Lecturer: Prof. Charles Spence
Fields: gastrophysics
Content
Most of us are convinced that we can taste the food we eat, and directly savour the drinks that we consume. However, a growing body of gastrophysics research (Spence, 2017) demonstrates that the artefacts that we use to plate food on, drink in, and consume food with (think cutlery) exert far more of an impact on our experience of food and drink than any of us realise. Everything from the weight and material properties of the cutlery, through to the texture and visual appearance of plateware influence people’s perception of the taste/flavour of food. Chefs are starting to question how their guests interact with the food they prepare, and plateware designers are starting to develop neuroscience-inspired plateware. Looking to the future, it is intriguing to consider how digital technologies may increasingly come to modify (and hopefully enhance) the experience of food and drink. But can they (e.g., sensory apps) actually help to nudge people towards eating behaviours that are healthier for the individual, and more sustainable for the planet? Or do they merely entertain?
Literature
- Spence, C. (2017). Gastrophysics: The new science of eating. London, UK: Viking Penguin.
- Spence, C. (2022). Interacting with food: Tasting with the hands. International Journal of Gastronomy & Food Science, 30:100620. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgfs.2022.100620.
Lecturer
Professor Charles Spence is a world-famous experimental psychologist with a specialization in neuroscience-inspired multisensory design. He has worked with many of the world’s largest companies across the globe since establishing the Crossmodal Research Laboratory (CRL) at the Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University in 1997. Prof. Spence has published over 1,100 academic articles and edited or authored, 16 books including, in 2014, the Prose prize-winning “The perfect meal”, and the international bestseller “Gastrophysics: The new science of eating” (2017; Penguin Viking) – winner of the 2019 Le Grand Prix de la Culture Gastronomique from Académie Internationale de la Gastronomie. His latest book Sensehacking was published in 2021. Much of Prof. Spence’s work focuses on the design of enhanced multisensory food and drink experiences, through collaborations with chefs, baristas, mixologists, chocolatiers, perfumiers, and the food and beverage, and flavour and fragrance industries. Prof. Spence has worked extensively in the world of multisensory experiential wine and coffee and has also worked extensively on the question of how technology will transform our dining/drinking experiences in the future. See short video at: Charles Spence – Sensploration (FoST 2016). https://vimeo.com/170509976. And profile at: http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/11/02/accounting-for-taste. \”The Perfect Meal\” | Talks at Google: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgUVjKsP_wc AEG Tasteology: http://www.aeg.co.uk/taste/inspiration/tasteology/ Neurocuisine, The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/video/2016/may/23/neuro-cuisine-exploring-the-science-of-flavour-video Multisensory Experience and Coffee – RecoSymposium: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVKabsudi1I Unexpected connections — pleasure and pain: Charles Spence at TEDxUHasselt: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVt-QrNFZso Flavour Sense Nation short videos: Prof. Charles Spence – Flavour SenseNation http://flavoursense.com/ask-the-scientist/prof-charles-spence Entomophagy in our world, TEDxCityUniversityLondon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQEX-kMpz-4 Shitsukan (2019) Japan https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLoDvHIx6ItiODbZgBWEDbWCC-N3h8hW9o Cambridge Biological Society: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dZSlSuRs34 Spence Bar Academy Bulgaria https://www.facebook.com/BarAcademyBulgaria/videos/gastrophysics-a-multisensory-approach-to-cocktails-by-prof-charles-spencesofiaba/361034184762577/ Spence LSE Gastrophysics talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HB_B9hfsNXI Spence Going Underground TV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56e5UZJreg0 For multisensory packaging video, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tV3SRKFpEsg Nuffield Triannual Food Conference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePguEqCJ7Ks http://www.blog.generalmills.com/2016/09/podcast-making-food-your-five-senses-will-love/ See also: BBC SERIES – The Uncommon Senses; Series 1 Dinnertime: A Multisensory Extravaganza! https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b08k5zqw Enhancing Multisensory Experiences: Perspectives from the Food & Beverage, and Flavor & Fragrance Industries | Listen Notes https://hq.quikly.com/blog/the-psychology-of-fast-food-nostalgia.
Affiliation: University of Oxford
Homepage: https://www.psy.ox.ac.uk/research/crossmodal-research-laboratory