The Science of Chocolate

A Maya lord forbids an individual from touching a container of chocolate.

A gift to the world from the ancient peoples of Mesoamerica, chocolate is loved the world over. It was first cultivated over three thousand years ago the Olmecs, but since the 2000s, Western Africa produces almost two-thirds of the world's cocoa, with Ivory Coast growing almost half of that amount.

Did you know that chocolate is actually made of crystals? Here is a video from NPR Science Friday about the crystaline structure of chocolate and the importance of the crystals in our enjoyment of this tasty treat.

 

The scientific name for chocolate is theobroma cacao. Theobroma means "food of the gods", which is what it was for the Mesoamericans. In this video by The Science Show you can learn about the historic development of chocolate and how it is produced from the theobroma cacao plant: 

 

A neuroscience love song

Do you know about the role of dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin in love? These are some of the chemicals responsible for our feelings and behavior when we are in love according to science.

This is a funny, science song from the people at Skunk Bear for Valentine's Day. Listen and enjoy.  

      

Entomophagy: What's for dinner? Insects!

Deep-fried insects on sale at a food stall in Bangkok, Thailand

Insects have been used for many purposes by humans for as long as we have been humans. In ancient Egypt, Cleopatra used the dried bodies of the kermes insect to produce the lipstick she wore. Kermes insects are still gathered commercially for dye in Mediterranean countries and sold throughout Europe. Nowadays a less expensive substitute is used from cochineal (another insect). Dye made from cochineal is used in familiar foods like surimi (imitation crab meat).

What I want to talk about here, though, is insects as food or entomophagy. It may sound strange, but human insect-eating is common to cultures in most parts of the world, including North, Central, and South America; and Africa, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Over 1,000 species of insects are known to be eaten in 80% of the world's nations. 2 Billion of the world's people eat insects as part of their normal diet. What may seem strange to you is a tasty treat for others.

Some people even think that it is the way of the future. Watch this video "Should we all be eating insects?" by the guys at ASAP Science to learn more about how insects could be the solution to the negative impacts of animal agriculture:

More about how humans use insects:

10 Suprising uses of insects in medicine

Benefits of insects to humans

How silk worms make silk (video by Vox)

The future of food (video from CBC News)

Ice Music: Building Instruments Out Of Water

Terje Isungset is a Norwegian musician who makes his own instruments out of ice. Among his creations are "icehorns," a xylophone-shaped instrument called an "iceofon," guitars, harps and even even saxophones sculpted from enormous chunks of ice using chainsaws. He is also one of the minds behind IceMusic Festival, where performers play ice instruments made especially for the event and perform in ice concert rooms. The 2018 festival will take place in Finse, Norway in February. Click here to find out more about the festival.

Here is a video of a performance he did in 2014 inside a glacier!

The Star Wars Sound of Singing Ice

When Cory Williams moved from California to Alaska in 2014, he discovered an unusual natural phenomenon: a singing frozen lake. He tried skipping rocks across the icy surface of Edmonds Lake, near Anchorage. His YouTube video of the laser blaster sound that the lake made has been viewed 11 million times.

This year, Williams returned to Edmonds Lake and made another discovery. The lake was singing on its own. Why? And how? The latest video from Skunk Bear, a science youtube channel, reveals the origin of that iconic sci-fi sound effect and explains why it can be heard every year in the cold north.

Here is the video. Turn on the subtitles if you need them.