Olfactory nerve

The olfactory nerve, also known as cranial nerve I, is a collection of sensory nerve fibers that extend down from the olfactory bulb[?] and pass through the many openings of the cribriform plate[?], a sieve[?]-like structure. The specialized sensory receptors of the olfactory nerve are located in the olfactory mucosa of the upper parts of the nasal cavity[?]. During respiration, air molecules attach to the olfactory mucosa and stimulate the olfactory receptors. The resulting electrical activity is transduced[?] into the olfactory bulb which then transmits the electrical activity to other parts of the central nervous system via the olfactory tract.

The olfactory nerve is the shortest of all the twelve cranial nerves and only one of two cranial nerves (the other being the optic nerve) that do not join with the brainstem.