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About the Flavour of Pleasure Reading Passage
This passage explores the science behind how humans perceive flavour. It discusses the combined roles of taste, smell, texture, temperature, and brain chemistry, drawing on research into sensory biology and neurological responses to food.
The passage is from Cambridge IELTS 9, Academic Test 4, Passage 1.
You should spend about 20 minutes on Questions 1–14, which are based on the passage below.
- Questions 1–6 are True/False/Not Given, which test whether statements agree with, contradict, or go beyond the information in the passage.
- Questions 7–14 are Sentence Completion, which require one or two words from the passage to complete each sentence.
The Flavour of Pleasure: Full Reading Passage
Paragraph A
Ask anyone what flavour means to them, and they will most likely talk about taste. Yet flavour is far more complex than that. Taste is only one component of flavour, and some researchers argue it is not even the dominant one. Flavour is, in fact, a multisensory experience that combines information from several sensory systems simultaneously.
Paragraph B
The most important of these senses, when it comes to experiencing flavour, is smell. When we eat, volatile molecules from food travel up through the back of the mouth to the nasal cavity, where they stimulate smell receptors. This process, called retronasal olfaction, is responsible for most of what we think of as taste. When people lose their sense of smell because of a cold, for example: food loses almost all of its flavour.
Paragraph C
The tongue contributes to flavour through taste receptors on the taste buds. These receptors detect the five basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami (a savoury taste associated with glutamate). The taste receptors send signals to the brain, which combines this information with signals from the olfactory system to produce the overall perception of flavour.
Paragraph D
Flavour is also shaped by touch. The texture and temperature of food send signals through the trigeminal nerve to the brain. A warm drink feels comforting partly because of its temperature, and a crispy snack is more enjoyable when the crunch is clearly audible. These physical properties are part of the flavour experience, even though they do not come from taste or smell.
Paragraph E
Colour and appearance play a role too. Studies show that people judge the flavour of a food before they even put it in their mouths. A drink that is coloured red is expected to taste of strawberries or cherries, regardless of its actual flavour. The brain draws on visual information and not just chemical signals from the tongue and nose to construct the flavour experience. Some researchers argue the brain, not the tongue, is the true organ of flavour.
Paragraph F
The pleasure we take in eating is heavily influenced by the brain chemical dopamine. Dopamine is released in anticipation of food, not just during eating. The mere expectation of something delicious can trigger a pleasurable response. This is why the smell of food cooking is so enjoyable and why certain foods become powerfully associated with mood and memory.
Paragraph G
Understanding the science of flavour has real applications. Food manufacturers use this knowledge to design products that maximize pleasure. Flavour scientists study the precise combinations of sensory inputs that make a food irresistible. The goal, ultimately, is to understand what drives the human desire for pleasurable eating experiences and to use that knowledge to shape the foods we eat.
The Flavour of Pleasure Reading Questions and Answers
Questions 1–6: True/False/Not Given
Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage?
Write:
- TRUE if the statement agrees with the information
- FALSE if the statement contradicts the information
- NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this in the passage
1. Flavour involves more than just the sense of taste.
2. The tongue is the most important organ for experiencing flavour.
3. People who cook professionally have a more developed sense of smell than non-cooks.
4. Temperature contributes to the experience of flavour.
5. Visual information plays no role in how flavour is perceived.
6. Dopamine levels in the brain are permanently altered by repeated exposure to favourite foods.
Questions 7–14: Sentence Completion
Complete the sentences below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
7. Most of what people think of as taste is actually produced by ______.
8. The five basic tastes are detected by ______ on the taste buds.
9. The ______ of food sends signals through the trigeminal nerve to the brain.
10. A warm drink's comforting quality is partly due to its ______.
11. Some researchers argue that the ______ is the true organ of flavour.
12. The pleasure of eating is heavily influenced by the brain chemical ______.
13. The release of dopamine can be triggered by the mere ______ of something delicious.
14. Flavour scientists study what drives the human desire for ______ eating experiences.
