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Mystery #2Tier 2smell and memory

Why can one whiff of a smell suddenly throw you back to a moment years ago?

You catch a whiff of something, maybe suncream or a certain flower, and suddenly you are five years old again, standing somewhere you had completely forgotten. It happens in a flash, before you can even choose to remember. Why can a single smell fling you back through the years like a time machine?

A round golden loaf of freshly baked bread cooling on a wire rack
Photo: Dana Hutchinson · CC BY 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Your guess

Why do you think a smell can drag up an old memory so fast?

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