With Matters of the Heart, Trust Your Nose - Tristram Wyatt

The science of human attraction is inexact. Scientists know that when dogs smell each other, their powerful noses pick up on molecules that our less potent human sniffers don’t detect. But pheromone expert and animal behaviorist Dr. Tristram Wyatt says that humans, too, may make decisions on partner-selection based on pheromones that our bodies react to without being aware of it. But Wyatt laments that it’s easy to study a mouse or a moth, human modesty has so far prevented science from following our physical chemistry into the bedroom and decoding the mysteries of love. Wyatt also says that while perfumes may make popular gifts, each person’s subtle smells comingle differently with the potions, making perfume selection difficult unless it can be smelled on the person who will wear it.