This Job Stinks

Can you smell the difference between burnt vanilla and worn socks? If so, you might pass the test to get a new job with Japan’s Environment Agency. It is recruiting human bloodhounds to sniff out sources of the foul odors that generate 10,000 complaints each year from the fastidious Japanese. Officials have used machines to track down smells, but these olfactometers are no substitute for the human nostril. “Measurement of offensive odors,” says Manami Fujikura of the agency’s special-pollution division, “needs expert , knowledge and technique.” And a strong stomach.