okei asked:
Captain Haddock is going for a country walk with Tintin, and he takes a deep breath admiring the fresh air just when he happens to be passing in the vicinity of a rubbish tip which he then of course notices.
Is there a subconscious physiological response to bad smells which triggers you to take in a deep breath and notice it? I believe there might be…what do you think?
Is probably a subconscious need to know a) what is producing that smell so we know for the future and b) to make doubly sure its not ourselves.
There is no particular subconscious cue to take a particularly deep breath under these circumstances. Remember, Capt. H. took a deep breath for pleasure, and was coincidentally next to the rubbish tip.
Remember that things smell “bad” to us as an avoidance mechanism i.e. Run away from it, Don’t eat it, etc.
Because of this, while there isn’t a cue to inhale deeply, bad odors often seem to be inhaled deeply because they are keenly noticed. So the perception is one of a deeper breath than might be the actual case.