Hello,
I am a 25 y/o male living in Florida who is intrigued by the notion of human pheromones.
I am pretty well acquainted to most aspects of neuroscience and the phylogenetic origins of the nervous system. I have been under the notion until only recently that the Jacobson’s organ (VNO) in humans is just a tiny vestigial pimple in humans, but my recent experiences with your products attests otherwise. Performing cursory research on the subject in this modern age of enlightenment, I discovered that, while controversy still exists regarding its hodology, the vameronasal organ in fact has been shown to exhibit EEG potentials when exposed to certain hormones (e.g., androstenone) and that the typical claim stating that the system is simply “not wired” into the brain are not at all what I thought.
Interestingly, the only complaint that still registers a need to investigate a role for the Jacobson’s organ in human is that it has developed a dissimilar and phylogenetically unparalleled series of connections in humans that seems to be erratic to wrinkly old comparative neurobiologists who have studied it. I am well acquainted to similar problems of evolution that have hindered scientists in the past, such as the drastically different arrangement of the Teleost telencephalon-diencephalic circuits (i.e., the modern fishes’ dorsal preglomerular nuclei), which have been recently been brought to rest by the notion of parcellation. In short, this is the idea that larger nuclei can be broken into diverse components over time without drastic changes to gross anatomy of the nervous system; it is very likely the case that the VNO in humans, which has been shown to produce a variety of efferents that synapse in the subcortical regions necessary for emotional processing, memory, and sexual regulation (i.e., the amygdala, hippocampus, and hypothalamus). To put this even more simply, it seems probable to me that the pheromone-detecting organ in humans has evolved more complex connections to the brain rather than becoming dormant.
On the other hand, it seems likely that many of the pheromones that are best studied are also not processed via this system but instead through either the primary olfactory tract which also has diverse connectivity in humans. A recent study has demonstrated that the VNO is not involved in the perception of androstadienone, but a 2011 paper blithely notes that this hormone is not likely to be a hormone due to its prevalence in only subthreshold amounts in ecological conditions. This latter effect is not relevant in terms of your products and, while some bicker about the definition of psychoactive air-borne hormones, it is clear that you have manipulated many of these compounds with success.
Of course I have also reviewed the study of effects of these hormones on self-reported measures, concentration, cognitive tasks, interpersonal ratings, affect, etc. This field, while just as active over the more technical debate regarding the route of perception, is incredibly convoluted and clearly having problems designing appropriate profiles for these chemicals. I will not rant on such a subject as I suspect those in charge of this company are well-informed of such studies and their limited value in trying to understanding the problem as a whole.
I am very pleased to see that this enterprise exists, as it swerves very deeply into both capitalism and empiricism. A very interesting venture. The notion of making these chemicals available to the public is brilliant, though I must attest I am disheartened to see the actual compounds somewhat obfuscated and replaced by serial numbers. The competitive incentive is obvious and the reasons for this are thus understandable, but may I suggest perhaps the use of digital forms to create data from those who are already very willing to submit their experiences? To those with the key to the actual content of these compounds (particularly the ExperiMones), this could be expediently converted to valuable data which would directly benefit the R&D at this company as well as generate value on its own, potentially being worth a substantial sum to any competing company. Oh, automation and data mining… I certainly have not seen greater potential for these utilities than at this company to date.
All that being said, I am generally very social, have no problems being interpreted as masculine, and derive a great deal of pleasure from interacting with people in a way as to approach emotional intimacy. I, as many people are, am also confronted daily with situations in which I must contest others and, less often, be challenged by the typical primeval power struggle. I also have loved sex for my entire adult life (and a little before) and am piqued by the idea of improved arousal with TAC.
I do believe I am familiar with the premise of the commercial line products, but I am very interested in those pheromones with very ostensible effects and the ExperiMones. I have already tried IH, IG, and TUTH to discover that androstenone is quite clearly one of those hormones with such blatant effects and that IH is also an interesting, though slightly more subtle, product.
As it stands now it is apparent that there is a very curious game that this website offers: buy a mystery product, write your opinions, and perhaps discover a whole new realm of previously unconscious communication! The prospects even from this perspective alone are thrilling, and the impressive growth this company is experiencing no doubt reflects that this attitude is reflected by many other consumer attitudes. I am as eager to contribute to this amalgamation of social excitement as I am to explore the actual effects of these products and I am pleased to be inaugurated thus.
