We are immersed within an odorous sea of chemical currents that we parse into individual odors with complex structures. Odors have been posited as determined by the structural relation between the molecules that compose the chemical compounds and their interactions with the receptor site. But, naturally occurring smells are parsed from gaseous odor plumes. To give a comprehensive account of the nature of odors the chemosciences must account for these large distributed entities as well. We offer a focused review of what is known about the perception of odor plumes for olfactory navigation and tracking, which we then connect to what is known about the role odorants play as properties of the plume in determining odor identity with respect to odor quality. We end by motivating our central claim that more research needs to be conducted on the role that odorants play within the odor plume in determining odor identity.

中文翻译：

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气味：从化学结构到气体羽状流。

我们沉浸在化学流的气味海洋中，我们将其解析为结构复杂的单个气味。根据构成化学化合物的分子之间的结构关系及其与受体位点的相互作用确定气味。但是，自然产生的气味是从气态气味羽中解析出来的。为了全面了解气味的性质，化学科学也必须考虑这些大型的分布式实体。我们对嗅觉导航和跟踪中的气味羽流感知的已知知识进行了重点回顾，然后我们将其与关于气味剂在决定气味质量有关的气味特性方面所起的作用联系在一起。