I got my hands on MPEG-V standard documents which lets me inject “SEM” (sensory effect metadata) inside .mp4 files which would let me program real world stuff on cues like lights, chair movements, water sprays, etc. So literally if I had a NAS with a hoard of movies and bought the right equipment, i could make 4DX at home.

There’s an effect description named “scent”, which would, obviously, spray some aromatizer or something in the room. I checked out the standard list of scents that can be applied. There are scents like rose, lavender, mint, apples, mixed herbs, but i came across an interesting one which is the one i’m asking for.


  Scent of dragons breath
  Describes the scent of dragons breath

Maybe this is a weird reason to ask this… I really want to know out of curiosity if this “dragon breath” would be some specific mix of herbs or incense or any kind of room spray. I sense it would kind of be an artificial scent… but idk… really… Would it really work if i coded a “Home 4DX” version of the Hobbit movies?

    • OhmsLawn@lemmy.world
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      11 months ago

      This is the real answer. Sulfur Dioxide would basically eliminate any other odors. I’m thinking ozone would be a possible addition, along with whatever that metallic smell is, but nothing biological, no rot, etc.

        • 567PrimeMover@kbin.social
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          11 months ago

          If dragons aren’t real, how come you see them in popular media so much? where do the film makers get them? Oh, they used a computer to make them?

          Sounds like dragon denier talk

          • EldritchFeminity@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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            11 months ago

            This reminded me of an interesting fact I heard like 15 years ago: apparently, dragon-like animals show up in folklore across the world in areas with no native reptile species often enough to be considered an anomaly.

            • CanadaPlus@futurology.today
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              11 months ago

              Hmm. What areas? AFAIK they’re on all the same continents as humans, and a few species get as far north as places like Canada. I guess Ireland famously has no snakes, so maybe there. I’d expect northern Canada and Ireland could both get dragon myths by import from distant lands.

              So, that’s my attempt at an explanation.

              • EldritchFeminity@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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                11 months ago

                It was 15 years ago or so that I heard that in a TV show, so I don’t really remember any specifics, but I think it would mostly be isolated islands and the like, as I think Hawaii is another place with no native reptile species. Imported myths from other places would be my guess as well.

        • MaggiWuerze@feddit.de
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          11 months ago

          Then I guess we also don’t have to think about how they sound or look like, since they are not real no one will want to use that information…

          • BolexForSoup@kbin.social
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            11 months ago

            The point is that it can be whatever we want it to be! It’s fire magic!

            Admittedly, I was just being tongue in cheek in the first place

    • Zephyr@pawb.socialOP
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      11 months ago

      Nice. Even considering that “sulphur” is not an entry on the scent list i got. I guess that could work out

  • Ugly Bob@sh.itjust.works
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    11 months ago

    My guess is dragons breath is produced by a combination of two glands that produce chemicals that are hypergolic. This is seen in nature in bombardier beetles (which use hydroquinone + hydrogen peroxide).

    The smell would certainly depend on the combination of chemicals, but a hot burnt and charred smells are probably common to all possibilities. The unburnt chemicals are likely to be irritants, being either strong oxidizers or reducers.

    Overall, even after the main blaze has cooled, I would expect the area (and downwind) to be unsafe for humans and respiratory issues for those exposed to the remnants.

    • Quereller@lemmy.one
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      11 months ago

      Hey, this is a unironically a very good answer regarding “real” dragons. Although, the cinema scent would hopefully not be an airway irritant.

  • Tolookah@discuss.tchncs.de
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    11 months ago

    Without any real technical answer, dragons breath should be sharp, warm, and smokey, but not so much that you think there’s a fire in the building. Maybe the smell of slightly burnt, very seasoned meat?

  • FooBarrington@lemmy.world
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    11 months ago

    It actually doesn’t really matter which smell you use. The important part is that you install a small, persistent flame in front of the diffuser. That turns any aroma into dragon’s breath.

  • andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works
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    11 months ago

    Would it really work if i coded a “Home 4DX” version of the Hobbit movies?

    Are there ways to obtain and refill this pallete of smells and connect them to a home cinema? I guess it would work if you have the hardware and the juice for it.

    I imagine dragon’s breath is not unlike a coal furnace, or a chain smoker.

    • Zephyr@pawb.socialOP
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      11 months ago

      In a software level, it is easy to time effects like smells in a video file thanks to the information i found. The hard thing is to program the hardware.

  • Sir_Fridge@lemmy.world
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    11 months ago

    Was this added for the shrek 4D movie thing? I saw that in an amusement park once. The dragon sneezes in your face.

  • Deconceptualist@lemm.ee
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    11 months ago

    Seared kobold flesh and lingering brimstone.

    Take a blowtorch to some grisltly game meat and at the same time burn a firecracker (or sparkler or whatever) and you’ll get the idea.