In a reported first, the NICT (National Institute of Communications Technology) in Japan was able to scientifically prove olfactory effects on low-level perception such as vision perception of speed.

This new discovery is not only academically meaningful but also is expected to be used for industrial application in the future.

Humans largely perceive the world around them based on the 5 senses. When more than one sense is in play to perceive the information, however, what is known as cross-modal perception occurs. This can be observed when one is watching a movie (vision & hearing) or cooking (smell & taste). Each sense relies on and influences one another to process the information in the brain.

Olfactory stimulation is especially known to have a strong influence on human perception in cross-modal methods, such as perfume changing people’s moods, or aromatherapy improving relaxation. You can see many cross-modal perceptions in everyday life.

In this experiment, NICT were able to scientifically prove the effect of odors on perception in speed, utilizing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies based on psychology and physiology data.

This study was published in Frontiers in Neuroscience, a Swedish national academic research journal on August 2nd, 2021, under the title Olfactory Stimulation Modulates Visual Perception Without Training.

According to this study, the participants found that the motion dot moved faster when experiencing lemon odor compared to no odor, while perceived slower movement of the motion dot with vanilla odor, using psychophysical experiment methods. The participants’ brain activity was also monitored by fMRI. The collected data showed that the olfactory stimulus changed their brain activities in visual cortices, as well.

This study answers directly that the olfactory stimulus not only affects high-level cognitive function such as emotions and memories but also low-level cognitive function such as visual perception of speed. This is a great step towards better understanding the characteristics of information processes such as cross-modal effects and different senses of the human brain.

However, many questions still remain as to how certain odors modulate our perspectives, or if it is because the perception of the time changes. While the mechanism of this effect needs to be further investigated, this discovery creates a significant impact in the field. NICT is determined to further their studies to apply in other industries such as the entertainment industry.