With funding from the National Science Foundation, a multi-institutional team uses blind scent-tracing tests and other experiments to better understand how animals are able to localize odors. Pitt’s Nathan Urban and Bard Ermentrout are part of this olfaction faction. They’re hoping the investigation will inform new technologies; it may even provide insight into neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s, autism, and Parkinson’s. This Pitt Medcast was inspired by a story (bit.ly/pittmed_smell) from the Summer 2016 issue of Pitt Med magazine (bit.ly/pittmedmag). Written and read by Elaine Vitone. Produced by Elaina Zachos with Elaine Vitone. Our executive producer is Erica Lloyd. Sound effects courtesy of freesound.org. Mosquito sound effect by djfroyd. Special thanks to Jennifer Baron, a.k.a. The Garment District (bit.ly/2lDyFlW), for our music. We're gathering data on our podcast! To help us out, please complete a quick survey at http://survey.podtrac.com/start-survey.aspx?pubid=5VmBB36bqSzl&ver=short