• About
  • Login to comment
    • Bluesky
    • RSS
    • Twitter

Now Smell This

a blog about perfume

Menu ▼
  • Perfume Reviews
  • New Perfumes
  • Archives

The smell of death, the smell of roses

Posted by Robin on 25 September 2008 12 Comments

CATCHING the whiff of a nearby massacre has a strange effect on spider mites: it sends them straight to sleep.

Asked to rate the pleasantness of their dreams, those who had smelled roses recorded positive feelings while those who had sniffed rotten eggs reported a negative dream experience.

— Quotes are from The smell of death sends mites to sleep and Sweet smells make for sweet dreams, respectively, both from New Scientist.

Filed Under: perfume in the news
Tagged With: animals and bugs, olfaction

Advertisement


12 Comments

Leave a comment, or read more about commenting at Now Smell This. Here's our privacy policy, and a handy emoticon chart.

  1. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 9:19 am

    The more I read, and the more I smell, the more rose seems to have going for it. Give those poor mites a nice blast of centifolia, instead of the stench of their mite mates being ripped thorax from thorax.

    Log in to Reply
  2. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 9:32 am

    I was wondering about the spider mites. Their own kind or human massacres? What a colorful desription Vanessa. lol

    Log in to Reply
  3. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 9:37 am

    They should have tested the roses & the rotten eggs on the mites, maybe…

    Log in to Reply
  4. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 9:41 am

    I assume they were not able to test using human massacres? And PETA will perhaps get after them on the mites.

    Log in to Reply
  5. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 9:53 am

    Oh, I dunno about that….the world is experiencing plenty of massacres, alas. I wondered the same thing: human or mite?

    I so want to love Rose scents but it's a rough row (rose?) to hoe, unless the rose is buried in a lot of other stuff – I'm becoming very interested in Amouage Lyric, based on the description of roses wafting over incense and spices.

    Log in to Reply
  6. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 12:01 pm

    All sad but true.

    I have only tried the Amouage very briefly. I think Angie likes it…

    Log in to Reply
  7. Anonymous says:
    25 September 2008 at 8:47 pm

    …yet more research reminding us not to apply “Passage D'Enfer” before going to sleep (totally, like, psychedelic in a “Belle de Jour” way, man). I wonder if the rotten eggs smell made people uneasy, as if they risked being sick around it. We've also grown accustomed to the sulpheric smells added to gases for safety purposes. To imagine smelling a gas leak while asleep would make me toss and turn, too.

    Log in to Reply
  8. Anonymous says:
    26 September 2008 at 9:06 am

    Gosh, but I wear incense to bed all the time. I think it must depend on your own associations w/ the smell, right?

    Log in to Reply
  9. Anonymous says:
    2 October 2008 at 6:13 am

    Very interesting. I hope they didn't kill animals for experiments.

    Maybe this is another point in favour of wearing perfume in bed though.

    In any case, from now on, after particularly bad dreams, I'l just assume one of the cats has done something … and go looking for it.

    Log in to Reply
  10. Anonymous says:
    2 October 2008 at 11:57 am

    llol! As one who has a new kitten, I totally understand :~)

    Log in to Reply
  11. Anonymous says:
    2 October 2008 at 12:41 pm

    I haven't any cats, so nobody to blame the bad dreams on…but agree, it's a reason to wear a happy perfume to bed!

    Log in to Reply
  12. Anonymous says:
    2 October 2008 at 5:50 pm

    Congratulations! What's his/her name? They can be difficult but they're worth it.

    Good grief, that sounds like L'Oreal!

    You know what I mean though.

    Log in to Reply

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Advertisement

Search

Recent reviews

Atelier Cologne Love Osmanthus
Moschino Toy Boy
Arquiste Misfit
Diptyque Eau Capitale
Zoologist Bee
Parfum d’Empire Immortelle Corse
Comme des Garcons Series 10 Clash
Frédéric Malle Rose & Cuir
L’Artisan Parfumeur Le Chant de Camargue
Yves Saint Laurent Grain de Poudre
Régime des Fleurs Chloë Sevigny Little Flower
Chanel 1957
Gallivant Los Angeles
Amouage Portrayal Woman

Blogroll

Bois de Jasmin
Grain de Musc
Perfume Posse
The Non-Blonde
More blogs...

Perfumista lists

100 fragrances every perfumista should try
And 25 more fragrances every perfumista should smell
50 masculine fragrances every perfumista should try
26 vintage fragrances every perfumista should try
25 rose fragrances every perfumista should try
11 Cheap Perfumes Beauty Outsiders Love

Favorite posts

The Great Perfume Reduction Plan
Why I Love Old School Chypres
New to perfume and want to learn more?
How to make fragrance last through the day
Fragrance concentrations: sorting it all out
On reformulations, or why your favorite perfume doesn’t smell like it used to
How to get fragrance samples
Perfume for Life: How Long Will Your Fragrance Collection Last?

Upcoming

List of upcoming Friday projects

6 January ~ damage poll

31 January ~ winter reading poll

Back to Top

Home
Archives
About Now Smell This :: Privacy Policy
Perfume Reviews
New Perfumes
General Perfume Articles
The Monday Mail

Glossary of Perfume Terms
Perfume FAQ
Perfume Books

Noses ~ Perfumers A-E :: F-K :: L-S :: T-Z

Perfume Houses A-B :: C :: D-E :: F-G
H-J :: K-L :: M :: N-O :: P :: Q-R :: S
T :: U-Z

Copyright © 2005-2026 Now Smell This. All rights reserved.