Episode Overview

Theme:
This episode of Something You Should Know with host Mike Carruthers features two engaging interviews. First, sensory science expert Beth Kimmerle dives deep into how our sense of taste works, exploring why we like or dislike certain foods and how taste can be influenced by everything from genetics to packaging. Then, Professor Aaron CT Smith unpacks the psychology of sports fans—why people are so passionately attached to teams and athletes, how fandom shapes identity, and what brain science reveals about our need to belong.

Segment 1: The Science of Taste with Beth Kimmerle

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• What Sensory Science Experts Do

  • Beth evaluates taste professionally, using scientific methods to provide empirical data about flavors, textures, and aromas for the food and beverage industry.
  • “In the food and beverage industry, there are folks like me who are practitioners of sensory evaluation, otherwise known as taste experts. … So folks like us have our tongues often insured because of the value they bring to our work.” (06:11, Beth Kimmerle)

• Subjectivity vs. Objectivity in Taste

  • While personal preferences exist, scientific tasting uses trained panels and objective lexicons, much like sommeliers in wine.
  • “We have this lexicon and have tasted so many food products that we can really understand or detect what we call the flavor, real food.” (08:44, Beth Kimmerle)

• Impact of Memory, Expectation, and Packaging

  • Memories, nostalgia, and expectations profoundly influence taste perception—who we eat with, how food was presented, and marketing stories all play major roles.
  • “Taste memories are emotional, right? They're powerful. … You grab an item off the grocery store shelf because it reminds you of that experience that you had, mostly those good ones.” (09:41, Beth Kimmerle)
  • “We don't look at things in packages, right, because packages can influence … how we perceive taste.” (10:28, Beth Kimmerle)

• Role of Smell in Taste

  • Smell is crucial for flavor; with a blocked nose, much of food’s flavor disappears.
  • “Aroma is the indicator of taste and the ability to taste. If your nasal cavity is blocked, … much of food flavor disappears.” (11:22, Beth Kimmerle)

• Why People Like or Dislike Foods

  • Individual taste is affected by the number of taste buds, saliva chemistry, genetics, exposure, social context, and memories.
  • “If one person likes something and another … doesn't, … it could be memory influencing. … But we have found that repeated exposure, social context, and positive influences can really help retrain our palate.” (12:28, Beth Kimmerle)

• Changing Our Tastes

  • Tastes are trainable; repeated exposure and positive associations can shift preferences, even overcoming innate dislikes (e.g., with bitter foods or super sour candies).
  • “Yes, there's a method to working with eaters and it's also around being less emotional, strangely enough, … and just exposing.” (17:14, Beth Kimmerle)

• Why Sweetness Is Universally Liked

  • Evolutionary reasons: sweetness signals calorie-rich foods essential for survival, especially for children and babies.
  • “Sweet keeps humans alive. … It is of the more important [tastes], especially again for children and babies, because sweets probably the first taste, that baby's taste.” (18:40, Beth Kimmerle)

• Portion Control and Expectation

  • The size, shape, color, and presentation of food create expectations that affect both how much we eat and how it tastes.
  • “We eat with our eyes. … We look at how does packaging, how does marketing, how does color or type, style, or storytelling literally change how something tastes?” (20:11, Beth Kimmerle)

• How Our Taste Changes Over Time

  • Taste sensitivity and preferences change with age, health, knowledge, and social influences (such as the example of no longer craving soda).
  • “I’ve kind of done experiments with myself … there's a tendency to want to eat the food that's on that plate. … If you get a smaller portion of food … that'll be enough.” (19:16, Mike Carruthers)

• Memories Embedded in Taste

  • Food evokes strong memories—sometimes so powerful they are like emotional “time machines.”
  • “It's so embedded in us that sometimes we don't even know they're there until we taste that thing again. And it's like walking into a portal. Or I call … a time machine.” (24:31, Beth Kimmerle)

Notable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• “We assess food products on behalf of the food industry and supply data around taste and texture and aftertaste, aroma. All really, really important things … the food and beverage industry wants to know.” — Beth Kimmerle (06:25)
• “If you're sick, much of food, flavor disappears. And so that's the proof that taste buds aren't … they're just a starting point. And aroma plays into taste heavily.” — Beth Kimmerle (11:22)
• “If you introduce foods repeatedly … you're showing up with broccoli and the Mac and cheese at the same time. … At some point, whether … learning how much sugar is actually in a traditional soda, or seeing people around you drink alternatives … our taste can change.” — Beth Kimmerle (16:54, 21:57)

Important Timestamps

• [06:11] — What sensory science experts do
• [09:41] — The emotional power of taste memories
• [11:22] — The crucial link between aroma and taste
• [12:28] — Biological and social roots of taste preferences
• [16:54] — Repeated exposure and social context change taste
• [18:40] — Sweetness and evolution
• [20:11] — Presentation and expectation shaping taste
• [24:31] — Memories and the time machine of taste

Segment 2: The Psychology of Sports Fandom with Aaron CT Smith

Key Insights & Discussion Points

• Sports as Modern-Day Religion

  • Fandom stimulates brain areas similar to religious worship, fulfilling a human need for faith, belonging, and purpose.
  • “The brain doesn't really care whether, you know, religion is supernatural or secular. … The ability to have faith also means that sport gives us a kind of opportunity to lose ourselves in something bigger than us and experience … true belonging.” (28:20, Aaron CT Smith)

• Tribalism, Rivalries, and Identity

  • The brain’s tribal wiring fuels intense team loyalty and rivalry—even antipathy toward rival teams.
  • “It's not just sufficient for us to bond around our own team, but also bond around a common enemy.” (30:21, Aaron CT Smith)

• How We Become Fans

  • Team allegiances are usually shaped by early exposure and family influence, not rational choice; loyalty is often lifelong.
  • “We know from research fans are twice as likely to change their marriage partner as they are their sporting team allegiance.” (31:20, Aaron CT Smith)

• The Fan Spectrum

  • Fandom exists along a spectrum, from indifferent to die-hard—but the depth of identification is driven by social and psychological need for belonging and individuality.
  • “People become more strong in their identification when they need that psychological reward. … We're all trying to be part of a tribe, … and at the same time, … be distinctive and different.” (34:09, Aaron CT Smith)

• Extreme Fan Behavior

  • Even “normal” people can become intensely passionate or unruly at games due to cathartic, social, and hormonal dynamics.
  • “The reality turns out that they're everyday people who just seem to be finding a cathartic release through sport, sometimes going over the lines.” (36:50, Aaron CT Smith)

• Why Some People Don’t Care About Sports

  • The need for belonging or tribal identity can express itself in non-sport ways if people had negative sports experiences early on.
  • “There's a very strong correlation between early life experiences in sport and ongoing fandom.” (37:34, Aaron CT Smith)

• Gender and Fandom

  • Men are generally more fanatical due to the influence of testosterone and hormonal spikes during sports viewing; this is also linked to health risks.
  • “Testosterone amplifies a sense of tribal affiliation and aggression. … Our stress hormones go through the roof when we watch intense matches ... But that doesn't apply to women.” (38:29, Aaron CT Smith)

• The Crowd Experience

  • At live events, shared euphoria and group synchrony produce powerful memories and a “flow” state, deepening loyalty.
  • “Those crowd-like situations can create a kind of brainwave synchrony where our brainwaves come into a kind of flow state that lead to greater memory imprinting.” (40:20, Aaron CT Smith)

• Single-Sport vs Multi-Sport Fandom

  • Most fans have one primary allegiance, but may also follow other teams or individual athletes, depending on the sport and cultural context.
  • “NFL fans have the highest level of loyalty ... whereas NBA fans are more connected to the athletes and players themselves.” (41:47, Aaron CT Smith)

• Individual Athletes and Fandom

  • For sports like golf or tennis, personalities like Tiger Woods can drive surge in fandom—which often wanes when they leave the sport.
  • “There tends to be a significant drop off to that sport. So it's connected through the individual themselves.” (43:17, Aaron CT Smith)

• Historical Roots of Fandom

  • Sport as a social phenomenon dates back to the earliest human societies; evidence of fans and organized play stretches back millennia.
  • “Across human history and civilization, sports been inevitable. … There’s evidence that sport and organized play has been present [in] every historical civilization.” (44:11, Aaron CT Smith)

• Fandom as a Social Ecosystem

  • Consumption of sports talk, stats, and discussion serves the same psychological functions as following games: identity, anticipation, and community.
  • “It’s not just about the consumption, it’s about anticipating that consumption, which is incredibly powerful ... And of course, the great thing about sport, of course, is that there’s always next season.” (45:47, Aaron CT Smith)

Notable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• “The strongest form of belief, of course, is faith. … Sport gives us a kind of opportunity to lose ourselves in something bigger than us and experience … true belonging.” — Aaron CT Smith (28:22)
• “We know from research fans are twice as likely to change their marriage partner as they are their sporting team allegiance.” — Aaron CT Smith (31:20)
• “Our brains are in on the action … crowd-like situations … can create a kind of brainwave synchrony … that lead to a greater memory imprinting. … It’s like hippocampal imprinting.” — Aaron CT Smith (40:20)

Important Timestamps

• [28:20] — Sport as faith and belonging
• [30:21] — Rivalries and tribal identification
• [31:20] — Lifelong loyalty (team over spouse)
• [34:05] — Structure, meaning, and the fan spectrum
• [38:29] — Gender, hormones, and fandom
• [40:20] — Group euphoria and memory-making at games
• [41:47] — Single-team focus and following individual athletes
• [44:11] — Ancient roots of fandom
• [45:47] — Fandom as both experience and anticipation

Memorable Moments

• On Changing Tastes:
  “You introduce foods repeatedly, right? ... You're picking up that piece of broccoli, you're showing them how delicious it is, and training them through your actions … instead of just putting it on the plate.” — Beth Kimmerle (17:14)

• On Sports Loyalty:
  “Fans are twice as likely to change their marriage partner as they are their sporting team allegiance.” — Aaron CT Smith (31:20)

• On Memories and Taste:
  “It's like walking into a portal. Or I call it a time machine. … Because we can't access [some memories] until we taste that thing again.” — Beth Kimmerle (24:31)

• On the Brain’s Response to Fandom:
  “Those crowd-like situations can create a kind of brainwave synchrony ... that lead to greater memory imprinting.” — Aaron CT Smith (40:20)

Episode Highlight Timestamps

• [06:11] — What does a sensory scientist do? (Beth Kimmerle)
• [11:22] — The connection between smell and taste
• [14:24] — How social context changes our tastes
• [18:40] — Why everyone likes sweet
• [28:20] — Why sports fandom is like religion (Aaron CT Smith)
• [31:20] — The depth of loyalty in sports fans
• [40:20] — Brainwave synchrony and the crowd effect

Summary Takeaways

• Taste is more than just biology; it's powerfully shaped by memory, context, and expectation.
• Our preferences are flexible—exposure and association can transform our likes and dislikes.
• Sports fandom fills a psychological need for belonging, identity, and faith.
• Loyalty to a team is so strong it can outlast many of life’s other relationships.
• Group experiences—whether at the dinner table or stadium—create powerful emotional memories and connections.

For a deep dive into the fascinating forces shaping our tastes and obsessions, this episode delivers science, stories, and relatable insight from two experts who know how much these little things matter.