"Taste is not well understood, but it appears that each taste bud is like a tiny computer that analyzes, codes and sends to the brain inputs from as many as 100 sensory cells, each of which responds most strongly to one of the basic tastes. These individual taste cells only last about 10 days, which means your holiday leftovers often outlast the cells you enjoyed the original with - which makes it remarkable the food still tastes the same."