The Neuroscience of Smell and How Machines are Learning It
👃 What does the human experience look like when one of our most primal senses disappears?
Join us at York Street Collective for a lecture with Vijai Anma, founder of Nosy and olfactory researcher, whose work explores the overlooked power of smell in shaping human experience. Inspired by a personal journey of losing their sense of smell during COVID, they reveal how scent influences memory, emotion, attraction, and survival—and why it remains one of the most complex senses to digitize.
From the biology and neuroscience behind olfaction to cutting-edge machine learning tools like the Large Essence Model (LEM)—a “GPT for smell”—this lecture dives into how humans and machines perceive scent, the challenges of training our noses, and how new research is transforming both human perception and digital applications. Through interactive demonstrations, the audience will explore smell perception firsthand, uncovering what scent reveals about being human. 🌿✨
❓FAQs❓
What should I expect?
7:00-7:40 --> arrival & chats
7:40-8:20 --> lecture
8:20-9:00 --> q&a and more chatting
Who's invited?
Anyone with an interest in learning new things, meeting new people, and doing fun things on weeknights! Lots of people came solo to our last event, so don't be afraid to do the same—you’ll meet some awesome people!
Do I have to be 21+?
No :) This venue is alcohol free!
What about parking?
There's no parking on-site, so we recommend street parking or using public transportation.
What about refunds?
You can refund your ticket up to 24 hours before the event starts. Since this is a limited-space event, we encourage you to update your RSVP if you can’t make it—this helps us keep spots open for others.
What about accessibility?
We want our lectures to be as accessible as possible. Depending on the venue, some audience members may need to stand, and our rule of thumb is that around 5% of attendees may not have seats. If you need specific seating accommodations, we recommend arriving early to secure a seat, or emailing us at [email protected] so we can make arrangements for you.
Accessibility can vary depending on the space, so please research our specific venue to learn more about things like wheelchair access and service animal policies. If you have any accessibility needs not covered here, feel free to reach out and we’ll do our best to support you.
I can't make it to this event. How do I stay updated for future events?
How do I become a speaker?
Fill out this form and we'll reach out to you if we think your lecture is a good fit! 👉 Speaker form
💸 What about the ticket structure?
Every ticket sold goes directly back into the business. However, we want to make our events accessible to everyone. If cost is a barrier, please reach out for financial assistance by emailing [email protected].
Thanks for supporting our growing mission!
*For any other questions or special accommodations, please email [email protected].