A Matter of Taste Your spouse says the meal you cooked is bitter
— you think he's crazy and tell him so. But wait a minute:
Scientists have recently discovered anatomical differences in
the tongue that help explain why what tastes bitter or sweet to
one person may not be tasted by another at all. According to
Marcia Pelchat, Ph.D., an experimental psychologist at the
Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, people aren't
just being picky when they prefer their food a certain way.
"There are individual differences in the sense of taste," says
Pelchat. Smell and taste belong to our sensing system called
chemosenses. Smelling and tasting begin when molecules are
released by the substances around us that stimulate special
cells in the nose, mouth or throat. These sensory cells transmit
messages through nerves to the brain, where specific smells or
tastes are identified. The four basic taste sensations are
sweet, sour, bitter and salty. We experience flavor by using all
our senses, but it is the sense of tas