The Physiology of Taste

Taste seems to possess two main functions. (1) It invites us, by arousing our pleasure, to repair the constant losses which we suffer through our physical existence. (2) It helps us to choose from the variety of substances which Nature presents to us those which are best adapted to nourish us.

For myself, I am not only convinced that there is no full act of tasting without the participation of the sense of smell, but I am also tempted to believe that smell and taste form a single sense, of which the mouth is the laboratory and the nose is the chimney; or, to speak more exactly, of which one serves for the tasting of actual bodies and the

Tell me what you eat, and I shall tell you what you are.