engaging but overall worthless collection of nonsensical attempts to find (for example) a scientific basis for ESP. Still, his discussion of Jacobson's organ did pique my interest, so when a copy of the book came my way at a discount price I bought it. Like most of Watson's writing it's a colleciton of science and speculation. The science runs the gamut from respectable to doubtful, and the speculation, from informed to nonsensical. Right off the bat I was annoyed by Watson's misuse of terms, referring to things like "synasthesia" in fish. He gleefully cites examples in the animal kingdom and then glibly assumes that their are identical functions in humans. And I find myself occasionally annoyed by his tendency to skip and jump around from topic to topic without giving a clear sense of the context for a particular phenomenon. As a piece of entertainment for the fan of "light" science it's a very good book; it has a great deal of appeal for those who enjoy, say, "Discover" magazine. Facts are reeled off and assertions are made without any attmpt to provide an overall narrative, or an evolutionary context. Narrative threads selcom extend beyond a couple of paragraphs. You're reading about the discovery of some particular olfactory sense in kittens and then suddenly you're off on a thread about the role of pheremones in plant signaling. So for the casual reader looking for entertainment rather than elucidation, yes, four stars for style. For the reader looking for explanation and narrative, one star. Overall,

The Nose:
Smell is the Cinderella of senses. We never seriously contemplate what it would be like - to live in a world without smells. Loss of sight or hearing is recognized as a handicap, a disease, a tragedy; loss of smell does not even have a name. Moreover, smells do not have their own vocabulary almost in any known language - whatever name you assign to a smell, it is borrowed either from taste (sweet, sour, spicy) or touch (sharp, mellow). We, at least during the last 150 years or so, are very uncomfortable about the fact that we, as a species, smell. And yet man is one of the smelliest animals around, with lots of glands and pores with evidently no other functions other than producing smelly secretions - the fact we are desperately trying to hide through washing, bathing and a variety of artificial perfumes borrowed from other living creatures, both plants and animals. The main premise of Watson's book is that most mammals, including humans, in fact possess two olfactory systems. The first works through the nose; its functions are processed by the brain in the regular way. The second works through the mysterious Jacobson's organ, and is connected directly to subliminal, subconscious parts of the brain, making us feel things we cannot account for. ... attraction, premonitions, foresight, the phenomenon of déjà vu, irrational dislike and many other almost paranormal things seem to be explained by the workings of Jacobson's organ. There are even theories (as recounted in this book, they seem very convincing) that some severe mental disorders such as schizophrenia may be explained by the mix-up in the wiring of the two olfactory systems. When the stimuli from Jacobson's organ are somehow erroneously conveyed to the cortical, "conscious" areas of the brain, a person experiences things he cannot reasonably explain; but the brain tries to explain everything at all costs, and that is what we perceive as madness. Without the sense of smell, and especially without Jacobson's organ, many animals cannot live at all - they depend on their olfactory abilities for moving, hunting, mating, detecting danger and a number of other everyday tasks. Man has created a relatively sterile universe, and it seems that we could do without the fifth sense; however, research suggests that malfunctions of olfactory system in humans result in severe disorientation, depressions and suicidal moods. Watson tells his controversial story vividly and fluently. There are gaps, and sometimes the transition from dry experimental data to wild speculations (which the author, to his credit, is not trying to disguise as solid knowledge) is too abrupt. In the end, it is not quite clear which point the author was trying to make. In fact, there are several; it was obviously difficult for Watson to concentrate on one of them and to press it more persistently; it is clearly no less difficult for the reader to decide, what, after all, was the main idea of the book. I am not saying that it is not clear; I am just implying that it could be a little more clear. Most parts of the book are nevertheless a fascinating read, and the marvellously unobtrusive layout with floral design adds to the story's charm.

If we could talk with the animals...:
Although I am a non-scientific type, I am intrigued by this book. It is surprising that there has been little research about Jacobson's Organ until recently. Although it was first identified in the 18th century, its existence has only been studied clinically since the early 1990s. This sense organ, which consists of two small pits inside the nasal passages, works in combination with what we traditionally understand as our sense of smell. Instead of registering the odors we typically associate with smell, however, Jacobson's Organ functions as our "sixth sense" deciphering odorless chemical pheromones that are sent and received by a variety of plants and animals. These chemical messages may trigger sexual arousal, panic, fear, or an immediate dislike or attaction to someone you just met. The book is filled with interesting examples of how this organ and pheromones function in different species. Certain trees and plants are shown to communicate with each other by these signals. The author also suggests that schizophrenia, in which sufferers sometimes experience heightened sensitivity to another's feelings, may be related to disfunction with Jacobson's Organ. Instead of being out of touch with reality, they sense reality too much and are overwhelmed. This book will make you think of the people and places that gave you a sense of well-being. It may be that the chemical signals have much more to do about our perceptions of these than we have ever imagined.

Excellent read, but very "easy" at the same time.:
This is the softest of science writing. It's written for a high school level, at best -- or, if you prefer a different analogy, it's written like a 'Discovery' or 'Popular Science' essay. Easy, accessible, and glossy glossy glossy. It also wanders something fierce, let me tell you. The author seems to have a point... but there's no tight focus, no direction. One of the New York Times reviewers said the book was like a "county fair" -- and I'm not sure that's a compliment! However, if you can be patient with the wandering, the lack of focus, and the gloss... wow! Great information, humorously presented, packed with bizarre trivia and some pretty new-to-me ideas. I would definitely recommend this book for readability and content.

A neat idea:
A neat idea. Watson's clear and perceptive review on the nature of smell takes readers into a world that is probably, for most of us, unexplored. But I encourage you to take Watson's journey about how we relate to each other and the animate world, and how it relates to itself-by smell, Watson says. The release or presence of pheromones may dictate our behavior more than we're cognizant of certainly more than we'd probably like to know. Our Jacobson's Organ, located at the top of our nostrils, often guides how we act, for better or worse, unconsciously or not. Imagine: a baby's head produces natural endorphins in those who smell it. Suddenly the behavior of parents around their newborn takes on a new perspective. I question the validity of Watson's view. It SEEMS plausible without knowing much about this field, but it sure was a quality read.