Nature’s supercomputer lives on your dog | Ed Yong

Ed Yong explores the hidden features that make dog noses so incredible.

Many animals, from sharks to elephants, are champions of olfaction (smelling).

Dogs are the most famous. Through their sense of smell, dogs can tell which direction a person traveled and even can distinguish between identical twins.

Dogs can be trained to detect just about anything, including electronic devices.

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About Ed Yong:
Ed Yong is a Pulitzer Prize–winning science writer on the staff of The Atlantic, where he also won the George Polk Award for science reporting, among other honors. His first book, I Contain Multitudes, was a New York Times bestseller and won numerous awards. His work has appeared in The New Yorker, National Geographic, Wired, The New York Times, Scientific American, and more. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife, Liz Neeley, and their corgi, Typo.

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Read more of our stories on dogs’ senses:
Theory of canine mind: can dogs understand human intent?
Your dog knows when you’re speaking a foreign language
Why do dogs tilt their heads? Smarter dogs do it more often.
Dogs know when people are lying

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[bigthink]

What's your favorite thing you've seen a dog do?

[katherineg]

Dogs are the best gift humans ever gave themselves. When early man took the friendly and docile wolf pups, bred them, and developed dogs, we made our best friends. Some dogs smell cancer. I loved my dogs and on walks the leash was loose and I let themselves smell to their hearts content.

[xabiergranja]

This was wonderful. It made me really miss my dog, who lived to 15 years... Boy, are they wonderful creatures. Some of the best this planet can offer.

[chinookvalley]

As a person, with epilepsy, who has been saved many times over by my dogs, we don't value them for all the gifts they give us, freely and willingly. Humans have much to learn from our canine brothers and sisters.

[trishthompson]

I’m so grateful for this video. My pups hardly walk and smell everything so I would say “this is a walk” and hurry them along. This have changed my mind on to how we will “walk” from now on ❤❤

[Jon.A.Scholt]

I always let my dog sniff to her hearts content on her morning and evening walks. She's almost 14, and besides her starting to lose her hearing, she's still incredibly healthy. I wish she lives at least another 14 years!

[romaholcomb]

My 14 year old black lab, Katie Grace, went blind two years ago. She now travels by smell, it's awesome to watch.

[bdiesel]

I’ve always thought of it as the idea that dogs really inhabit a different reality, or more like a parallel reality, to us. They sense and experience the world in a way that is substantially different from that of humans.

[bradmiller]

When we walk every morning, I let my big Pyrenees set the pace...and the path, to some extent. It is his time, and I don't try to rush him or direct him more than necessary. We don't make many miles every week, but his time with nature is quality time; it is his time. Just watching my dog confirms everything you're teaching in this video; thanks !!!

[seleniums]

I’ve read many articles by Ed Yong on the Covid-19 pandemic. His articles were a source of well organized data translated into bits of knowledge anyone can understand. This kind of feels like seeing an actor in a movie you love, and then discovering the rest of his filmography. Excited to discover more of his work

[jimba]

As a husky owner, I can verify my dogs nose in a continuous “ON” state. The scent of objects clearly linger around him. Dogs don’t smell like we do. I always refer to my dogs nose as a little brain. That nose has a personality of its own. I don’t walk my dog.I take him out for smelling. Smelling makes him tired and takes a lot of mental energy. It is difficult to make this working dog physically tired

[Reloaded]

Dogs actually can tell time. They can measure the strength of your scent when you come home, so they start to wait for your arrival based on that.

[LordBillington]

My dog sniffs everything and I don't mind letting her. It's her walk, not mine. Whenever she sniffs all her usual places I always used to tell my wife that the dog was reading her newspaper.

[basarozbent]

I used to think my dog should be able to walk in my tempo but slightly behind. She was so active so I've never achieved that. But I've become a faster and more agile walker, she is always a good inspiration...
Now that I kind of follow her and wait for her sniffing, I really feel better during our walks, and feel she's checking on me more often.
We usually have rotten food or stray animals' poop on streets, so I am reluctant to let her have the time she likes..
That was a great video which made me all emotional on my commute, Just by listening...

[annohalloran]

They are our parents in so many ways. They brought us up and taught us cooperation and selfless support.

[jho]

I always dedicate a portion of our daily walks for smelling. For the joy she brings me, I'm more than happy to try to repay the favour by letting her smell to her heart's content.

[deepshah]

That nose in the thumbnail made me come here

[IvanPavlov]

When I walk my dog I only use a leash because he doesn’t have a clue about crossing the street, but I always have it loose so he can smell what he likes. It’s always interesting to me why he finds. Specific patch of grass so interesting and I try to imagine how would it be to experience the world in the same way dogs do.

[dredubz]

My dog is my best friend ❤ I let him choose our walking route each day and let him sniff as much as he wants. Sniffing is his favourite thing after food. The walk can take a long time, but my dog needs this. If he doesn’t get enough sniffing in each day, he gets very anxious and bored. This style of walking has also strengthened our relationship and bond tremendously.

[itstotallyrandom]

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