ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Luca Turin - Nose
Biophysicist Luca Turin studies the science of smell. He's the author of Perfumes: The Guide, and the subject of Chandler Burr's 2003 book The Emperor of Scent. His next project: developing an artificial nose.

Why you should listen

Biophysicist Luca Turin studies the science of smell. He's a leading proponent of the vibrational theory of smell -- the idea that when our noses pick up a scent, we're reacting to the vibrational properties of the molecule we're smelling. (This is in opposition to the shape theory of smell, which imagines smelly molecules fitting into conveniently shaped receptors in our noses.)

His work on olfactory reception and the prediction of what a particular molecule will smell like has led to an interesting line of work: designing new fragrances and flavor molecules, as part of the firm Flexitral, where he is CTO. Coming up, he'll be part of a team in Biomedical Engineering at MIT, headed by Professor Shuguang Zhang, to develop an artificial nose made with natural receptors as part of DARPA's just-launched RealNose program.

He's the author of several books on scent, including Perfumes: The Guide and The Secret of Scent, and is the subject of Chandler Burr's 2003 book The Emperor of Scent.


 

 

More profile about the speaker
Luca Turin | Speaker | TED.com
TED2005

Luca Turin: The science of scent

Luca Turin:味道的科學

Filmed:
621,001 views

有著美好氣味的香水,其背後的科學為何呢?生理學家Luca Turin用具吸引力且精準的方式,來解釋氣味的分子合成,及其藝術。
- Nose
Biophysicist Luca Turin studies the science of smell. He's the author of Perfumes: The Guide, and the subject of Chandler Burr's 2003 book The Emperor of Scent. His next project: developing an artificial nose. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
The fragrance香味 that you will smell, you will never be able能夠 to smell this way again.
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你待會兒聞到的香氣,絕不會有機會以這種方式聞第二次
00:16
It’s a fragrance香味 called Beyond Paradise天堂,
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這香水名為「霓采天堂」
00:19
which哪一個 you can find in any store商店 in the nation國家.
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在國內的店裡找不到
00:22
Except here it’s been split分裂 up in parts部分 by Est美東時間ée Lauder蘭黛
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除非你去跟雅詩蘭黛要一點來
00:26
and by the perfumer調香師 who did it, CaliceCalice Becker貝克爾,
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或是跟香水師Calice Becker要
00:29
and I'm most grateful感激 to them for this.
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我很感激他們分我一些
00:30
And it’s been split分裂 up in successive連續 bits and a chord.
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香氣可拆開成接連散發並組合如和弦的各種氣味
00:34
So what you’re回覆 smelling now is the top最佳 note注意.
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而妳現在所聞到的就是首調
00:36
And then will come what they call the heart, the lush青蔥的 heart note注意.
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緊接著的引人入勝氣味被稱為中調
00:40
I will show顯示 it to you.
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等會我將讓各位聞聞
00:43
The Eden伊甸園 top最佳 note注意 is named命名 after the Eden伊甸園 Project項目 in the U.K.
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「霓采天堂」的首調「伊甸」是以英國的伊甸園計畫命名的
00:46
The lush青蔥的 heart note注意, Melaleuca千層 bark note注意 -- which哪一個 does not contain包含 any Melaleuca千層 bark,
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中調則是白千層樹皮──然而香水裡其實沒有這個成份
00:51
because it’s totally完全 forbidden被禁止.
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因為它被禁用
00:54
And after that, the complete完成 fragrance香味.
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最後,則是完整的香氣
00:57
Now what you are smelling is a combination組合 of --
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現在你所聞到的組合是──
01:00
I asked how many許多 molecules分子 there were in there, and nobody沒有人 would tell me.
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我曾問,香水中有什麼分子。沒有人想告訴我
01:04
So I put it through通過 a G.C., a Gas加油站 Chromatograph色譜儀 that I have in my office辦公室,
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所以我把香水以我辦公室裡的氣相層析儀分析
01:09
and it’s about 400.
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發現裡頭大概有400種分子
01:12
So what you’re回覆 smelling is several一些 hundred molecules分子
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也就是說,你正在聞數百個
01:15
floating漂浮的 through通過 the air空氣, hitting your nose鼻子.
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漂浮在空氣中、撞擊鼻腔的分子
01:18
And do not get the impression印象 that this is very subjective主觀.
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如果這個事實還不夠令人印象深刻的話
01:22
You are all smelling pretty漂亮 much the same相同 thing, OK?
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你們所聞到的香氣成份其實相當接近啊
01:26
Smell has this reputation聲譽 of being存在 somewhat有些 different不同 for each person.
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嗅覺向以每個人都有不同的感受聞名
01:30
It’s not really true真正.
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這並不完全正確
01:31
And perfumery香水 shows節目 you that can’t be true真正,
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只需要一瓶香水就能證明這一點
01:33
because if it were like that it wouldn止跌’t be an art藝術, OK?
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因為如果真是這樣,香水就不會是個藝術,你明白嗎?
01:39
Now, while the smell wafts充溢 over you, let me tell you the history歷史 of an idea理念.
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當陣陣香氣襲向各位時,我想談談一個點子的歷史
01:43
Everything that you’re回覆 smelling in here
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你在這裡所聞到的每種香氣
01:47
is made製作 up of atoms原子 that come from what I call
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都是由一群位在,被我稱為
01:49
the Upper East Side of the periodic定期 table -- a nice不錯, safe安全 neighborhood鄰里.
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週期表上東城──一個安全美好的區域──的分子組成
01:52
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
01:56
You really don不要’t want to leave離開 it if you want to have a career事業 in perfumery香水.
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如果你想在香水業立足,你絕對不會想離開這區
01:59
Some people have tried試著 in the 1920s
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有些人在1920年代曾經試著
02:01
to add things from the bad parts部分, and it didn’t really work.
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在香水裡加入週期表其他區塊的分子,但是沒有成功
02:05
These are the five atoms原子 from which哪一個 just about everything
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上東城裡的五個分子幾乎就能組成
02:07
that you’re回覆 going to smell in real真實 life, from coffee咖啡 to fragrance香味, are made製作 of.
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你生活裡從咖啡跟香水等所有的氣味,
02:13
The top最佳 note注意 that you smelled at the very beginning開始,
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而你剛剛一開始所聞到的前調
02:15
the cut-grass割草 green綠色, what we call in perfumery香水 -- they’re回覆 weird奇怪的 terms條款 --
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在我們香水業被稱做清新草原味──很怪的叫法
02:19
and this would be called a green綠色 note注意,
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而之所以這麼稱呼綠葉調
02:21
because it smells氣味 of something green綠色, like cut grass.
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是因為它聞來就像綠色植物,如草原的氣息
02:23
This is cis-3-hexene-己烯1-ol. And I had to learn學習 chemistry化學 on the fly
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這是順式-3-己烯醇。我過去三年
02:30
in the last three years年份. A very expensive昂貴 high school學校 chemistry化學 education教育.
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得抽空學習化學。非常昂貴的高中化學教育
02:36
This has six carbon atoms原子, so "hexa," hexene-己烯1-ol.
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順式-3-己烯醇有六個碳分子,所以"hexanol"以hexa-為字首
02:40
It has one double bond, it has an alcohol on the end結束,
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分子裡有一個雙鍵,分子末端有乙醇
02:44
so it’s "olOL," and that’s why they call it cis-3-hexene-己烯1-ol.
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所以"hexanol"以-ol為字尾。這是順式-3-己烯醇的命名由來。
02:47
Once一旦 you figure數字 this out, you can really impress people at parties派對.
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一旦你懂得分子命名原則,你就能在派對上唬人
02:50
This smells氣味 of cut grass. Now, this is the skeleton骨架 of the molecule分子.
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順式-3-己烯醇聞來就像草原。這是分子的碳鏈
02:54
If you dress連衣裙 it up with atoms原子, hydrogen atoms原子 --
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你可以用電腦在碳鏈上加氫原子
02:57
that’s what it looks容貌 like when you have it on your computer電腦 --
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這時順式-3-己烯醇看起來像這樣
02:59
but actually其實 it’s sort分類 of more like this, in the sense that the atoms原子 have a certain某些
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但因為每個元素都有個不能侵入的圓形區域─
03:03
sphere領域 that you cannot不能 penetrate穿透. They repel擊退.
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它們互斥─所以順式-3-己烯醇實際上長這樣
03:06
OK, now. Why does this thing smell of cut grass, OK?
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好,現在問題來了:為什麼這分子聞起來是草原味,
03:12
Why doesn沒有按’t it smell of potatoes土豆 or violets紫羅蘭? Well, there are really two theories理論.
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而不是馬鈴薯,或是紫羅蘭?有兩個理論:
03:18
But the first theory理論 is: it must必須 be the shape形狀.
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第一個理論是關於分子的形狀。
03:22
And that’s a perfectly完美 reasonable合理 theory理論 in the sense that
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這是個完美的理論,因為在生物界
03:24
almost幾乎 everything else其他 in biology生物學 works作品 by shape形狀.
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幾乎所有的功能都由分子形狀決定
03:26
Enzymes that chew things up, antibodies抗體, it’s all, you know,
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如分解分子的酵素、抗體,一切取決於蛋白質
03:30
the fit適合 between之間 a protein蛋白 and whatever隨你 it is grabbing, in this case案件 a smell.
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跟其他分子間的緊密結合。而嗅覺也是
03:36
And I will try and explain說明 to you what’s wrong錯誤 with this notion概念.
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我等一下會試著解釋這個理論哪裡不對
03:39
And the other theory理論 is that we smell molecular分子 vibrations振動.
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另一個理論則是說嗅覺是我們聞到分子的震動
03:42
Now, this is a totally完全 insane idea理念.
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這個想法完全沒有道理
03:44
And when I first came來了 across橫過 it in the early '90s, I thought my predecessor前任,
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而我在90年代早期第一次聽到這個想法時
03:48
Malcolm馬爾科姆 Dyson戴森 and Bob短發 Wright賴特, had really taken採取 leave離開 of their senses感官,
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覺得Dyson跟Wright這些先驅者的直覺失準
03:51
and I’ll explain說明 to you why this was the case案件.
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我等一下會告訴你們為什麼
03:54
However然而, I came來了 to realize實現 gradually逐漸 that they may可能 be right --
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然而,我漸漸明白,他們也許是對的
03:57
and I have to convince說服 all my colleagues同事 that this is so, but I’m working加工 on it.
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我得說服我的同行接受這個理論,而我仍在努力
04:00
Here’s how shape形狀 works作品 in normal正常 receptors受體.
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這是分子跟其受器間作用機制的形狀說圖解
04:06
You have a molecule分子 coming未來 in, it gets得到 into the protein蛋白, which哪一個 is schematic概要 here,
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一個分子進入一個蛋白質,當兩者的形狀吻合
04:11
and it causes原因 this thing to switch開關, to turn, to move移動 in some way
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分子會跟蛋白質的一部分結合
04:16
by binding捆綁 in certain某些 parts部分.
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造成這個複合體的變型、扭轉或移動
04:20
And the attraction引力, the forces軍隊, between之間 the molecule分子 and the protein蛋白
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而分子跟蛋白質之間的吸引力造成這樣的運動模式
04:22
cause原因 the motion運動. This is a shape-based基於形狀的 idea理念.
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就是這個以分子形狀為基礎的理論
04:27
Now, what’s wrong錯誤 with shape形狀 is summarized總結 in this slide滑動.
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而這個分子形狀理論的問題摘要在這投影片上
04:31
The way --I- 一世 expect期望 everybody每個人 to memorize記憶 these compounds化合物.
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希望大家還記得這些物質
04:36
This is one page of work from a chemist化學家’s workbook工作簿, OK?
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這是一位在香水公司工作的化學家
04:41
Working加工 for a fragrance香味 company公司.
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其實驗筆記的一頁
04:43
He’s making製造 45 molecules分子, and he’s looking for a sandalwood檀香,
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因為檀香味的龐大商機
04:46
something that smells氣味 of sandalwood檀香.
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他得找出檀香味,或是類似檀香的味道
04:47
Because there’s a lot of money in sandalwoodssandalwoods.
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所以他製造了45個分子
04:49
And of these 45 molecules分子, only 4629 actually其實 smells氣味 of sandalwood檀香.
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而這45個分子中,只有4629分子聞起來是檀香
04:56
And he puts看跌期權 an exclamation感嘆 mark標記, OK? This is an awful可怕 lot of work.
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他加註驚嘆號,對吧?這是非常繁重的工作
04:59
This actually其實 is roughly大致, in man-years人年 of work, 200,000 dollars美元 roughly大致,
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以一個人一年工時計,如果你給他無利潤的低薪
05:04
if you keep them on the low salaries工資 with no benefits好處.
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其收入約為20萬美金
05:08
So this is a profoundly深深 inefficient低效 process處理.
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所以這是個非常沒有效率的工作
05:10
And my definition定義 of a theory理論 is, it’s not just something
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而我對理論的定義,不僅只是
05:13
that you teach people; it’s labor勞動 saving保存.
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被傳授的知識,更得幫助節省勞力
05:15
A theory理論 is something that enables使 you to do less work.
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一個理論得讓人們事半功倍
05:18
I love the idea理念 of doing less work. So let me explain說明 to you why -- a very simple簡單 fact事實
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我喜歡省力的主意。請讓我解釋
05:24
that tells告訴 you why this shape形狀 theory理論 really does not work very well.
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形狀理論之所以無用的單純現實
05:29
This is cis-3-hexene-己烯1-ol. It smells氣味 of cut grass.
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這是順式-3-己烯醇,聞起來像草原
05:34
This is cis-3-hexene-己烯1-thiol硫醇, and this smells氣味 of rotten eggs, OK?
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這是順式-3-己硫醇,聞起來像腐敗的蛋
05:41
Now, you will have noticed注意到 that vodka伏特加 never smells氣味 of rotten eggs.
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你也知道伏特加聞起來絕對不像腐敗的蛋
05:46
If it does, you put the glass玻璃 down, you go to a different不同 bar酒吧.
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如果是,你會放下酒杯,改去另一間酒吧
05:50
This is -- in other words, we never get the O-H --
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換句話說,我們不會對弄錯醇類
05:55
we never mistake錯誤 it for an S-HSH, OK?
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不會搞混醇類跟硫化物
05:58
Like, at no concentration濃度, even pure, you know,
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這跟濃度無關,即使讓你聞純酒精
06:01
if you smelt冶煉 pure ethanol乙醇, it doesn沒有按’t smell of rotten eggs.
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也不會聞到壞蛋的臭味
06:04
Conversely反過來, there is no concentration濃度 at which哪一個 the sulfur compound複合 will smell like vodka伏特加.
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反之,再純的硫化物也不會聞起來像伏特加
06:11
It’s very hard to explain說明 this by molecular分子 recognition承認.
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我們很難用蛋白質辨識分子形狀的不同來解釋這個現象
06:15
Now, I showed顯示 this to a physicist物理學家 friend朋友 of mine who has a profound深刻 distaste厭惡
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而我如此向我那對生物學完全沒興趣的
06:17
for biology生物學, and he says, "That’s easy簡單! The things are a different不同 color顏色!"
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物理學家朋友說明,他說:「這容易,兩種不同顏色的東西!」
06:21
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
06:26
We have to go a little beyond that. Now let me explain說明 why vibrational振動 theory理論 has
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更進一步,現在讓我來解釋為什麼振動理論
06:31
some sort分類 of interest利益 in it. These molecules分子, as you saw in the beginning開始,
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有趣。這些分子,如你一開始所見
06:35
the building建造 blocks had springs彈簧 connecting them to each other.
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組成分子的原子間有如彈簧般的連結
06:37
In fact事實, molecules分子 are able能夠 to vibrate顫動 at a set of frequencies頻率
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不同的分子的震動包含不同頻率
06:40
which哪一個 are very specific具體 for each molecule分子 and for the bonds債券 connecting them.
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頻率組成視分子,或是組成分子的原子間的連結而定
06:44
So this is the sound聲音 of the O-H stretch伸展, translated翻譯 into the audible聽得見 range範圍.
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這是將O-H鍵的振動頻率轉換成人類聽力範圍的聲音
06:53
S-HSH, quite相當 a different不同 frequency頻率.
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而S-H鍵振動頻率則相當不同
06:55
Now, this is kind of interesting有趣, because it tells告訴 you
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這個現象最有趣的部分
06:59
that you should be looking for a particular特定 fact事實, which哪一個 is this:
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在提醒我認清這個特定事實,也就是
07:02
nothing in the world世界 smells氣味 like rotten eggs except S-HSH, OK?
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這個世界上除了腐爛的蛋,沒有別的東西聞起來像硫氫化物了
07:06
Now, Fact事實 B: nothing in the world世界 has that frequency頻率 except S-HSH.
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再者:這個世界上除了有硫氫化物,沒有別的分子能以這樣的頻率振動
07:13
If you look on this, imagine想像 a piano鋼琴 keyboard鍵盤.
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你也可以這麼看:想像一個鋼琴鍵盤
07:15
The S-HSH stretch伸展 is in the middle中間 of a part部分 of the keyboard鍵盤
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代表S-H鍵的振動頻率的琴鍵位在鍵盤某處的中間
07:19
that has been, so to speak說話, damaged破損,
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這個琴鍵壞掉了
07:21
and there are no neighboring鄰接 notes筆記, nothing is close to it.
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周圍及其他的琴鍵沒有一個能發出接近它的音頻
07:24
You have a unique獨特 smell, a unique獨特 vibration振動.
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而氣味也有這樣的獨特性,獨特的震動
07:26
So I went searching搜索 when I started開始 in this game遊戲
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為了自我說服
07:28
to convince說服 myself that there was any degree of plausibility合理性
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這整個瘋狂的理論是可信的
07:31
to this whole整個 crazy story故事.
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我開始這個尋找氣味分子的遊戲
07:33
I went searching搜索 for a type類型 of molecule分子, any molecule分子,
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我想找到某個類型的分子,或任何分子
07:36
that would have that vibration振動 and that -- the obvious明顯 prediction預測
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其振動頻率跟硫氫化物一樣
07:41
was that it should absolutely絕對 smell of sulfur.
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若理論正確,顯然這分子聞起來像硫磺
07:43
If it didn’t, the whole整個 idea理念 was toast烤麵包, and I might威力 as well move移動 on to other things.
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如果不是這樣,這整個理論是個餿主意,我會轉而研究其他主題
07:49
Now, after searching搜索 high and low for several一些 months個月,
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在經過幾個月有高潮有低潮的研究
07:53
I discovered發現 that there was a type類型 of molecule分子 called a Borane硼烷
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我發現有種叫做硼烷的分子
07:58
which哪一個 has exactly究竟 the same相同 vibration振動.
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跟硫氫化物有一模一樣的振動頻率
08:00
Now the good news新聞 is, Boranes硼烷 you can get hold保持 of.
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好消息是,我們能拿到一些硼烷
08:03
The bad news新聞 is they’re回覆 rocket火箭 fuels燃料.
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而壞消息是,硼烷是火藥的燃料
08:06
Most of them explode爆炸 spontaneously自發 in contact聯繫 with air空氣,
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一但跟空氣接觸,大部分的硼烷會自動爆炸
08:09
and when you call up the companies公司, they only give you minimum最低限度 ten tons, OK?
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若你打電話給硼烷公司訂購,他們至少得賣你十噸好嗎?
08:13
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
08:16
So this was not what they call a laboratory-scale實驗室規模 experiment實驗,
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這並不是所謂的實驗室規模的實驗
08:19
and they wouldn止跌’t have liked喜歡 it at my college學院.
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而我的學校高層並不欣賞這樣的研究
08:21
However然而, I managed管理 to get a hold保持 of a Borane硼烷 eventually終於, and here is the beast.
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然而,我到底還是拿到一些硼烷了,就是這個怪獸
08:29
And it really does have the same相同 -- if you calculate計算,
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經過計算跟測量
08:31
if you measure測量 the vibrational振動 frequencies頻率, they are the same相同 as S-HSH.
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硼烷的振動頻率的確硫氫化物相同
08:35
Now, does it smell of sulfur? Well, if you go back in the literature文學,
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現在問題來了,硼烷的味道跟硫氫化物一樣嗎?
08:40
there’s a man who knew知道 more about Boranes硼烷 than anyone任何人
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Alfred Stock,有史以來最懂硼烷的人
08:43
alive then or since以來, Alfred阿爾弗雷德 Stock股票, he synthesized綜合 all of them.
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當他還在世時,他合成了所有硼烷化合物
08:48
And in an enormous巨大 40-page-頁 paper in German德語 he says, at one point --
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在一篇長達40頁,以德文寫就的大論文裡,他提到一點──
08:54
my wife妻子 is German德語 and she translated翻譯 it for me --
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我的妻子是德國人,是她幫我翻譯原文的
08:57
and at one point he says, "ganz岡茨 widerlichwiderlich GeruchGeruch,"
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Alfred Stock這麼說:"ganz widerlich Geruch"
08:59
an "absolutely絕對 repulsive醜惡 smell," which哪一個 is good. Reminiscent讓人聯想到 of hydrogen sulfide硫化物.
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意即:「非常難聞的味道」。很好,這讓我想起了硫化氫。
09:05
So this fact事實 that Boranes硼烷 smell of sulfur
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這就是說,早在1910年,就已知硼烷的味道
09:08
had been known已知 since以來 1910, and utterly完全 forgotten忘記了 until直到 1997, 1998.
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跟硫化氫相同,之後直至1997, 98年都一直被人遺忘
09:15
Now, the slight輕微 fly in the ointment軟膏 is this: that
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而有點美中不足的是:
09:19
if we smell molecular分子 vibrations振動, we must必須 have a spectroscope分光鏡 in our nose鼻子.
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如果我們的嗅覺是在辨別分子振動,我們的鼻子中必定有個光譜儀
09:24
Now, this is a spectroscope分光鏡, OK, on my laboratory實驗室 bench長凳.
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這就是光譜儀,好吧,其實是我實驗桌上的光譜儀
09:29
And it’s fair公平 to say that if you look up somebody’s nose鼻子,
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公道的說,當你看著一個人的鼻子時
09:31
you’re回覆 unlikely不會 to see anything resembling類似 this.
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你不太可能覺得鼻子跟這個東西有任何相似之處
09:34
And this is the main主要 objection異議 to the theory理論.
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這是這理論最主要的反證
09:36
OK, great, we smell vibrations振動. How? All right?
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好吧,我們聞得出分子的振動。然而,這是怎麼辦到的?
09:41
Now when people ask this kind of question, they neglect忽略 something,
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當人們問這個問題時,他們忽略了一件事
09:43
which哪一個 is that physicists物理學家 are really clever聰明, unlike不像 biologists生物學家.
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那就是:物理學家的確很聰明,不像生物學家
09:47
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
09:50
This is a joke玩笑. I’m a biologist生物學家, OK?
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這是個笑話,我到底還是個生物學家
09:52
So it’s a joke玩笑 against反對 myself.
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這笑話是對我的反諷
09:53
Bob短發 JacklovichJacklovich and John約翰 Lamb羊肉 at Ford Motor發動機 Company公司,
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當福特汽車還投資大量金錢
09:56
in the days when Ford Motor發動機 was spending開支 vast廣大 amounts of money
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在基礎研究上時,公司職員
09:58
on fundamental基本的 research研究, discovered發現 a way
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Bob Jacklovich跟John Lamb找到了
10:02
to build建立 a spectroscope分光鏡 that was intrinsically本質 nano-scale納米級.
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製作內建奈米級光譜儀的方法
10:06
In other words, no mirrors鏡子, no lasers激光器, no prisms棱鏡, no nonsense廢話,
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換句話說,這個小儀器不需要鏡子、
10:09
just a tiny device設備, and he built內置 this device設備. And this device設備 uses使用 electron電子 tunneling隧道.
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雷射、稜鏡等沒有必要的東西,而是利用電子隧穿的原理
10:14
Now, I could do the dance舞蹈 of electron電子 tunneling隧道,
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我是可以跳個電子隧穿舞
10:17
but I’ve已經 doneDONE a video視頻 instead代替, which哪一個 is much more interesting有趣. Here’s how it works作品.
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不過,我還是製作一段更有趣的影片,來告訴你們這是怎麼辦到的
10:22
Electrons電子 are fuzzy模糊 creatures生物, and they can jump across橫過 gaps空白,
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電子是非常活躍的物質,他們能夠跳越
10:26
but only at equal等於 energy能源. If the energy能源 differs不同, they can’t jump.
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兩個能量相同的能隙。當能隙能量不同時,則無法跨越
10:31
Unlike不像 us, they won韓元’t fall秋季 off the cliff懸崖.
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跟我們不同,電子不會從由能量差構成的懸崖摔下
10:33
OK. Now. If something absorbs吸收 the energy能源, the electron電子 can travel旅行.
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如果有某個物質吸收能量,電子就能夠游移
10:40
So here you have a system系統, you have something --
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而這個系統──
10:43
and there’s plenty豐富 of that stuff東東 in biology生物學 --
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生物體中有很多這樣的系統──
10:44
some substance物質 giving an electron電子, and the electron電子 tries嘗試 to jump,
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某些物質提供電子,這些電子試著穿越能隙
10:49
and only when a molecule分子 comes along沿 that has the right vibration振動
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只有具正確振動頻率的某分子存在時
10:53
does the reaction反應 happen發生, OK?
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反應才會發生
10:55
This is the basis基礎 for the device設備 that these two guys at Ford built內置.
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這是福特的兩位職員發明的奈米光譜儀的原理
10:59
And every一切 single part部分 of this mechanism機制 is actually其實 plausible似是而非 in biology生物學.
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這個機器的每一個部份在生物學上都行得通
11:06
In other words, I’ve已經 taken採取 off-the-shelf現成的 components組件,
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也就是說,我曾經拆開過這個儀器
11:07
and I’ve已經 made製作 a spectroscope分光鏡.
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自己做過光譜儀
11:09
What’s nice不錯 about this idea理念, if you have a philosophical哲學上 bent彎曲 of mind心神,
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如果你天生就是個好學之士,你會明白
11:13
is that then it tells告訴 you that the nose鼻子,
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這個點子最棒之處,在於揭示所有的感官
11:15
the ear and the eye are all vibrational振動 senses感官.
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包括嗅覺聽覺跟視覺都是在感覺分子的振動
11:18
Of course課程, it doesn沒有按’t matter, because it could also be that they’re回覆 not.
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當然,這不重要,因為也有可能不是這樣
11:22
But it has a certain某些 --
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但是,這理論在某種程度上──
11:23
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
11:25
-- it has a certain某些 ring to it which哪一個 is attractive有吸引力 to people
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在某種程度上對讀了很多19世紀時的
11:29
who read too much 19th-centuryTH-世紀 German德語 literature文學.
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德國文獻的人們是有吸引力的
11:33
And then a magnificent華麗的 thing happened發生:
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當年,巨大的轉折出現:
11:34
I left academia學術界 and joined加盟 the real真實 world世界 of business商業,
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我離開學術圈,進入產業界的現實世界
11:40
and a company公司 was created創建 around my ideas思路
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根據我的想法成立一個公司
11:43
to make new molecules分子 using運用 my method方法,
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並利用我的技術合成新分子
11:46
along沿 the lines of, let’s put someone有人 else其他’s money where your mouth is.
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也就是讓別人來投資我的信念
11:50
And one of the first things that happened發生 was
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一開始
11:54
we started開始 going around to fragrance香味 companies公司
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我們去拜訪香水公司
11:56
asking for what they needed需要, because, of course課程,
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問他們需要什麼。當然,這是因為
12:00
if you could calculate計算 smell, you don不要’t need chemists化學家.
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如果你能量化味道,就不需要化學家
12:02
You need a computer電腦, a Mac蘋果電腦 will do it, if you know how to program程序 the thing right,
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只要一部蘋果電腦,跟寫出正確的程式
12:06
OK? So you can try a thousand molecules分子,
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就能計算一千個分子
12:10
you can try ten thousand molecules分子 in a weekend週末,
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一個周末你就能處理一萬個分子
12:13
and then you only tell the chemists化學家 to make the right one.
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再讓化學家去合成味道正確的分子
12:16
And so that’s a direct直接 path路徑 to making製造 new odorants增味劑.
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這是合成新味道的直接途徑
12:20
And one of the first things that happened發生 was
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剛開始
12:21
we went to see some perfumers調香師 in France法國 --
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我們去拜訪法國的香水師─
12:23
and here’s where I do my Charles查爾斯 Fleischer弗萊舍 impression印象 --
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這時我模仿Charles Fleischer的演出─
12:25
and one of them says, "You cannot不能 make a coumarin香豆素."
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他們之中有一個人說:「你才做不來香豆素的味道。」
12:29
He says to me, "I bet賭注 you cannot不能 make a coumarin香豆素."
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「我賭你做不來。」
12:32
Now, coumarin香豆素 is a very common共同 thing, a material材料,
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香豆素是非常常見的香水原料
12:36
in fragrance香味 which哪一個 is derived派生 from a bean that comes from South America美國.
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這個味道是從南美洲的一種豆子提煉出來的
12:39
And it is the classic經典 synthetic合成的 aroma香氣 chemical化學, OK?
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但也是個典型的人工合成香味
12:43
It’s the molecule分子 that has made製作 men男人’s fragrances香水
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這個分子讓男性香水的味道
12:47
smell the way they do since以來 1881, to be exact精確.
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從1881年以來就沒有變過
12:50
And the problem問題 is it’s a carcinogen致癌物.
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但問題是,香豆素致癌
12:53
So nobody沒有人 likes喜歡 particularly尤其 to -- you know, aftershave擦面液 with carcinogens致癌物.
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而沒有人會希望他不過是刮個鬍子就會接觸致癌物
12:59
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
13:01
There are some reckless魯莽 people, but it’s not worth價值 it, OK?
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總是有不在乎的人,但還是不值得嘛!
13:04
So they asked us to make a new coumarin香豆素. And so we started開始 doing calculations計算.
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所以他們希望我們合成新的香豆素。我們也做了計算
13:09
And the first thing you do is you calculate計算 the vibrational振動 spectrum光譜
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首先,得計算香豆素的振動頻率譜
13:12
of coumarin香豆素, and you smooth光滑 it out,
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並整理結果來讓我們
13:13
so that you have a nice不錯 picture圖片 of what the sort分類 of chord, so to speak說話, of coumarin香豆素 is.
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對香豆素是個怎樣的香調有比較好的認識
13:19
And then you start開始 cranking起動 the computer電腦 to find other molecules分子,
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接著,是利用電腦分析類似香豆素的分子
13:25
related有關 or unrelated無關, that have the same相同 vibrations振動.
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不相干的分子也可以,來找跟香豆素振動方式相同的分子
13:28
And we actually其實, in this case案件, I’m sorry to say,
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而我們的確,就這個案例,我不得不這麼說
13:32
it happened發生 -- it was serendipitous偶然.
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這方法行得通──我們運氣不錯
13:34
Because I got a phone電話 call from our chief首席 chemist化學家
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當時我們的首席化學家打電話給我
13:37
and he said, look, I’ve已經 just found發現 this such這樣 a beautiful美麗 reaction反應,
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說他剛剛發現一個很美妙的化學反應
13:42
that even if this compound複合 doesn沒有按’t smell of coumarin香豆素,
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所以就算反應產物聞起來不像香豆素
13:43
I want to do it, it’s just such這樣 a nifty俏皮的,
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他還是想研究這個有效率的、只要一個步驟的反應──
13:46
one step -- I mean, chemists化學家 have weird奇怪的 minds頭腦 --
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化學家都有個怪腦袋
13:49
one step, 90 percent百分 yield產量, you know, and you get this lovely可愛
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反正只要一步,我們就能得到這個可愛的結晶物
13:53
crystalline compound複合. Let us try it.
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產率達90%。讓我們試試看吧
13:55
And I said, first of all, let me do the calculation計算 on that compound複合, bottom底部 right,
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我說:首先,我們來對這個物質進行些計算
13:59
which哪一個 is related有關 to coumarin香豆素, but has an extra額外 pentagon五角大樓 inserted插入 into the molecule分子.
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它的部分結構近似香豆素,但多了一個五碳環
14:05
Calculate計算 the vibrations振動, the purple紫色 spectrum光譜 is that new fellow同伴,
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這是結果,紫色表示這個新物質的振動頻率譜
14:10
the white白色 one is the old one.
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而白色的就是香豆素
14:11
And the prediction預測 is it should smell of coumarin香豆素.
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預測顯示,新物質聞起來應該像香豆素
14:15
They made製作 it ... and it smelled exactly究竟 like coumarin香豆素.
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新物質作出來以後,味道正是香豆素的味道
14:23
And this is our new baby寶寶, called tonkenetonkene.
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這是我們的新寶物,香豆烯
14:28
You see, when you’re回覆 a scientist科學家, you’re回覆 always selling銷售 ideas思路.
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你看,當你是個科學家時,你總是在賣你的想法
14:30
And people are very resistant to ideas思路, and rightly正當地 so.
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然而人們抗拒新點子,問題也正是:
14:34
Why should new ideas思路 be accepted公認?
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為什麼我們得接受新點子?
14:36
But when you put a little 10-gram-公克 vial小瓶 on the table in front面前 of perfumers調香師
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但當你在香水師的桌前放上少少的10克
14:42
and it smells氣味 like coumarin香豆素, and it isnISN’t coumarin香豆素,
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"聞起來像香豆素,卻不是香豆素"的物質
14:44
and you’ve已經 found發現 it in three weeks,
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而你只花三個星期找到它
14:46
this focuses重點 everybody每個人’s mind心神 wonderfully奇妙.
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這讓每個人都覺得棒極了
14:49
(Laughter笑聲)
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(笑)
14:50
(Applause掌聲)
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(掌聲)
14:56
And people often經常 ask me, is your theory理論 accepted公認?
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人們常問:你的理論被接受了嗎?
15:00
And I said, well, by whom? I mean most, you know -- there’s three attitudes態度:
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我說:被誰接受呢?聽到這理論的人大致有三種反應:
15:05
You’re回覆 right, and I don不要’t know why, which哪一個 is the most rational合理的 one at this point.
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雖然我不明白,但你是對的,這是目前最合理的推測
15:09
You’re回覆 right, and I don不要’t care關心 how you do it, in a sense;
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你大概是對的,而我也不在乎你是怎麼辦到的
15:13
you bring帶來 me the molecules分子, you know.
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反正你都把新分子給我了
15:14
And: You’re回覆 completely全然 wrong錯誤, and I’m sure you’re回覆 completely全然 wrong錯誤.
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還有:你錯了,我很確定你一定是錯的
15:17
OK? Now, we’re回覆 dealing交易 with people who only want results結果,
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也就是說,我們得面對只在乎結果的人
15:20
and this is the commercial廣告 world世界.
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而這是個資本主義世界
15:22
And they tell us that even if we do it by astrology占星術, they’re回覆 happy快樂.
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他們說,就算我們是靠著占星學知識達成任務,他們還是滿意的
15:27
But we’re回覆 not actually其實 doing it by astrology占星術.
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但我們的確不是靠著占星學知識達成任務
15:30
But for the last three years年份, I’ve已經 had what I consider考慮 to be
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在最近三年,我做著一份我認為是
15:32
the best最好 job工作 in the entire整個 universe宇宙, which哪一個 is to put my hobby愛好 --
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全宇宙最棒的工作:這讓我能將我的嗜好
15:37
which哪一個 is, you know, fragrance香味 and all the magnificent華麗的 things --
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也就是香氛跟所有美好的事物
15:39
plus a little bit of biophysics生物物理學, a small amount of self-taught自學成才 chemistry化學
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跟一些些生理學,一些些自學來的化學結合起來
15:44
at the service服務 of something that actually其實 works作品.
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做出一些實際有用的貢獻
15:46
Thank you very much.
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非常謝謝大家
15:47
(Applause掌聲)
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(掌聲)
Translated by Ching-Yi Wu
Reviewed by Wang-Ju Tsai

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Luca Turin - Nose
Biophysicist Luca Turin studies the science of smell. He's the author of Perfumes: The Guide, and the subject of Chandler Burr's 2003 book The Emperor of Scent. His next project: developing an artificial nose.

Why you should listen

Biophysicist Luca Turin studies the science of smell. He's a leading proponent of the vibrational theory of smell -- the idea that when our noses pick up a scent, we're reacting to the vibrational properties of the molecule we're smelling. (This is in opposition to the shape theory of smell, which imagines smelly molecules fitting into conveniently shaped receptors in our noses.)

His work on olfactory reception and the prediction of what a particular molecule will smell like has led to an interesting line of work: designing new fragrances and flavor molecules, as part of the firm Flexitral, where he is CTO. Coming up, he'll be part of a team in Biomedical Engineering at MIT, headed by Professor Shuguang Zhang, to develop an artificial nose made with natural receptors as part of DARPA's just-launched RealNose program.

He's the author of several books on scent, including Perfumes: The Guide and The Secret of Scent, and is the subject of Chandler Burr's 2003 book The Emperor of Scent.


 

 

More profile about the speaker
Luca Turin | Speaker | TED.com