A new electronic tongue can copy flavors like cake and fish soup. It helps create virtual food experiences but can’t replicate smells that are also important for taste.
Scientists at The Ohio State University created e-Taste, a system that can analyze a food’s taste and partly recreate it in a person’s mouth. They use chemicals for salty, sour, sweet, bitter, and umami taste.
The system identifies the levels of these chemicals in food and turns them into digital signals. Then it sends these signals to a pump, which releases small amounts of flavor-containing gels under a person’s tongue.
The system was tested with single flavors and complex tastes like lemonade and cake. People could tell the difference between these flavors most of the time. However, the system cannot replicate taste as accurately as a human tongue because taste also involves smell and other senses.
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Vocabulary List:
- Flavors /ˈfleɪ.vər/ (noun): Distinctive tastes that can be detected by the tongue.
- Replica /ˈrɛp.lɪ.kə/ (noun): An exact copy or reproduction of something.
- Analyze /ˈæn.ə.laɪz/ (verb): To examine something in detail for purposes of explanation and interpretation.
- Complex /ˈkɒm.pleks/ (adjective): Consisting of many different and connected parts.
- Chemicals /ˈkem.ɪ.kəl/ (noun): Substances with a distinct molecular composition that are used in or produced by chemical processes.
- Experiences /ɪkˈspɪə.ri.ən.sɪz/ (noun): Practical contact with and observation of facts or events.
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