If you lost one of your senses...

[Rantz]

<a href="http://www.qwantz.com//archive/001314.html">http://www.qwantz.com//comics/comic2-1341.png</a>

... which one would you rather it be? Out of the classical senses, out of scientifically accepted senses or out of any array of senses you can think of, whatever.

Out of the five traditional senses, for me it would be my olfaction. Out of all the senses it would be thermoreception.

[scrumpleberry]

Taste. I'd just have to be careful to look at what I ate beforehand- and I could have a healthy diet without getting bored x)

[Værn]

I'd give up common sense. Just because we have computers to do simple calculations for us now.
Then again, I wouldn't think to use a computer for simple things if I lacked common sense. Though it would be fun to see what kind of trouble I would get into...

[LunarWeaver]

yessssss.

I would also ditch my sense of smell.

[rubah]

in kindergarten, when we were learning about the five senses, we were popping popcorn and a hot kernel flew out of the air popper and burnt my leg a little and it hurt so I wished I hadn't ever had a sense of touch, and then my teachers started talking about the story of this little boy who had no sense of touch or pain or something and how he'd just started stabbing himself in the leg with a pen until he'd made himself bleed or something.

So I've been undecided ever since.

[Bunny]

I would lose my sense of smell in hopes that it would strengthen my sense of sight and then I could see through girl's clothing with my newly acquired x-ray vision.

[SilverWind]

Lol, dinosaurs. I don't know, though. Losing nociception, or thermoception probably isn't that good of a choice. They both have kinda bad downsides. You might accidentally freeze to death...! I suppose you can't choose sometimes...For now, I'd choose loss of smell, I guess.

[Laddy]

Smell is pretty much worthless for the most part. BYE BYE!

[Rantz]

Lol, dinosaurs. I don't know, though. Losing nociception, or thermoception probably isn't that good of a choice. They both have kinda bad downsides. You might accidentally freeze to death...! I suppose you can't choose sometimes...For now, I'd choose loss of smell, I guess.

My rationale for picking thermoreception is, how often are you in a situation where you would freeze to death without noticing through other means than feeling cold? Most of the time it's just a bother really, considering the human race's situation these days.

[The Summoner of Leviathan]

The sense of smell greatly influences your sense of taste. In other words, for all of you who'd lose your sense of smell, you'd lose a lot of taste in your food and such. :/

I'd go for...I dunno. Maybe my sense of direction, since it'd make life more interesting getting lost all the time!

[Bunny]

The sense of smell greatly influences your sense of taste. In other words, for all of you who'd lose your sense of smell, you'd lose a lot of taste in your food and such. :/

I believe you're talking about flavour, which includes taste and the smell of the food itself. While losing your sense of smell would probably alter the way you taste food, it wouldn't be crippling enough to really matter.

[erikramza]

since I don't have a sense of smell, which destroys my sense of taste... I'd give up one of those things, that I already don't have.

[Yar]

I'd give up my sense of taste, that why I'd eat plenty of healthy yet disgusting vegetables and get skinnier.

[arcanedude34]

I'd give up my sense of propriety. I'd be getting into all kinds of wacky hijinks in school and at the White House I guess.... That'd be cool.

[rubah]

Addendum to above post:
this week-end, my sinus infection/cold/whatever killed my sense of smell and taste for a few days, and after I woke up from a nap on the drive home, I reached for some pretzels to snack on and it was like eating crispy cardboard, kinda like after you have a novacain shot :( it sucks.

I think I would actually want to give up sight, which is weird as an avid reader and artiste, but I've seen a lot of pretty things in my life. And sight probably has had the most strides taken to integrate blind people into every day life, what with screen readers and braille etc. (plus they don't seem like a lot of separatists douches like deaf people I've heard of (not all deaf people of course, but many))

[Momiji]

Smell is pretty much worthless for the most part. BYE BYE!

I would beg to differ. Smell is important in taste, and also in making sure food is safe to eat. It also is an alert system to tell you if something is burning, or if there is a gas leak or something-- and that's just to name a few things!

I'd give up taste. Let's face it, if food was tasteless and unsatisfying, I wouldn't be tempted to eat more than I should, just enough that I'm full-- not to mention it would make eating foods that taste bad much more desirable. So it would be much better from a health standpoint, because you can avoid the foods that aren't nutritious but taste great, and eat all of the most bland, healthy food possible.

Not only that, but you can keep all of your other senses. If you lose smell, your ability to taste is strongly impacted in a negative way.

[blackmage_nuke]

I wouldnt mind losing my 5 cents

I think losing that thermomajig sense wouldnt be too bad. It wouldnt be too hard to build some type of body temperature device which beaps loudly or something when its dangerously cold or hot and in cases where you have your hand on a hot stove or something like that your pain sense will probably kick in.

[silverbow]

Taste. I'd just have to be careful to look at what I ate beforehand- and I could have a healthy diet without getting bored x)

Actually I think you could eat anything and be bored out of your skull not the other way around. I have lost my sense of taste for about a week before and it's a lot worse then you probably think it is. Everything tastes like you are eating tasteless slop. It really sucks to no end. I couldn't stand that all the food I loved now tasted like nothing.

Can't I just keep my senses and lose my ability to talk or something? I don't want to lose any of my senses. I can't see myself without any of them.

[erikramza]

Smell is pretty much worthless for the most part. BYE BYE!

I would beg to differ. Smell is important in taste, and also in making sure food is safe to eat. It also is an alert system to tell you if something is burning, or if there is a gas leak or something-- and that's just to name a few things!

Human smell is actually terrible compared to EVERY OTHER MAMMAL ON THE PLANET.
Nothing that owning a dog, and having common sense can't fix.

[Momiji]

Smell is pretty much worthless for the most part. BYE BYE!

I would beg to differ. Smell is important in taste, and also in making sure food is safe to eat. It also is an alert system to tell you if something is burning, or if there is a gas leak or something-- and that's just to name a few things!

Human smell is actually terrible compared to EVERY OTHER MAMMAL ON THE PLANET.
Nothing that owning a dog, and having common sense can't fix.

Who cares if it's worse than other mammals? It's still our most primal/instinctive sense, and it's also the only sense that does not pass through the thalamus in the brain, so it's the first sense to stimulate the brain. All other sensations pass through the thalamus, the brain's 'relay center', and sent as impulses to their proper locations in the cerebral cortex.


Not only that, but without the olfactory sense, your vomeronasal organ would also not work. That is the primary organ responsible for detecting pheromones that regulate behaviors like mating, territoriality, and aggressiveness. Now, while it is true that this is not as important to us as it is to other mammals, it still plays a role in human sexuality. Also, as I said before, without smell, your sense of taste wouldn't be very good either. Why give up two senses when you can lose one that can be beneficial to you in the long run? Also, smells also stimulate the memory more than other senses.

[rubah]

we can "see" back in time with smells. Even if you didn't see someone making popcorn five minutes ago, you still know they popped it because you can smell it. I've always thought that was kinda cool.

[erikramza]

Smell is pretty much worthless for the most part. BYE BYE!

I would beg to differ. Smell is important in taste, and also in making sure food is safe to eat. It also is an alert system to tell you if something is burning, or if there is a gas leak or something-- and that's just to name a few things!

Human smell is actually terrible compared to EVERY OTHER MAMMAL ON THE PLANET.
Nothing that owning a dog, and having common sense can't fix.

Who cares if it's worse than other mammals? It's still our most primal/instinctive sense, and it's also the only sense that does not pass through the thalamus in the brain, so it's the first sense to stimulate the brain. All other sensations pass through the thalamus, the brain's 'relay center', and sent as impulses to their proper locations in the cerebral cortex.


Not only that, but without the olfactory sense, your vomeronasal organ would also not work. That is the primary organ responsible for detecting pheromones that regulate behaviors like mating, territoriality, and aggressiveness. Now, while it is true that this is not as important to us as it is to other mammals, it still plays a role in human sexuality. Also, as I said before, without smell, your sense of taste wouldn't be very good either. Why give up two senses when you can lose one that can be beneficial to you in the long run? Also, smells also stimulate the memory more than other senses.


That's... great and all. But it doesn't make what I said untrue.
Are you sure pheromones work the same as smells? My smell is jacked up, and everything tastes bland to me; but sometimes, with certain females they just smell like they want to be fucked. I rate foods based on how easy they are to take in (which is why I like Top Ramen so much).

[Hambone]

Probably smell. Sight, hearing, etc. are too good to lose.

[Caraliz]

my smell is jacked up, and everything tastes bland to me. I rate foods based on how easy they are to take in (which is why I like Top Ramen so much).
that is actually quite interesting. that's probably the case with everyone who eats ridiculous amounts of top ramen

also this puts your pizza thread to shame. how can you eat pizza without tasting it? :cry:

editga: also i'd probably totally lose smell or taste

[erikramza]

ah pizza. bread, crust, meat, and cheese. It's heaven in my mouth.

[Caraliz]

you put bread on your pizza? :(

[erikramza]

crust, my friend! the crust!

[Momiji]

That's... great and all. But it doesn't make what I said untrue.
Are you sure pheromones work the same as smells? My smell is jacked up, and everything tastes bland to me; but sometimes, with certain females they just smell like they want to be smurfed. I rate foods based on how easy they are to take in (which is why I like Top Ramen so much).

The vomeronasal organ is just as much a part of your olfactory sense as the rest of it, the part that takes in noticeable scents.

And while what I said doesn't make what you said untrue, what you said doesn't make me wrong either. The fact that you'd be losing an important method of recalling memories as well does not help. And this situation is talking about full-on anosmia, not just a jacked-up sense of smell.

I really don't understand why anyone would give up smell in favor of taste, since losing the sense of smell, as you just confirmed, makes everything taste bland. Why would you be in favor of anosmia, which would basically cause ageusia (or at least dysgeusia) as well, when you can give up your gustatory sense, which I personally see as the most disposable one?

[Meow]

I'd give up my sense of sobriety

[erikramza]

I'd give up my sense of sobriety

I second. And shall achieve in.... an hour or so, for a prolonged period.

[Jiro]

I wouldn't mind tasting crap food for the rest of my life if I had to choose a sense. Of course, I won't ever have to choose (hopefully), so it doesn't matter.

[silverbow]

I wouldn't mind tasting crap food for the rest of my life if I had to choose a sense. Of course, I won't ever have to choose (hopefully), so it doesn't matter.

That's an excellent point. It would be much easier to do without taste then any of the main 5 senses.

[Momiji]

I wouldn't mind tasting crap food for the rest of my life if I had to choose a sense. Of course, I won't ever have to choose (hopefully), so it doesn't matter.

That's an excellent point. It would be much easier to do without taste then any of the main 5 senses.

Isn't that what I said three times now? :shifty:

:p

[ljkkjlcm9]

I'd give up my sense of time. I truly hate it. While it's nice because I'm always that guy that can tell almost exactly what time it is without a watch, and even wake up without alarms... it's really annoying. Because it always makes the most boring activities drag on and on, and the most fun activities fly by. I'm still perfectly aware of how long it has been though, while most other people around me are not.

Of the 5 basic ones... I don't want to lose any of them. They're so central to me. I know I could function without them... but I enjoy them all so much.

THE JACKEL

[Peegee]

Out of the traditional 5, I would probably give up...wow they all rule. Maybe smell -- though I don't think I would function well without it. However I'm so hedonistic with the rest.

Sense of pain (but not touch) would be good. I could give up masochism for basically limitless pain threshold.

So that.

As for made up sense, I'm already lacking any common sense so let's just keep running with that.

[Quindiana Jones]

My sense of morality.

...huzzah!

[NeoCracker]

I've already lost my sense of pride, dignity, and self respect.

So of my remaning senses, my sense of other people. That way I coudl live blissfully unaware of the cretins that inhabit my world.

[Momiji]

I'd give up my sense of time. I truly hate it. While it's nice because I'm always that guy that can tell almost exactly what time it is without a watch, and even wake up without alarms... it's really annoying. Because it always makes the most boring activities drag on and on, and the most fun activities fly by. I'm still perfectly aware of how long it has been though, while most other people around me are not.

Of the 5 basic ones... I don't want to lose any of them. They're so central to me. I know I could function without them... but I enjoy them all so much.

THE JACKAL

Actually, I had an interesting conversation about that recently.

'Sense of time' is actually a misnomer. It isn't exactly a sense. There is no sensation of time, but perception, which is different. Sensation is a stimulus, and perception is your mind's response to it.

You can technically lose your 'sense of time' if your suprachiasmic nucleus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suprachiasmatic_nucleus) in the hypothalamus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypothalamus) goes haywire. If this happens, your circadian rhythm (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm) would get all messed up.

Now, while at first giving up your 'sense of time' doesn't seem bad, keep in mind what losing your circadian rhythm would do-- you'd basically be thrown into a perpetual state of jet lag (with its symptoms of fatigue, insomnia and disorientation), and not only that, many sleep disorders would follow, including perpetual and constant sleep disorders (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sleep_disorder) and sleep deprivation, which would make you pretty damn miserable quickly. Let's face it: without your circadian rhythm you'd be constantly fatigued and unable to sleep, so you'd be sluggish and pretty much downright stupid in what few waking hours you'd have. Not only that, sleep deprivation is linked to a weaker immune system, so you'd become more prone to illnesses.

:D

[Roogle]

I would give up my sense of smell when choosing from the five classical senses of the human body.

[Sir Lancealot]

I want to keep them all.

[escobert]

I'd give up Mexico.

[Laddy]

I was born with a horrible sense of smell, that's why I'd get rid of it.

[BardTard]

I guess I'll agree with everyone else and say smell. Cus I usually don't smell good things, and when I do smell good things, it just makes me want it.

[Vivisteiner]

I would give up my sense of a life. Oh wait, too late, I already have.

[Fate Fatale]

I, too will go with loss of smell. I don't much care for smelling bad things. I suppose if it didn't affect the ability of my other senses it would be alright. I still want to taste things as much as I do now, and I know that smell has a factor in that.

[Carl the Llama]

Smell is pretty much worthless for the most part. BYE BYE!

I would beg to differ. Smell is important in taste, and also in making sure food is safe to eat. It also is an alert system to tell you if something is burning, or if there is a gas leak or something-- and that's just to name a few things!


Strangly enough, there was a gas leak at work today and had I turned the oven on through lack of not smelling the gas I would have died from the resultant explosion.

I would give up hearing things, because all my other sences are just that more important to me.

[Momiji]

Strangly enough, there was a gas leak at work today and had I turned the oven on through lack of not smelling the gas I would have died from the resultant explosion.


I rest my case.

The filesizes of those two gifs in your sig are way too big. You may wanna get rid of them before Leeza snips the whole thing.

[Mercen-X]

I wouldn't mind losing nociception if I simply couldn't be killed or paralyzed or permanently injured. In such cases, the ability to feel pain is a complete and total non-necessity.