STEM FAIR PROJECTThe Nose Matters

Kennedi Wair | Mrs. Johnson | Northview Elementary

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM• Can you taste without smell?

PROJECT OVERVIEW• The ability to smell makes a difference

when tasting foods. When my nose is stopped up when I have a cold sometimes I cannot taste my food at all. So I wondered how much of how much we can smell affects how much we can taste.

RESEARCH

– The olfactory glad allows you to taste.

– Humans taste five different flavors (salty, sweet, bitter, sour, & unami)

– Your nasal passages connects to your throat and helps you taste.

– The ability to distinguish various foods relies on the sense of smell.

– Without taste and smell you wouldn’t be able to grasp complex flavors.

VARIABLES• Independent: holding my nose while

taste testing

• Dependent: distinguishing taste

• Controlled Variables:

The potatoes and apples are cut into the same size and shape

Same type of potatoes and apples are tasted

HYPOTHESIS I will not be able to taste the difference in

an apple and a raw potato if hold my nose.

MATERIALS• Small peeled pieces of potatoes

• Small peeled pieces of apple

• Plastic clear cups

PROCEDURE

• Peel, rinse and cut one small potato into small cubes

• Peel and cut one small apple into cubes

• Cubes of apple are placed to the side

• Cubes of potato are placed to the side

• My mother places the potatoes in one cup and the apples in another

• One is marked “A” the other “B” but I don’t know which is which but she does

• I taste one cube from cup A, chew and swallow while holding my nose and then write down which food I think it is.

• I taste one cube from cup B, chew and swallow while holding my nose and then write down which food I think it is.

• Repeat at 3 different times while holding my nose then changing the INDEPENDENT variable by not holding my nose while tasting

DATA/OBSERVATIONS *I don’t know which cup has which food & experiment was repeated

again 3 different times not holding my nose with the same results

Apple Vs Potato Experiment

Taste test

While holding my nose

CUP A CUP B Correct

Guess?

Exp 1 Potato Apple yes

Exp 2 Potato Apple yes

Exp 3 Potato Apple yes

CONCLUSION My data does not support my prediction

because I thought I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between the apple and the potato when I tasted each food while I held my nose. Even though I could barely taste the food when I held my nose I could definitely taste the sweetness of the apple and the bitterness of the raw potato. When I did not hold my nose and did the taste test the apple was sweet and delicious and I spit out the raw potato. Holding my nose did not eliminate my ability to taste entirely but it was harder to taste which food was which. There were no problems when I did my experiment.

WORKS CITEDLive Science Website: 2012. Online 29 Sept 2012 Available:

http://livescience.com

Science Kids Website: 2012. Online 26 Sept 2012 Available:

http://sciencekids.co.nz

Scienceray Website: 2012. Online 3 Oct 2012 Available:

http://scienceray.com

Taste and Smell Website: 2012. Online 3 Oct 2012 Available:

http://tastingscience.info

Wiki Answers Website: 2012. Online 3 Oct 2012 Available:

http://wiki.answers.com