The other night I was thinking about the ‘would you rather be deaf or blind’ question, and it occured to me that, as far as I know, we don’t have English words for the inability to smell, or the inability to taste. Does anyone know, first of all, of any cases in which people have been born this way, and what the names of these conditions are called, respectively?
Anosmia is loss of the sense of smell, and ageusia is loss of the sense of taste. If you go here: http://www.uchc.edu/uconntasteandsmell/gen.html, there’s some pretty good general information on both.
My sister has a close friend that cannot smell, although if something is strong enough, such as exhaust from heavy machinery, she can ‘taste’ it.
Blah…I should have known.
Thanks!
Is there a corresponding inability to use your sense of touch? What would you call someone who has no tactile senses?