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The pandemic revealed what a blind spot our culture has about our own senses, especially our sense of smell.
大流行病揭示了我们的文化对于自己的感官，尤其是嗅觉存在多么大的盲点。
Never before has the loss of a human sense happened so fast, in so many places at once, as the anosmia (smell loss) caused by Covid-19.
人类某种感官的丧失从未像新冠肺炎引起的嗅觉缺失这样发生速度如此之快，同时涉及的范围如此之广。
But perhaps the most noticeable aspect of this mass anosmia is that we lost something that many of us had forgotten we even needed.
但也许这种大规模嗅觉缺失最值得注意的方面是，我们所失去的是许多人甚至都忘记了自己还需要的东西。
A sense of smell has long been regarded as something trivial and even inessential to humans (as opposed to other animals, such as dogs, who live by their noses).
长期以来，嗅觉一直被视为对于人类而言微不足道，甚至无关紧要（而其他动物，比如狗，则靠鼻子生活）。
Charles Darwin was among the scientists and philosophers to argue that a sense of smell was of "extremely slight service" to humans (compared with the senses of vision and hearing).
查尔斯·达尔文以及一些科学家和哲学家认为，嗅觉对人类的作用"极其微小"（相比于视觉和听觉而言）。
A survey of 7,000 young people in 2011 found that most of them would be hypothetically prepared to give up their sense of smell if it meant that they could keep their laptop or phone.
2011年，一项针对7000名年轻人的调查发现，如果丧失嗅觉就可以留下自己的笔记本电脑或手机，那么大多数人都愿意放弃嗅觉。
In reality, it is not easy to live without a sense of smell.
在现实中，没有嗅觉的生活并不容易。
We know from survey data produced by the charity Fifth Sense that anosmia lessens enjoyment of food and drink for almost everyone, as well as increasing feelings of loneliness and depression and in some cases leading to the breakdown of relationships.
从慈善机构"第五感"提供的调查数据可知，嗅觉缺失会减少几乎每个人对食物和饮料的享受程度，并增加孤独和抑郁的感觉，在某些情况下还会导致关系破裂。
The Fifth Sense survey of nearly 500 anosmia sufferers found that 92% reported enjoying food and drink less than they had when they still had a functioning sense of smell.
"第五感"对近500名嗅觉丧失患者进行的调查发现，92%的人表示，他们对食物和饮料的享受程度低于嗅觉正常时的感受。
More than half of the respondents said that they went to restaurants less often than before, and they also reported that cooking had become a source of stress and anxiety because they could no longer experience the joy of trying new recipes, and could not easily tell when something was burned.
超过一半的受访者表示，他们去餐馆的次数比以前少了，他们还反映，做饭成了压力和焦虑的来源，因为他们再也体验不到尝试新菜谱的乐趣，也不能轻易判断什么东西烧焦了。
One Fifth Sense member reported that they missed both the "dangers and delight" of being able to discern the various odours of food.
"第五感"的一名成员报告说，他们错过了能够分辨出食物各种气味所带来的"危险和快乐"。
I felt bereft when I came down with Covid in September 2021 and discovered one morning that my usual cup of coffee had lost all its aroma.
2021年9月，当我感染新冠病毒时，有一天早上我发现经常喝的咖啡不再那么醇香，这让我感到怅然若失。
I sipped in disbelief, waiting for the perfume to return, but all I got was the jolt of caffeine and bitterness on my tongue.
我难以置信地抿了一口，等待着香味回归，但我尝到的只有咖啡因的刺激和舌尖上的苦涩。
From the data so far, it seems that the vast majority of those who lose their sense of smell owing to Covid-19 will achieve a full recovery within a few weeks. I was among this fortunate majority.
从目前的数据来看，绝大多数因新冠肺炎而失去嗅觉的人将在几周内完全康复。 我是这群幸运的大多数人中的一员。
One day, I zested a lemon and practically cried with gratitude when I noticed the brightness of citrus in the air. But a small percentage of those affected by post-Covid smell loss will never get it back.
有一天，我正在刮柠檬皮来调味，当我注意到空气中清新的柠檬气味时，我几乎感动地哭了。但有一小部分因新冠肺炎而丧失嗅觉的人将永远无法恢复。
