The word limbic has appeared in six articles on NYTimes.com in the past year, including on Nov. 2 in “Exhale Through the Gift Shop” by Becky Ferreira, which quotes Roberto Trotta, a theoretical physicist whose experimentation with smell includes organizing a multisensory “journey” at a museum:
“Given its relationship with the more primordial part of the brain, smell could then be used to elicit a more emotional (rather than purely intellectual) response to the topic being addressed,” Dr. Trotta said in an email.
The impacts of smell stem in part from the neural pathways odors activate in our brains. While other senses get routed to the cortex from the thalamus, smell is received directly by the limbic system, which stores memories and regulates emotions. This beeline through the brain might explain why a certain smell can transport you to a distant memory or inspire a strong emotional response.
Daily Word Challenge
Can you correctly use the word limbic in a sentence?
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