5 ms·

Christmas is the busy season for ham sniffers

34 points by gautamcgoel 5y ago

neonate 5y ago
https://archive.md/Ya3ya https://archive.md/Ya3ya
mmettler 5y ago
I can’t decide if I’m happy or sad that this wasn’t about ham radio.
- btreesOfSpring 5y ago
  Initially thought the same thing but the domain was a giveaway that the topic of ham radio was going to be highly unlikely.
- cbfrench 5y ago
  I’d imagine the ham radio version of this would be about trying to track down hordes of unlicensed operators who got a new Baofeng for Christmas and are now plaguing the local repeater?
  - greesil 5y ago
    That was what I thought the article is supposed to be about. Imagine my surprise.
- jareklupinski 5y ago
  same, thought it was a clever play on words oh well at least i learned something
scop 5y ago
This seems like the perfect setup for a Coen brothers film
- Joker_vD 5y ago
  There is already a classic "The Wing or the Thigh" [0] with Louis de Funes. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wing_or_the_Thigh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wing_or_the_Thigh
kevinmchugh 5y ago
There's several industries that employ noses and I'm suddenly very curious how they insure those employees, especially now that anosmia and parosmia are so much more common
pattusk 5y ago
> Ms. Sánchez Blanco said the company has given the test only three times in the last 20 years. She, Mr. Vega and Rocío Ortega Velázquez, 46, the deputy technical director who is Ms. Sánchez Blanco’s superior and who spot checks Mr. Vega’s work, are the only three people to have gotten a perfect score. So basically every single one of the test takers got a perfect score? Or am I misreading this? I have to say the article left me a bit skeptical about there being any sort of scientific basis for the sniffing.
- actually_a_dog 5y ago
  You're assuming each time the test was given, it was only given to one person. It could have been given to many people over the years, if it was administered to multiple people at once.
- mlyle 5y ago
  > So basically every single one of the test takers got a perfect score? Or am I misreading this? Three sessions, not three takers. > I have to say the article left me a bit skeptical about there being any sort of scientific basis for the sniffing. I don't know about super scientific basis... but you question peoples' ability to smell food and make decisions about how good other people will find its smell and taste after it is cooked?
- inglor_cz 5y ago
  I think people generally underestimate the power of smell. For example, Parkinson's disease can be detected by smell of certain molecules that start to seep into the sebum. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-47627179 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-47627179 Cancers can be sniffed by electronic noses: https://www.pennmedicine.org/news/news-releases/2021/june/electronic-nose-accurately-sniffs-out-hard-to-detect-cancers https://www.pennmedicine.org/news/news-releases/2021/june/el... It is not unthinkable that certain people can have better sense of smell than others and possibly train it. We are mostly a sight-oriented species, but mammals in general sniff a lot.
  - Buttons840 5y ago
Thorentis 5y ago
The test they take seems highly flawed and mostly luck if you ask me.
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
1vuio0pswjnm7 5y ago
When was this submitted. Currently says "7 hours ago" but https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=gautamcgoel https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=gautamcgoel says "2 days ago".
otterley 5y ago
If you haven't had the pleasure of eating Jamón Ibérico de Bellota yet, I recommend a visit to Europe (if not Spain, which is itself delightful) and eating some. It has a rich, sensational, incomparable flavor. Even the best Jamón Serrano you can get in the US pales in comparison. Unfortunately it's nearly impossible to import lawfully into the US because of some nonsensical laws: the USDA has to inspect and approve even foreign meat producers, even if they are otherwise deemed safe by governments we also trust.
- martin8412 5y ago
  I love Jamón Serrano, living in Spain I eat it quite often, though personally I’m more partial to Lomo which is more meaty
- devilbunny 5y ago
  No connection to them, other than being a satisfied customer, but latienda.com does import Iberico de Bellota. Probably not the very finest of it, but it is the real deal. You can also get it from cincojotas.us , which is the website of one of the best-regarded producers. Getting a snack-sized portion is somewhat more difficult, but if you have a really good Spanish restaurant nearby, they should have something like this on the menu.

34 points by gautamcgoel 5y ago

neonate 5y ago

https://archive.md/Ya3ya https://archive.md/Ya3ya

mmettler 5y ago

I can’t decide if I’m happy or sad that this wasn’t about ham radio.

btreesOfSpring 5y ago
Initially thought the same thing but the domain was a giveaway that the topic of ham radio was going to be highly unlikely.
cbfrench 5y ago
I’d imagine the ham radio version of this would be about trying to track down hordes of unlicensed operators who got a new Baofeng for Christmas and are now plaguing the local repeater?
- greesil 5y ago
  That was what I thought the article is supposed to be about. Imagine my surprise.
jareklupinski 5y ago
same, thought it was a clever play on words oh well at least i learned something

scop 5y ago

This seems like the perfect setup for a Coen brothers film

Joker_vD 5y ago
There is already a classic "The Wing or the Thigh" [0] with Louis de Funes. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wing_or_the_Thigh https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wing_or_the_Thigh

kevinmchugh 5y ago

There's several industries that employ noses and I'm suddenly very curious how they insure those employees, especially now that anosmia and parosmia are so much more common

pattusk 5y ago

> Ms. Sánchez Blanco said the company has given the test only three times in the last 20 years. She, Mr. Vega and Rocío Ortega Velázquez, 46, the deputy technical director who is Ms. Sánchez Blanco’s superior and who spot checks Mr. Vega’s work, are the only three people to have gotten a perfect score. So basically every single one of the test takers got a perfect score? Or am I misreading this? I have to say the article left me a bit skeptical about there being any sort of scientific basis for the sniffing.

actually_a_dog 5y ago
You're assuming each time the test was given, it was only given to one person. It could have been given to many people over the years, if it was administered to multiple people at once.
mlyle 5y ago
> So basically every single one of the test takers got a perfect score? Or am I misreading this? Three sessions, not three takers. > I have to say the article left me a bit skeptical about there being any sort of scientific basis for the sniffing. I don't know about super scientific basis... but you question peoples' ability to smell food and make decisions about how good other people will find its smell and taste after it is cooked?
inglor_cz 5y ago
I think people generally underestimate the power of smell. For example, Parkinson's disease can be detected by smell of certain molecules that start to seep into the sebum. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-47627179 https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-47627179 Cancers can be sniffed by electronic noses: https://www.pennmedicine.org/news/news-releases/2021/june/electronic-nose-accurately-sniffs-out-hard-to-detect-cancers https://www.pennmedicine.org/news/news-releases/2021/june/el... It is not unthinkable that certain people can have better sense of smell than others and possibly train it. We are mostly a sight-oriented species, but mammals in general sniff a lot.
- Buttons840 5y ago

Thorentis 5y ago

The test they take seems highly flawed and mostly luck if you ask me.

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

1vuio0pswjnm7 5y ago

When was this submitted. Currently says "7 hours ago" but https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=gautamcgoel https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=gautamcgoel says "2 days ago".

otterley 5y ago

If you haven't had the pleasure of eating Jamón Ibérico de Bellota yet, I recommend a visit to Europe (if not Spain, which is itself delightful) and eating some. It has a rich, sensational, incomparable flavor. Even the best Jamón Serrano you can get in the US pales in comparison. Unfortunately it's nearly impossible to import lawfully into the US because of some nonsensical laws: the USDA has to inspect and approve even foreign meat producers, even if they are otherwise deemed safe by governments we also trust.

martin8412 5y ago
I love Jamón Serrano, living in Spain I eat it quite often, though personally I’m more partial to Lomo which is more meaty
devilbunny 5y ago
No connection to them, other than being a satisfied customer, but latienda.com does import Iberico de Bellota. Probably not the very finest of it, but it is the real deal. You can also get it from cincojotas.us , which is the website of one of the best-regarded producers. Getting a snack-sized portion is somewhat more difficult, but if you have a really good Spanish restaurant nearby, they should have something like this on the menu.