Using the 2-bottle method to study the preference-aversion function of the rat for ethyl alcohol, it was found that: (a) normal rats prefer alcohol between a threshold value of 0.0039% to 0.0078% and an indifference point at 5%-6%, (b) rats initiated at high concentrations may develop a temporary aversion to alcohol even at the lower, usually preferred concentrations, (c) anosmic rats show a threshold at 2% and an indifference point at 10%-12%. "It appears then that olfaction mediates the rats preference for the lower concentrations of alcohol, and that at the higher concentrations, it serves to inhibit alcohol ingestion." From Psyc Abstracts 36:02:2EF71K. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)