Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans.
Although predicted by theory, there is no direct evidence that an animal can define an arbitrary location in space as a coordinate location on an odor grid. Here we show that humans can do so. Using a spatial match-to-sample procedure, humans were led to a random location within a room diffused with...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2015-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0129387 |
| _version_ | 1819109092650647552 |
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| author | Lucia F Jacobs Jennifer Arter Amy Cook Frank J Sulloway |
| author_facet | Lucia F Jacobs Jennifer Arter Amy Cook Frank J Sulloway |
| author_sort | Lucia F Jacobs |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Although predicted by theory, there is no direct evidence that an animal can define an arbitrary location in space as a coordinate location on an odor grid. Here we show that humans can do so. Using a spatial match-to-sample procedure, humans were led to a random location within a room diffused with two odors. After brief sampling and spatial disorientation, they had to return to this location. Over three conditions, participants had access to different sensory stimuli: olfactory only, visual only, and a final control condition with no olfactory, visual, or auditory stimuli. Humans located the target with higher accuracy in the olfaction-only condition than in the control condition and showed higher accuracy than chance. Thus a mechanism long proposed for the homing pigeon, the ability to define a location on a map constructed from chemical stimuli, may also be a navigational mechanism used by humans. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T03:20:20Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-fd5fc962b5c941d7af26a6717afdca90 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T03:20:20Z |
| publishDate | 2015-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-fd5fc962b5c941d7af26a6717afdca902022-12-21T18:40:44ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032015-01-01106e012938710.1371/journal.pone.0129387Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans.Lucia F JacobsJennifer ArterAmy CookFrank J SullowayAlthough predicted by theory, there is no direct evidence that an animal can define an arbitrary location in space as a coordinate location on an odor grid. Here we show that humans can do so. Using a spatial match-to-sample procedure, humans were led to a random location within a room diffused with two odors. After brief sampling and spatial disorientation, they had to return to this location. Over three conditions, participants had access to different sensory stimuli: olfactory only, visual only, and a final control condition with no olfactory, visual, or auditory stimuli. Humans located the target with higher accuracy in the olfaction-only condition than in the control condition and showed higher accuracy than chance. Thus a mechanism long proposed for the homing pigeon, the ability to define a location on a map constructed from chemical stimuli, may also be a navigational mechanism used by humans.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0129387 |
| spellingShingle | Lucia F Jacobs Jennifer Arter Amy Cook Frank J Sulloway Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans. PLoS ONE |
| title | Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans. |
| title_full | Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans. |
| title_fullStr | Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans. |
| title_short | Olfactory Orientation and Navigation in Humans. |
| title_sort | olfactory orientation and navigation in humans |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0129387 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT luciafjacobs olfactoryorientationandnavigationinhumans AT jenniferarter olfactoryorientationandnavigationinhumans AT amycook olfactoryorientationandnavigationinhumans AT frankjsulloway olfactoryorientationandnavigationinhumans |