useful?
February 17, 2016 7:51 AM   Subscribe

 
Probably a better metric than dating profiles.
posted by cjorgensen at 8:30 AM on February 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


I really really wanna do this but I'm in DC. I'm seriously considering dragging my friend who lives in NYC to help me.
posted by numaner at 8:40 AM on February 17, 2016


Seems like the Smell Dating thing would actually be a pretty good way to find compatible partners because any two people who actually go through with it are likely to be compatible with each other, or at least more compatible than with the general public.
posted by baf at 8:41 AM on February 17, 2016 [8 favorites]


Why would I want to inhale a total stranger's body odor? Looking at and talking to someone doesn't involve their molecules entering my body, for the most part. I would vote no.
posted by waving at 8:44 AM on February 17, 2016


I'm not currently in a dating situation, but I signed up for that USELESS newsletter. I want a different Internet than the one I've had lately.
posted by layceepee at 8:49 AM on February 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


The heart wants what the nose wants it to want
posted by Auden at 8:57 AM on February 17, 2016 [7 favorites]


Does it require this browser addon?
posted by sammyo at 8:58 AM on February 17, 2016




I have a poor sense of smell, but I try to smell every part of my date's body as soon as possible. Usually by the fifth date I'll know which part to avoid smelling if we are to be joined as one forever and ever.
posted by numaner at 9:05 AM on February 17, 2016 [3 favorites]


I smell profit!
posted by grumpybear69 at 9:08 AM on February 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


Man...old sweat is gross, though. Fresh smells, on the body, are good, but stale t-shirts?
posted by Omnomnom at 9:17 AM on February 17, 2016


WITHOUT DEODORANT, guys.
I don't even like my own smell after three days with no deodorant!
posted by Omnomnom at 9:17 AM on February 17, 2016


Looking at and talking to someone doesn't involve their molecules entering my body, for the most part.

My ex was simply the best smelling person ever. First thing in the morning, end of the day, right after a shower.... Didn't matter. Always smelled amazing, like honey and mushrooms and fresh cream. Smell plays a huge role in sexual attraction, whether conscious or not.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 9:18 AM on February 17, 2016 [1 favorite]


You don't smell people on a first date? What the hell? Why would you avoid that opportunity?

It's a matter of screening through the less invasive senses first, along with getting a glimpse of his personality. We all love our own smell and our partner's smell but I reserve smelling strangers without forming some sort of friendship first. I think if the person of interest turns out to have a particularly bad odor, that would be pretty obvious from the first meeting but deeply smelling someone isn't a thing I'm willing to dive into on a first date, unless of course, it's turns into a weekend long first date.
posted by waving at 9:23 AM on February 17, 2016


Kissing someone is a multi-sensory experience. For that matter, so is hugging. Kissing someone on a first date isn't weird.
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 9:30 AM on February 17, 2016


I recently stopped dating someone largely because I didn't like the scents she wore. That stuff's important.
posted by rock swoon has no past at 9:44 AM on February 17, 2016


I remember reading a book a while back - I wish I could remember which one it was - in which the author wished she had a magic perfume, one whose smell would make her irresistible.

She imagined capturing the man of her dreams that way. I imagined her swamped with besotted suitors, like the moths trapped by these genetic engineers who got E. coli to produce pheromone precursors.
posted by clawsoon at 9:45 AM on February 17, 2016


What rock swoon and feckless said. Smell is definitely near the top of the list for me, and it's not just dependent on how often he showers. A person's basic smell can make or break how much time you want to spend with them.
posted by Melismata at 9:54 AM on February 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


I once had a crush on a guy who smelled like a moldy laundry hamper up close but was otherwise really cute and smart and just my type. I was willing to believe he just needed to learn to wash his clothes better. But possibly I dodged a moldy-smelling bullet when he didn't return my feelings. I like to think so.
posted by emjaybee at 10:06 AM on February 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


I really kinda wanna do this, and this is definitely the sort of thing I'd do, except ...

Q: Why does this cost $25?

A: Our fee covers the cost of our service, including t-shirt and shipping costs. The Smell Dating pilot program is not-for-profit. Our finances are available upon request.


Seems a little expensive for what they're doing, but okay...

Q: Why don't you ask participants about sexual orientation or gender?

A: Smell dating delivers you from prejudicial cultural images that interfere with the ancient cues of attraction. At the same time, a growing body of research suggests that a person's genetic compatibility, gender, age, and predisposition to illness are reflected in their "smell signature." Even in blinded experiments, subjects' smell preferences align broadly with their sexual desires.


Starting to lean towards nope ...

And then I get to this :

Q: Is my genetic data safe?

A: We really don't know. Rest assured we are committed to an intuitive experience of the world rather than an analytical one. For now, we will only share your anonymized genetic sample with our members. Our terms and conditions may change in the future based on our capricious whims.


Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope.

So I guess their target audience is ... financially-secure nerdy bisexuals who aren't concerned about their privacy?

Hmmm yeah I guess this would go over pretty well at Burning Man.
posted by panama joe at 10:13 AM on February 17, 2016 [8 favorites]


Metafilter: financially-secure nerdy bisexuals who aren't concerned about their privacy
posted by clockzero at 10:26 AM on February 17, 2016 [4 favorites]


Looking at and talking to someone doesn't involve their molecules entering my body, for the most part.

I guarantee you that you will be inhaling molecules from your date unless you are outside and at least 15 feet away at all times. Not only that but you will be inhaling molecules from just about everybody else nearby too. The only thing you have even the least bit of control over is the relative proportions.
posted by srboisvert at 10:32 AM on February 17, 2016 [1 favorite]


@panama joe

I think that "capricious whims", in particular, is a tip-off that this is intended as parody... much like other USELESS projects in the FPP.
posted by .holmes at 10:47 AM on February 17, 2016


Okay, so, then a better question is, why isn't anybody doing this? Were it not for the sketchy privacy stuff, I may have been down.

You'd have to let people select for gender and orientation, but I think this might have broad-based appeal among the right nerdy set (i.e. my friends).
posted by panama joe at 11:01 AM on February 17, 2016


I remember reading a book a while back - I wish I could remember which one it was - in which the author wished she had a magic perfume, one whose smell would make her irresistible.

This one (Perfume by Patrick Suskind) has a scent-based plot...don't want to give it away, but IIRC there was a similar magic perfume involved...
posted by spacewrench at 11:19 AM on February 17, 2016


The best smelling man I ever met? Reader, I married him.

Honestly, I think a lot of how people smell comes down to lifestyle, diet, and the places where that person spends their time. Which are important things for compatibility. I've seen the stuff about genetics and pheromones, but I think it's just these more prosaic correlations that make smell such a big thing for attraction.
posted by elizilla at 11:24 AM on February 17, 2016


armpit and chill
posted by cortex at 11:32 AM on February 17, 2016 [5 favorites]


A phone line that puts callers on hold for seven years.

This just reminded me of how I 'broke into L.A. radio' while I was in college, which was by being a rather obnoxious caller to a talk show host with a great sense of humor (a now extinct species) and agreeing off-the-air to being a 'running joke' as the caller who gets "put on hold" before he can finish talking. It not only made me a 'sympathetic character' and gave me an 'inside' to the radio station that led to a job screening phone calls for another less-fun talk show, but nearly put me in the Guinness Book of World Records as one of their researchers took seriously the premise that I was constantly waiting on hold between on-air appearances (part of the premise). This WAS he first time I, as Wendell, became a running joke, preparing me for my future on The Internet. (And I still have a fan-made t-shirt that says "KEEP AMERICA BEAUTIFUL - KEEP WENDELL ON HOLD"... we may need one saying "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN - PUT WENDELL BACK ON HOLD")

Anyway, I totally endorse Call To Wait.
posted by oneswellfoop at 11:33 AM on February 17, 2016 [4 favorites]


Smell dating. Yes.
I've only ever fallen in love with men that smell right.

Not colognes or anything, but just their smell.

Smell is first, brain is second, looks are third for me.

I once had a terrible crush on a man that wore only Old Spice deodorant, but I could barely stand to talk to him because his personality wasn't that great, and he wasn't very smart. But to stand next to him! Heaven! I know it was just how he naturally smelled, enchanting.

If I were single I would sign up for this immediately. Can I sign up anyway? I'd love to get a strange man's smell in my home. Is this cheating on my husband? Is this like ordering a cam girl's underwear? I guess it gets weird pretty fast.
posted by littlewater at 12:07 PM on February 17, 2016 [3 favorites]


I don't know what that market will support in these days of everybody just of couple of clicks away from being able to make themselves a semi-professional sexy times provider, but fetish-folk-wise, $25 seems like a steal compared to what people used to pay for used sweaty clothes.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 12:26 PM on February 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


am I the only one who found the sweaty-nose background image slightly disconcerting? just reading that page made me feel like someone was invading my personal space
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:27 PM on February 17, 2016


I know I am compatible with someone when they say "uh, sorry, I'm probably kind of stinky" and I want to mush my face into their chest forever.
posted by louche mustachio at 1:41 PM on February 17, 2016 [1 favorite]


"Don't I stink?"


"NOPE"
posted by louche mustachio at 1:41 PM on February 17, 2016




This far down and no one has mentioned dogs?

I mean, did no one else read "You don't smell people on a first date? What the hell? Why would you avoid that opportunity?" and not think: "butts"?

Just me?
posted by Mezentian at 2:19 AM on February 18, 2016 [1 favorite]


I don't want to be the first person to mention butts in too many threads. My reputation is bad enough as it is.
posted by louche mustachio at 6:26 AM on February 18, 2016


I would A+ #1 definitely do this if I were in the market. Smell is SO important to me in a partner. I could never be with someone if I didn't like how they smelled -- how they REALLY smell, after working out, after a shower, after sex, all the time. Mmmmm. Smell is the best.
posted by fiercecupcake at 12:31 PM on February 18, 2016


.

For all those on medications that alter how they smell.
posted by Freelance Demiurge at 1:29 PM on February 19, 2016


Worth mentioning also the huge number of people who fetishize sniffing underwear, armpits, etc.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 7:46 PM on February 19, 2016


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