Abstract
IN a recent communication1 and accompanying editorial comment2, it has been asserted that Amoore's stereochemical theory of odour is validated (and the vibrational theory discredited) by a correlation coefficient of 0.90 between subjectively estimated odour similarities of a number of substances to benzaldehyde (taken as a standard), and a computer-generated scale of molecular shape resemblances. These claims can be questioned on several grounds.
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References
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WRIGHT, R. Stereochemical and Vibrational Theories of Odour. Nature 239, 226 (1972). https://doi.org/10.1038/239226a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/239226a0
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