Tidbit #11 - April 6, 2011

I was just recently hired at my local amusement park, Six Flags Magic Mountain. I was all jazzed when I found out where I was working, because I was working at a place called Suzette's Bakery, which was the place where they make funnel cakes! I thought about how tasty-smelling my job was going to be, working with funnel cakes every day. But then I got to wondering after I served my first cake, "Why is it called a funnel cake?" So, naturally, I searched it up.

Question: Why is it called a funnel cake?

Answer: I searched it up, and I found a couple possible solutions:

1. "It is made from an oil funnel like the one you use in your garage." (Re: WikiAnswers)
2. The batter that is fried to create the funnel cake has to be poured out in a certain indistinguishable pattern to create that uneven plaid-checkered pattern. My guess is that, in most cases, you use any type of funnel to pour the batter in that uneven pattern, so as to get more control over the shape instead of having it just be a plain circle. (In a nutshell, using a funnel to pour the batter out) Although this might just be the original or most common way people make their funnel cakes, because my work area uses a pitcher to pour the batter into the fryer.

So, what do we have here?

Our delicious fried treat is so aptly named because a funnel is used to make one, in most cases.

I could have guessed that!

Tidbit #10 - April 5, 2011

"Ohh.. My head. I feel like there are people hammering my skull in. I really shouldn't have drank so much last night."

If you've ever had an overnight in Vegas, you know what that's like. Hangovers are the worst immediate pains of drinking, and many people say that it's karma getting back at you. Unfortunately, during your hangover, you're in too much pain (or too numbed by the Aspirin) that you never think about why it's called a hangover; only sober people do.

Question: Why is it called a hangover?


Answer: See, this question doesn't have any confusing etymology or disputes between what it was. That's why it was so easy to find out. Wikipedia magic, my friends.

Anyways, strictly speaking, the word hangover was used in the 19th century to describe unfinished business (i.e. something you haven't done that you hang over for later). In 1904, people began using the term to mean directly: "something left over from the night before" -- in this case, the leftover party.

So, basically, a hangover is so named because people began using the term to refer to the "leftovers" of the party-that is, the remnants of it.

Tidbit #9 - April 4, 2011

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Mmmm.. That's the stuff. The sound of popcorn popping is among one of the more pleasurable parts of the tasty snack. One of the less pleasurable aspects is waiting for it to finish popping. You might have wondered what exactly makes the popcorn pop.

Question: Why does popcorn pop?


Answer: Three elements of a popcorn kernel contribute to the making it that delicious treat: percentage of water, waterproof shell, and a starchy center.

When you heat the popcorn kernels up, the water inside the shell begins to steam.

If the shell is waterproof, then every single kernel is like a tiny pressure cooker. The starch in the kernel becomes something of a gelatin-like substance because of this.

Eventually, the pressure inside of the shell becomes too much for it to bear, and it bursts: pop!

In a split second of this happening, the water steam expands, causing the gel substance to expand and harden into an airy foam.

Basically, in every kernel of popcorn, the gel-starch expands and cools within milliseconds, causing it to solidify. That solidified product is our popcorn. Pop!


As a side-note, most people don't like the taste of just the pure popcorn starch, so many companies add in things like butter, sugar (for kettle corn), or processed cheese fuzz. The odd thing is, without all of these additives, popcorn is one of the healthiest snacks you can put into your body.

Tidbit #8 - April 3, 2011

Food can be one of the most pleasurable aspects of our day. And why? Because we all like the taste. There are entire reality shows (Top Chef, anyone?) based on food and its taste. But not everyone who tastes food knows how we taste it.


Question: How do we taste food?


Answer: If you know anything about the nervous system, then you should know that it's based on nerves. Your senses are caused by nerves, particularly specially made neurotransmitters. Your sense of taste is caused by (what else?) your tongue.

On the surface of your tongue are relatively 9000 different sensory receptors (called taste receptors) that pick up taste, also called taste buds. Different areas of the tongue correspond to different tastes, as shown in the diagram to the left. Speaking definitively, every taste bud on your tongue picks up the different chemicals in the food you eat and sends electrical signals through the neurons to the taste processing center of the brain, causing your food's taste.

By the way, all of those regions on the tongue diagram above which correspond to those tastes send more intense signals to the brain when the food you eat has chemicals that taste that way. (Basically, they taste stronger in those areas of the tongue)

Tidbit #7 - April 2, 2011

It's great, isn't it? Your fingers are feeling rather uncomfortable, until... pop! In that little noise is the answer to your pain. It hurts for a split second, and then it's gone, along with your discomfort. So how does this process work? How do we crack our knuckles?

Question: What happens when we crack our knuckles?


Answer: There are a few possible answers to this question:

1. I knew a possible solution to this question before I began researching. I had heard all about what it was. I had heard that it was air pockets formed in between your knuckles, which you pop, causing that beautiful noise.
2. An article on Kidzworld.com states that "when you crack your knuckles, you're essentially pushing the joint into or out of its normal position. A lubricant called synovial fluid (SF) is found between the knuckles, and when you crack them, you pull the bones apart, reducing the SF pressure, which quickly form bubbles which expand and burst, causing the pop! (Re: Yahoo! Answers question)
3. Another explanation from How Stuff Works explains that this bubble in your knuckle forms during a process called "cavitation". It takes roughly half an hour after you've cracked your knuckle for the gas to go into the SF, creating a bubble for you to pop! (Re: Yahoo! Answers question)

So, we have three answers. All of them point to the same thing:

Our knuckles "crack" when air bubbles in between them burst from pressure.

Tidbit #6 - April 1, 2011

Question: How do DVDs work?


Answer: Yeah, you've thought about it before. You've popped a movie into the player and thought about how amazing it was that that little disk could play entertainment for you.

Strictly speaking, a DVD is just a CD with more space on it. The data on the disk is encoded in little valleys and bumps on the surface. The reason you can't feel those little imperfections on the surface is because during their production, they're covered with a few layers of polycarbonate plastic.

A scanning-electron-microscope image of a DVD. See the
bumps? That's your movie. (PC: optics.rochester.edu)

You can't see them, either, because a reflective layer (which I assume is the back of the DVD that we know so well) is put over them, covering them.

Essentially, the data on a DVD is bundled into an extremely long, condensed spiral of data. Your DVD player is designed to read the bumps on the spiral of the DVD.


So your DVD is basically a prettied-up coiled string of data with plastic around it. Doesn't sound all that fancy, right? It's actually more complicated than I summarize it to be, as you've already found by reading above.

Just a heads-up: The string is something like 740 NANOmeters thick. And just letting you know, 1 meter is 1,000,000,000 nanometers. The wavelength of red light is 650 nanometers. So your DVD's data is only slightly thicker than a wave of light. That's really small!

If you want to learn more about DVDs and how they work, click here.

Tidbit #5 - March 31, 2011

Question: What are the small black spots on the pavement when I'm walking around?


Answer: You might be able to guess this one. I searched it up online, and I learned that my assumptions were correct, even though it's gross.

Those black spots on the pavement while you're walking around are old, chewed pieces of gum that people threw down onto the pavement some time ago.

I can't be sure how old each of those pieces of gum are, although I'm guessing that they're somewhere between two months and a year old. Gross, right? That's the product of people throwing their gum on the ground. Over time, dirt and grime collect on it and it gains that blackish color that we love so much.

Tidbit #4 - March 30, 2011

Question: What causes someone to forget something?


Answer: Think back to Tidbit #2 (how we make memories). Remember how I wrote that each memory is really a pattern of links between neurons?

My guess is that you forget something if you don't repeat that pattern of neuron links, which means you don't repeat the activity enough.

So, for example, let's say you've learned the formula: sin(2Θ)=2sin(Θ)cos(Θ). That's a lot to remember, right? It's because that's a special pattern of links between neurons in your brain. Every time you say that formula, or think about it, those linked neurons send impulses to each other, causing the formula to be remembered, therefore strengthening the memory.

But if you spend the week on your chemistry homework instead of your math homework, the neuron links will become weaker and weaker, making it harder for you to remember that formula.

If you have any tidbits you'd like to offer, comment on the post with your idea. Who knows? You might get it on the blog.

Tidbit #3 - Mar 29, 2011

Question: Why is the first episode of a TV show generally called "Pilot"?


Answer: I searched it up, and I learned that there are a million hypotheses as to why it is referred to as a "pilot" episode.

1. My stepdad and I were talking about it on the ride to school today, and his guess is that it's because a pilot of an airplane can decide whether the plane flies or not. The metaphor? Well, the pilot is the episode, the plane is the TV show, and whether it "flies" or not is whether it's successful. The "pilot" episode decides whether the show "flies".
2. "--the first episode of many TV series is called "Pilot" because the episode functions as a pilot for the series, and the writers aren't creative enough to think up a real title. Some show's have played on this, e.g., the first episode of Futurama was entitled 'Space Pilot 3000.'" (Re: WikiAnswers)
3. "It's a fairly standard term for a small scale test. Most research projects begin with a small pilot study. As it's a test, it's a long established injoke. They're seeing 'how it flies'." (Re: Yahoo! Answers)

Did You Know That?? (Intro/Tidbits #1-2)

Ever wondered about all those little things worth pondering over? Maybe you've wondered why they use that weird symbol for the heart that we've learned means love. Or maybe you've wondered how our brain can make those memories that we're so fond of.
Whatever it is that you're thinking about, odds are I'll have it sooner or later. Check this place out as often as possible, because when I learn something new, it's going right on here.

By the way, the answers to the above questions are:

1. The origin of the heart symbol ( ♥ ) is debated, although some say that it is supposed to be a representative of the seed of the silphium plant, while others insist that it is supposed to depict a woman's genitalia or breasts. (Source: en.wikipedia.org)
   
2. Okay, this one's taken right from a book:
   Quoted: "Each memory is formed by a unique pattern of connections between the billions of neurons in various parts of the brain, especially the cerebral cortex. The event to be memorized-from reading a number to meeting a celebrity-occurs as a particular set of neurons sending impulses to each other during the initial experience. Activating this set of signals again, by remembering the experience, strengthens its pattern of links so they are more likely to occur together-a process known as potentiation. After several activations the links become semipermanent. Triggering a few of them, by a new thought or experience, activates the pattern's whole network and recalls the memory." (Source: The Complete Human Body, by Dr. Alice Roberts)
   Summarized: Every memory you form corresponds to a connection of electrical impulses between neurons. In a nutshell, the more you set that pattern off, the stronger the links between the neurons will be, the more vivid the memory will be.

By the way, if you want to read my other blog, you can drop by Teen Help Center and find out how to be a good teenager. If you want to find out how to be a good PARENT of a teenager, you can check out Teen Parent Café. Finally, if you want to know about random facts of history, visit my stepdad's blog, Deadwrite's Dailies.