What if Humans Had Elephant Noses?

What if you woke up with a very different nose?

Photo by Anna Tarazevich from Pexels

Curious what it would be like to have a trunk instead of a nose? What if using some Curiosity-Based Thinking with this Curiosity Q&A from The Book of What If…? can help you become further proficient in turning your curiosity into not just a trunk, but a tool to look beyond your own nose and think and do beyond the box.

Question: What If Humans Had Elephant Noses?

Action: Design a new nose: come up with a whole new shape, size, and function for the nose; for example a small, cube-shaped nose that digests food and blows out air to keep dust particles out of your eyes. Draw and describe your new nose.

Keep in Mind: Elephants don’t just spray water with their noses, they also spray dust. Why? The dust protects their skin from the sun’s rays and insects’ bites. They also use them to show affection by caressing other elephants.

Deeper Learning: What if elephants had human noses? What do you think the three biggest changes to an elephant’s day-to-day would be if it woke up one day with a human nose instead of an elephant trunk?

Challenge: It isn’t easy being an elephant today; what if you get nosey about an elephant’s business and discover something you can do to lend an elephant a nose — er, hand?

Stay curious with What If Curiosity as we explore how Curiosity-Based Thinking can be used to create whatever we can imagine — including a better society!