Givaudan’s latest technology, MoodScentz+, combines brain imaging with in sitchu scans [sic] to measure how consumers respond to fragrance, both at the brain level and at the consumer product level when they use it. “Our sense of smell is working all the time. When you use a product regularly, you’re getting a little signal every time you use it to make an association.” [Julia] Brooks [fragrance technology manager at Givaudan] uses a different shower gel during the week – when she’s getting ready for work – as she does on the weekend when she wants to relax and switch off. “It’s about thinking, ‘how can you use fragrance to help cue positive experiences?’”

— Read more in Science or magic? How perfume became a tool for manifestation at Dazed Digital (and see also: Designing tomorrow’s mood-lifting creations with MoodScentz™+ at Givaudan).

While bitter notes have been in fragrance since pretty much the dawn of perfumery, you can thank sweet gourmands for their recent resurgence, says perfumer Fabrice Pellegrin, the nose responsible for Diptyque's newest scent, Eau Nabati. “The enthusiasm for bitter scents can be explained by the fact that they offer a new form of addiction, a real alternative to gourmand, sweet fragrances,” he says. “Bitter notes add a sophisticated, unique touch to compositions. It's this elegant, original touch that appeals to consumers who want to assert their personality.”

— Read more in When It Comes To Perfume, It’s OK To Be Bitter at The Zoe Report.

Science can tell if you're a man or a woman just from how your hand smells, researchers have found.

The findings are in a study from Florida International University, published July 5 in the online journal PLOS One. Scientists analyzed scent compounds on 60 individuals in their research. Half of the participants were female, the other half were male.

— Read more in Science Can Tell if You're a Woman—From How Your Hand Smells at Newsweek.