[gg1993]

Do you still have this knack of smell or did it develop into something else? I spent a lot of time in the hospital growing up because of my brothers being admitted and stuff so I used to people watch often and got pretty good at just being able to see someone and guesstimate what they have/needed to be treated for.

[vanc_cefepime]

Still got the knack of smell from years of seeing/smelling it in med school and residency. I don’t think it developed into anything else. It’s just repetition I suppose. Now a days, when people go see a provider for “sore throat” they automatically get a throat swab and wouldn’t be surprised if the provider doesn’t even look in your mouth. Pre-covid, I was always looking into people mouths and rarely wore a mask unless it was proven flu or RSV and I think that’s where I was able to hone my smelling skill. Now things like c diff and blood in stool doesn’t require any skill. You smell it once and you know.

Edit: sorry for delayed response. I hope this answers your question.

[Zenzero]

There are just distinct smells you start to pick up on as you treat a variety of illnesses. There is no superpower to it. Scents tend to form a long memory, so if you catch a good whiff of a suppurative exudate you'll never forget it. For many of us we probably pick up on some VOCs emitted by various bacteria and it can give us the strong intuition the poster above describes.

[gg1993]

Yes, kinda assumed that a bit, since illness do give out a certain smell,,was just wondering what else blossomed from that. Maybe the only superpower is having awareness,,

[QuarterReptile]

He probably learned it. When I worked at one, I used to be able to smell what power a nuclear reactor had been operating at.

[gg1993]

{{asking nicely}} do you credit this for something else that’s developed in your life? Just wondering if things like these help us do something else..{{not so serious}}

[QuarterReptile]

No, not at all. I mean, I could think of reasons why I could smell it, but any application of it is probably noticing that stuff is about to catch on fire in an industrial setting..

I teach engineering undergrad now.