neilsf1975@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
wrote:
>
> And even amongst "ordinary" humans there is lots of variation in sense
> of smell. For example, where I work it is useful to be able to smell
> low concentrations of cyanide (as hydrogen cyanide gas). Most people
> smell something like almonds. One person says he doesn't smell it,
> but instead he tastes it. There is another who can't smell it at all,
> and so is totally dependent on personal electronic sensors and lab
> cyanide alarms to warn if something is going wrong.
In college organic chemistry, I worked with strong cyanide
reagents and sometimes they were dumped down the sink
with acids that would liberate HCN gas, causing
evacuation of the undergraduate chem lab, and I never
noticed any odor like almonds or anything else.
Apparently, this is well known.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanide#Appearance_and_odor
