The Secret of Scent: Adventures in Perfume and the Science of Smell
Author: Luca Turin
One man's passion for perfume leads him to explore one of the most intriguing scientific mysteries: What makes one molecule smell of garlic while another smells of rose?
In this witty, engrossing, and wildly original volume, author Luca Turin explores the two competing theories of smell. Is scent determined by molecular shape or molecular vibrations? Turin describes in fascinating detail the science, the evidence, and the often contentious debate—from the beginnings of organic chemistry to the present day—and pays homage to the scientists who went before. With its uniquely accessible and captivating approach to science via art, The Secret of Scent will appeal to anyone who has ever wondered about the most mysterious of the five senses.
Kirkus Reviews
A behind-the-scenes look at perfume research and development; a demanding course in the chemistry of fragrance; and the story behind the development of a scientific theory about how humans detect odors. Biophysicist Turin, dubbed The Emperor of Scent in Chandler Burr's 2003 biography, now serves as chief scientist of a company that creates fragrance molecules to order. He derived his still-controversial theory that a substance's odor is based on the frequencies of its molecules' vibrations from a 1977 article by R.H. Wright, who in turn derived it from Malcolm Dyson's papers of the 1920s and '30s. The author gives full credit to both men, whose work was not recognized in their lifetimes, and makes clear that he too still struggles to have his vibration theory accepted by those who believe that molecules' shape gives them their odor. Although illustrated with diagrams and drawings, the chemistry sections may still daunt some general readers. Turin's metaphors help, however. What distinguishes this account, besides the author's wit and his enthusiasm for fragrance, is his florid writing about scents. Turin has a remarkable ability to detect and describe their complexity: For him, they are not simply odors; they speak and have personality and colors. "The voice of Nombre Noir was that of a child older than its years, at once fresh, husky, modulated and faintly capricious," he rhapsodizes. "There was a knowing naivety about it which made me think of Colette's writing in her Claudine books. It brought to mind a purple ink to write love letters with." Along with lily of the valley, sandalwood and musk, however, the author provides a heavy load of aldehydes, acetophenone and proteinsemiconductors. Occasionally impenetrable, but overall a fascinating tour of the world of fragrance, provided by a knowledgeable and passionate expert.
Table of Contents:
| Nombre noir : how I got into perfume | 3 | |
| A recipe | 8 | |
| How perfumes are composed | 11 | |
| What perfumes are not about : memory and sex | 14 | |
| What perfumes are about : beauty and intelligence | 16 | |
| A visit to the perfume museum | 18 | |
| Royal fern | 21 | |
| Why 'natural' does not always mean good | 23 | |
| Why 'chemical' does not always mean bad | 25 | |
| Feynman's answer | 28 | |
| The beginnings of smell : chemical words | 33 | |
| Smell becomes perfume : chemical poems | 36 | |
| Reading the poem line by line | 38 | |
| How molecules are made | 40 | |
| A problem of nomenclature | 43 | |
| The landscape of smell | 46 | |
| A bit of biology | 82 | |
| Locks and keys | 85 | |
| Who turns the key? | 87 | |
| Membrane receptors | 88 | |
| Fishing for receptors | 90 | |
| Seeing atoms | 91 | |
| Evolution as the great locksmith | 94 | |
| The smell alphabet | 97 | |
| The primary smells | 100 | |
| The smell in the mirror | 102 | |
| Some strange clues | 108 | |
| Malcolm Dyson | 114 | |
| His big idea | 118 | |
| Molecular chords | 120 | |
| The smell of rocket fuel in the morning | 121 | |
| Robert H. Wright | 126 | |
| The revival of vibration | 130 | |
| Searching for the way it works | 132 | |
| New problems | 135 | |
| The fall of vibration | 137 | |
| Mirrors again | 141 | |
| Physics to the rescue | 143 | |
| Jaklevic and Lambe | 144 | |
| Giaever's leap | 146 | |
| The search for ripples | 149 | |
| A close brush with smell | 151 | |
| Clifton Meloan | 153 | |
| John Blaha's observation | 157 | |
| Where I come in : the polarograph | 159 | |
| Protein semiconductors | 165 | |
| The perfume guide | 167 | |
| Funding from the blue | 169 | |
| Revelation in Portugal | 172 | |
| Experiments in a locked room | 175 | |
| The future of fragrance | 189 | |
| Potato crisps and other art forms | 191 | |
| The future tout court | 192 |
New interesting book: Adobe Dreamweaver CS3 with ASP ColdFusion and PHP or Adobe AIR
Magic Cancer Bullet: How a Tiny Orange Pill Is Rewriting Medical History
Author: Daniel Vasella
The remarkable story behind the revolutionary miracle cure for cancer, Gleevec. Novartis chairman Dr Dan Vasella describes its development and how he and Novartis orchestrated the break–neck approval and massive production of this amazing drug.
Pharmaceutical giant Novartis recently developed Gleevec, one of the first 'smart' drugs created to kill cancer cells without damaging healthy cells in the process. In early tests with a common form of leukemia and other types of cancer, Gleevec has been extraordinarily successful, and side effects have been astoundingly minimal. Gleevec communicates directly with cancer–causing chromosomes and interrupts the signal that causes excessive growth of certain white blood cells. Patients have seen their tumours shrink significantly, and some have disappeared altogether.
This is the inside story of the creation of this miracle drug, and how Novartis CEO and chairman Dan Vasella rallied the company to bring Gleevec to market in mass quantities and record time.
Publishers Weekly
Gleevec is one of the few cancer drugs hailed as a breakthrough that, so far, has largely lived up to its hype. Vasella, the CEO and chairman of pharmaceutical giant Novartis (which manufactures Gleevec), and Slater (Jack Welch & the GE Way) outline the development, remarkably successful clinical trials and accelerated production and approval process that led to the drug's speedy entry onto the market for the treatment of a rare cancer known as chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Although the story's components-devoted scientists, risk-taking executives and activist patients-lend themselves to a gripping insider narrative, the book lacks the details and depth of feeling needed to make that story come alive. Repetition and stilted writing slow the account down further. As a result, the book reads largely as an extended press release for Novartis. Things begin to pick up toward the end, particularly when Vasella defends the high cost of the drug and discusses the challenge of managing patient, media and investor expectations. Gleevec may indeed represent a new direction for cancer research, but the excitement that fact should generate is not captured here. (June) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
