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Quick Write: Taste and Smell
Olfaction is mediated by one cranial nerve. Taste is mediated by three cranial nerves. Why do you think evolution gave more nerves to taste than to smell? What are the consequences of this?
Quick Write: Taste and Smell Answer
Personally, I believe that evolution facilitated more nerves to taste than smell because human survival is more dependent on taste than smell. Human survival is dependent mostly on nutrition, in which taste plays a significant role. Other primate depends more on their sense of smell for survival. For example, elephants can smell danger and food even from a distance, hence they have more smell receptors. Sense of smell is more useful for elephants for survival.