1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,160 Speaker 1: Guess what will what's that? Man? Go? So I was 2 00:00:02,200 --> 00:00:05,480 Speaker 1: watching this old BBC clip online of an electronic lollipop. 3 00:00:05,680 --> 00:00:08,680 Speaker 1: What is that? So it's not actually a candy. The 4 00:00:08,720 --> 00:00:11,640 Speaker 1: lollipop is still being developed in labs, but it's this 5 00:00:11,760 --> 00:00:14,640 Speaker 1: gentle plant that slides metal plates over the top and 6 00:00:14,720 --> 00:00:16,959 Speaker 1: bodiy tongue. I don't think it helps to call this 7 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:20,599 Speaker 1: clamp gentle. That still doesn't sound that appealing. Well, here's 8 00:00:20,640 --> 00:00:23,400 Speaker 1: what's cool about it. So it sends currents through your 9 00:00:23,400 --> 00:00:25,919 Speaker 1: tongue and adjust the temperature on those plates, and the 10 00:00:25,960 --> 00:00:29,040 Speaker 1: electronic lollipop can actually trick your tongue into thinking it's 11 00:00:29,080 --> 00:00:32,480 Speaker 1: tasting a wide variety of flavors, like a lemony sour 12 00:00:32,560 --> 00:00:35,120 Speaker 1: taste is the easiest to pull off, and scientists can 13 00:00:35,120 --> 00:00:39,000 Speaker 1: do reasonable approximations of other flavors. But the application of 14 00:00:39,000 --> 00:00:42,120 Speaker 1: all this is really cool. Like imagine you're watching Iron 15 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:44,280 Speaker 1: Chef and Bobby Flays on there and he's just made 16 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:47,760 Speaker 1: the most amazing eggplant spaghetti taco in the world, and 17 00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:49,600 Speaker 1: you can't figure out for the life of you what 18 00:00:49,720 --> 00:00:52,720 Speaker 1: an eggplant plus spaghetti and a taco shell should taste like, 19 00:00:53,080 --> 00:00:55,000 Speaker 1: And so you just take a lick of your lollipop 20 00:00:55,080 --> 00:00:57,320 Speaker 1: and suddenly you get a sense of that flavor. Wow. 21 00:00:57,320 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: I mean, that's kind of weird, but it is. It 22 00:00:59,080 --> 00:01:00,800 Speaker 1: is pretty cool. It minds me a little bit of 23 00:01:00,800 --> 00:01:04,200 Speaker 1: smell vision, except for your taste, but exactly. And you 24 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:06,800 Speaker 1: can see how this might be used in online grocery 25 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:09,720 Speaker 1: shopping in the future or checking out new recipes. It's 26 00:01:09,800 --> 00:01:12,760 Speaker 1: totally fascinating. But what I found most interesting in all 27 00:01:12,800 --> 00:01:15,680 Speaker 1: of this are the limitations. Because these currents are only 28 00:01:15,680 --> 00:01:17,920 Speaker 1: playing with your tongue, they can only create a set 29 00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:21,160 Speaker 1: of basic flavors. But when the scientists added technology that 30 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:25,240 Speaker 1: incorporates your nose, suddenly the range of flavors expanded dramatically, 31 00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:27,880 Speaker 1: and that got me thinking what other tricks can we 32 00:01:27,920 --> 00:01:30,080 Speaker 1: play on our tongue and how much a flavor is 33 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:32,920 Speaker 1: really just something constructed in our brain. So that's what 34 00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:51,680 Speaker 1: this episode is all about. Hey, their podcast listeners, welcome 35 00:01:51,720 --> 00:01:54,080 Speaker 1: to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as always 36 00:01:54,080 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 1: I'm joined by my good friend Man Guesho Ticketer, and 37 00:01:56,560 --> 00:01:58,920 Speaker 1: today I'm here to address a big problem in the 38 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:02,360 Speaker 1: English language. I'm pretty sure you're talking about starting sentences 39 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:05,160 Speaker 1: with because because my second grade English teacher had the 40 00:02:05,200 --> 00:02:07,640 Speaker 1: same argument with me. Wait, this was second grade. You 41 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:09,919 Speaker 1: get in trouble in second grade for starting sentences with 42 00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:12,160 Speaker 1: because yeah, actually it was more of a thing that 43 00:02:12,200 --> 00:02:14,520 Speaker 1: she said we shouldn't do. And then I started every 44 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:17,040 Speaker 1: sentence in a story with the word because it was 45 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:20,080 Speaker 1: not a good strategy for going to recess that. Right. Well, 46 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:22,720 Speaker 1: at some point we'll do a whole episode on grammar, 47 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:24,760 Speaker 1: so you can save your SOB stories for them. But 48 00:02:25,360 --> 00:02:28,200 Speaker 1: today I'm talking about how English speakers use the words 49 00:02:28,280 --> 00:02:32,560 Speaker 1: taste and flavor interchangeably, as though they mean the same thing. Wait, 50 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:34,760 Speaker 1: they don't mean the same thing. I know, it's pretty crazy. 51 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:37,320 Speaker 1: So I've been reading this new book called Flavor. It's 52 00:02:37,360 --> 00:02:40,880 Speaker 1: by Bob Holmes, and it's really good. As Holmes explains, 53 00:02:40,919 --> 00:02:44,280 Speaker 1: taste is just one component of flavor, and he writes, 54 00:02:44,440 --> 00:02:46,520 Speaker 1: the best way to think about flavor is that it's 55 00:02:46,560 --> 00:02:48,960 Speaker 1: the sum of all the sensations we get when we 56 00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:51,280 Speaker 1: have food in the mouth. So think about the weight 57 00:02:51,280 --> 00:02:53,480 Speaker 1: of the bowl, the color of the plate, the crunch 58 00:02:53,480 --> 00:02:56,520 Speaker 1: of the potato chip. Even the choice of background music 59 00:02:56,520 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: can have a direct effect on how we perceive flavor. 60 00:02:59,760 --> 00:03:02,079 Speaker 1: That funny, because when I think of flavor, it seems 61 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:06,000 Speaker 1: like such a specific thing, like popcorn flavor, jelly beans, 62 00:03:06,040 --> 00:03:08,320 Speaker 1: that's a flavor. I think there might be some people 63 00:03:08,320 --> 00:03:10,680 Speaker 1: who disagree with you on this, but but I know 64 00:03:10,720 --> 00:03:13,680 Speaker 1: what you're saying is true. Like taste and smell and 65 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:15,840 Speaker 1: touch and sound, they all play a role in how 66 00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:18,320 Speaker 1: much we appreciate food. I guess I've just been using 67 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:20,519 Speaker 1: the wrong vocabulary. All right, Well, I'm not here to 68 00:03:20,600 --> 00:03:23,280 Speaker 1: flavor sham you, but we do have Bob Homes on 69 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:25,200 Speaker 1: the show today, which is super exciting, and we'll be 70 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:28,239 Speaker 1: talking to him about flavor and some of the fascinating 71 00:03:28,240 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 1: studies and facts he covered in his book. Speaking of which, 72 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:33,760 Speaker 1: do you have a terrible quiz lined up for us today? 73 00:03:34,040 --> 00:03:36,440 Speaker 1: Of course I do. Sticking with the flavors theme, we're 74 00:03:36,440 --> 00:03:39,920 Speaker 1: playing real vintage recipe or gourmet cat food flavor. It's 75 00:03:39,920 --> 00:03:43,240 Speaker 1: a little harder than you think. Awesome, all right, all right, well, 76 00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:45,840 Speaker 1: let's kick this off by talking about taste. Even if 77 00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:48,920 Speaker 1: it's not the same thing as flavor, it's obviously an 78 00:03:48,920 --> 00:03:52,600 Speaker 1: important thing, definitely so. In the English speaking world, psychologists 79 00:03:52,600 --> 00:03:57,240 Speaker 1: have traditionally acknowledged four different tastes. They're sweet, sour, salty, 80 00:03:57,400 --> 00:04:00,360 Speaker 1: and bitter, and humans have different receptors for each these. 81 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:03,320 Speaker 1: And then more recently, we've added a fifth taste, ou mommy, 82 00:04:03,560 --> 00:04:05,520 Speaker 1: which kind of just sounds made up, so we need 83 00:04:05,560 --> 00:04:08,080 Speaker 1: to talk about that. Yeah, it did feel like a 84 00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:10,600 Speaker 1: few years ago people started talking about ummmy and it 85 00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:12,720 Speaker 1: was like breaking news, like did you hear about this 86 00:04:12,840 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: umami flavor? And actually, to be honest, I got confused. 87 00:04:15,880 --> 00:04:18,200 Speaker 1: I was mixing it up with the word unagi, which 88 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:22,760 Speaker 1: is the Japanese word for freshwater eel, so so I 89 00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:24,920 Speaker 1: was trying to understand why eel got to be a 90 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:26,960 Speaker 1: flavor of its own. I mean, don't get me wrong, 91 00:04:27,000 --> 00:04:29,560 Speaker 1: I love eel, but it was still a little confusing. Yeah, 92 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:31,480 Speaker 1: it was confusing to meet because I thought we were 93 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:34,440 Speaker 1: getting a brand new flavor, like you know that apartment 94 00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 1: you have, did you know it's been hiding a secret 95 00:04:36,600 --> 00:04:39,200 Speaker 1: room all this time? Or like you're familiar with the rainbow, 96 00:04:39,240 --> 00:04:42,400 Speaker 1: guess what we're adding a new color, And instead it 97 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:45,400 Speaker 1: was like, you know, parmesan cheese or soy sauce, those 98 00:04:45,440 --> 00:04:47,720 Speaker 1: are your mommy. You just didn't have a word for it, right, 99 00:04:47,760 --> 00:04:51,360 Speaker 1: But umami is definitely distinct. Yeah, It's a Japanese word 100 00:04:51,400 --> 00:04:55,800 Speaker 1: meaning delicious flavor and linguists usually translated as savory or 101 00:04:55,960 --> 00:04:58,520 Speaker 1: maybe meaty, and his Homes explains there are a few 102 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:00,280 Speaker 1: reasons why it takes a while to rack your head 103 00:05:00,279 --> 00:05:03,680 Speaker 1: around what U mommy is. First, is that, unlike other tastes, 104 00:05:03,720 --> 00:05:07,479 Speaker 1: you don't really experience mummy as this isolated thing. Think 105 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:09,600 Speaker 1: about it. You can bite into a strawberry and immediately 106 00:05:09,640 --> 00:05:12,880 Speaker 1: experience that as sweet, or lick a French fry and no, 107 00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:15,800 Speaker 1: that's kind of a salty taste. I think we've talked 108 00:05:15,839 --> 00:05:18,360 Speaker 1: about this. You've got to stop licking your French fry. 109 00:05:18,440 --> 00:05:22,799 Speaker 1: That's a little weird. They're just so good though, But anyway, 110 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:24,960 Speaker 1: you can experience those tastes in a pretty pure and 111 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:27,960 Speaker 1: direct form With OU mommy, it's more in combination with 112 00:05:28,040 --> 00:05:31,280 Speaker 1: other things. Taste researcher Paul Breslin also points out that 113 00:05:31,320 --> 00:05:34,040 Speaker 1: the receptors for OU mommy have a pretty low maximum 114 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,560 Speaker 1: intensity compared to other taste which prevents us from being 115 00:05:37,560 --> 00:05:40,760 Speaker 1: able to note something is being very umami, unlike how 116 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:43,360 Speaker 1: we might say something is very sweet or very salty. Yeah, 117 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:46,000 Speaker 1: and there's a much stronger cultural element than I realized. 118 00:05:46,040 --> 00:05:48,600 Speaker 1: I mean, I know the stereotypes of different cultures being 119 00:05:48,640 --> 00:05:51,480 Speaker 1: able to handle different levels of spice or things like that, 120 00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:53,880 Speaker 1: but I really didn't think about how that could be applied. 121 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:56,440 Speaker 1: There's something like ou mommy. But it turns out many 122 00:05:56,440 --> 00:05:59,520 Speaker 1: people in Asian countries have no problem identifying things as 123 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:02,360 Speaker 1: z mom, but they have the same ease that American 124 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:06,000 Speaker 1: children have identifying things as sweet. It's really interesting how 125 00:06:06,040 --> 00:06:09,839 Speaker 1: taste has developed differently in different places around the world. Well, 126 00:06:09,960 --> 00:06:12,080 Speaker 1: let's back up for a minute talk about how these 127 00:06:12,120 --> 00:06:15,320 Speaker 1: tastes would have developed from an evolutionary perspective. Yeah, it's 128 00:06:15,320 --> 00:06:17,320 Speaker 1: one thing for us to identify or talk about these 129 00:06:17,320 --> 00:06:19,839 Speaker 1: tastes when we cook at home or eat at restaurants now, 130 00:06:20,240 --> 00:06:22,839 Speaker 1: but for our ancestors, these tastes were key to survival. 131 00:06:23,160 --> 00:06:25,040 Speaker 1: So think about how a sweet taste would have let 132 00:06:25,080 --> 00:06:27,240 Speaker 1: someone know that they were getting sugars, which are an 133 00:06:27,240 --> 00:06:30,440 Speaker 1: important way to get calories for energy, or Tasting salt 134 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:33,320 Speaker 1: would be an indication of electrolytes, and a mommy would 135 00:06:33,320 --> 00:06:36,880 Speaker 1: have indicated the presence of proteins. Now, on the negative side, 136 00:06:36,920 --> 00:06:39,520 Speaker 1: our ancestors learned from bitter taste that something might be 137 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:42,160 Speaker 1: toxic or from sourness that a fruit might have gone 138 00:06:42,200 --> 00:06:44,600 Speaker 1: bad or just not be good to eat. Yeah, it's 139 00:06:44,640 --> 00:06:47,920 Speaker 1: not hard to see how we'd be hardwired to like sweet, salty, 140 00:06:47,960 --> 00:06:50,839 Speaker 1: and mommy. And it's equally fascinating to see how other 141 00:06:50,880 --> 00:06:54,919 Speaker 1: animals have evolved differently because of their different nutritional needs. 142 00:06:54,960 --> 00:06:59,400 Speaker 1: Like there was a cat study. Oh great is back? 143 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:02,960 Speaker 1: Well a study was done that showed cats, because their 144 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:06,400 Speaker 1: carnivores are unable to really identify sweetness and it has 145 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:09,320 Speaker 1: no appeal for them, and pandas, who are some serious 146 00:07:09,320 --> 00:07:12,320 Speaker 1: bamboo eaters, don't really need to identify you mommy, so 147 00:07:12,360 --> 00:07:14,600 Speaker 1: they've lost the ability to taste it well. And even 148 00:07:14,640 --> 00:07:17,520 Speaker 1: more extreme than that, vampire bats love of blood has 149 00:07:17,560 --> 00:07:19,840 Speaker 1: caused them to lose the ability to taste ou mommy, 150 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:23,080 Speaker 1: sweet and bitter. I'm actually curious why we don't do 151 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:28,160 Speaker 1: a bad studies like we do cats studies. Have I 152 00:07:28,200 --> 00:07:30,720 Speaker 1: mentioned I don't like cats. I think you've mentioned that 153 00:07:30,760 --> 00:07:32,720 Speaker 1: a few times, alright, just wanted to make sure. So 154 00:07:32,800 --> 00:07:35,840 Speaker 1: back to how we've evolved, there's another thing about taste 155 00:07:35,840 --> 00:07:38,320 Speaker 1: that I think is just crazy interesting. So just as 156 00:07:38,320 --> 00:07:41,480 Speaker 1: we're discussing how flavor is much more than just taste. 157 00:07:41,920 --> 00:07:44,480 Speaker 1: Taste also happens to be more complex than we thought. 158 00:07:44,840 --> 00:07:47,160 Speaker 1: Did you know that there are taste receptors in multiple 159 00:07:47,200 --> 00:07:50,400 Speaker 1: places around our body, not just our mouth. Sure, it's crazy, 160 00:07:50,440 --> 00:07:52,520 Speaker 1: isn't it. Wait, so that means you do know about this. 161 00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:56,000 Speaker 1: I'm gonna quiz you, So, do we have taste receptors 162 00:07:56,000 --> 00:08:00,480 Speaker 1: in our lungs? What about our guts? What about our brains? 163 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,360 Speaker 1: What about our for No, we don't. We do not 164 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:07,920 Speaker 1: have taste receptors in our forehead, you slum dogmillionaire, You 165 00:08:07,960 --> 00:08:10,640 Speaker 1: should know better. There's no cheating on our quizzes. So 166 00:08:10,680 --> 00:08:14,200 Speaker 1: this isn't exactly well understood yet, but it's really fascinating. 167 00:08:14,240 --> 00:08:17,200 Speaker 1: The ones in the gut, for example, detected mommy and sweet, 168 00:08:17,240 --> 00:08:20,000 Speaker 1: and let our brains know that some yummy and nutritious 169 00:08:20,040 --> 00:08:22,840 Speaker 1: food has arrived, and if they taste something bitter, they 170 00:08:22,920 --> 00:08:25,120 Speaker 1: let us know there may be a problem and trigger 171 00:08:25,240 --> 00:08:27,800 Speaker 1: response of some kind. So you can get the sense 172 00:08:27,840 --> 00:08:30,080 Speaker 1: for why they're helpful. But why do you think we 173 00:08:30,120 --> 00:08:33,480 Speaker 1: need taste receptors in our respiratory system? So it's one 174 00:08:33,480 --> 00:08:36,400 Speaker 1: way of letting our bodies know if bacteria has arrived, 175 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:39,720 Speaker 1: Because bacteria have a communication chemical with a bitter taste, 176 00:08:39,840 --> 00:08:42,520 Speaker 1: and when the receptors in our respiratory system notice this, 177 00:08:42,840 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: they help our bodies mount a response. There's even some 178 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:48,880 Speaker 1: thinking among scientists that these bitter receptors may have existed 179 00:08:48,920 --> 00:08:51,360 Speaker 1: in other areas of our body, first as a way 180 00:08:51,400 --> 00:08:54,360 Speaker 1: of detecting infection and then moving to our mouths. As 181 00:08:54,400 --> 00:08:57,320 Speaker 1: Holmes explains, if this is the case, we have disease 182 00:08:57,400 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 1: to thank for the flavor of coffee, beer, and brocc 183 00:09:00,240 --> 00:09:02,319 Speaker 1: It's weird, right, all right? So I know in a 184 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:04,199 Speaker 1: few minutes we're going to play a quiz, but before 185 00:09:04,240 --> 00:09:05,959 Speaker 1: we do that, I think we should find out whether 186 00:09:06,000 --> 00:09:09,760 Speaker 1: we're super tasters super tastes. Well, it's not as exciting 187 00:09:09,800 --> 00:09:12,360 Speaker 1: as it sounds, because while it does mean someone has 188 00:09:12,360 --> 00:09:15,319 Speaker 1: a more intense sense of taste, supertasters tend to be 189 00:09:15,400 --> 00:09:18,440 Speaker 1: much more bland eaters because most tastes tend to be 190 00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:21,040 Speaker 1: that much more extreme for them. Well, given the fact 191 00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:23,480 Speaker 1: that the last time we ate at the Chinese place downstairs, 192 00:09:23,520 --> 00:09:25,360 Speaker 1: it looked to me like you just ordered a plate 193 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:29,520 Speaker 1: of hot peppers, So I'm guessing you're not a supertaster. Yeah, 194 00:09:29,559 --> 00:09:31,120 Speaker 1: we had a joke in our family that our dad 195 00:09:31,200 --> 00:09:33,800 Speaker 1: served as so much spicy food that we burned off 196 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:37,400 Speaker 1: our taste butts. Let me show you how we test 197 00:09:37,440 --> 00:09:40,200 Speaker 1: for this using this filter paper. Each strip has a 198 00:09:40,200 --> 00:09:42,800 Speaker 1: small amount of a bitter compound on them. It's called 199 00:09:42,960 --> 00:09:46,640 Speaker 1: prople thi osal or p r o P. So we're 200 00:09:46,640 --> 00:09:48,640 Speaker 1: going to put these on our tongues and find out 201 00:09:48,640 --> 00:09:51,080 Speaker 1: which of these three categories of tasters we fall in. 202 00:09:51,360 --> 00:09:54,600 Speaker 1: Non tasters will taste nothing, tasters will notice the bitter 203 00:09:54,640 --> 00:09:57,240 Speaker 1: taste but it's not a huge deal, and supertaste will 204 00:09:57,240 --> 00:10:00,520 Speaker 1: have the super strong response to it. All I like this. 205 00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:02,400 Speaker 1: We should also get some other members of the PTG 206 00:10:02,559 --> 00:10:07,760 Speaker 1: team in here. What are you say? Yeah? Definitely all right, 207 00:10:07,800 --> 00:10:09,560 Speaker 1: So let's give this a shot. So we've got two 208 00:10:09,640 --> 00:10:11,880 Speaker 1: of our team members joining us. We've got Noel Brown, 209 00:10:12,040 --> 00:10:13,880 Speaker 1: you may know from stuff they don't want you to know, 210 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:17,560 Speaker 1: also a supervising producer on the show, and Jerry Rowland, 211 00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:20,400 Speaker 1: our executive producer. Here. Guys, you guys ready to give 212 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:23,679 Speaker 1: this a shot? Boy? Am I ever? Okay? All right? 213 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:25,760 Speaker 1: So we've all got these strips and on the count 214 00:10:25,760 --> 00:10:27,400 Speaker 1: of three, we're gonna put them on our tongues and 215 00:10:27,400 --> 00:10:29,720 Speaker 1: we're gonna see what happens now. As a reminder, if 216 00:10:29,760 --> 00:10:32,360 Speaker 1: you taste nothing, which may be the case, you're a 217 00:10:32,400 --> 00:10:35,120 Speaker 1: non taster. If you taste a little bit of bitter, 218 00:10:35,360 --> 00:10:38,120 Speaker 1: just some bitter, then you're a taster. And if it 219 00:10:38,240 --> 00:10:42,199 Speaker 1: tastes extremely better than you are a super taster. So ready, 220 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:44,839 Speaker 1: all right on the count of three, one, two, three. 221 00:10:47,200 --> 00:10:48,880 Speaker 1: I don't know what sides you may have to flip 222 00:10:48,920 --> 00:10:53,520 Speaker 1: it out. You get something I got. I got a 223 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:58,760 Speaker 1: hint of bitter. Uh huh. Mine is totally bitter. It's 224 00:10:58,840 --> 00:11:01,560 Speaker 1: like great fruit bitter. Oh nice, I have a real 225 00:11:02,040 --> 00:11:06,600 Speaker 1: paper taste, but I mean something completely different. We can't 226 00:11:06,600 --> 00:11:12,040 Speaker 1: talk about it, Jerry, she's running away. She's always had 227 00:11:12,040 --> 00:11:19,480 Speaker 1: a great taste. Is blown? I hate great fruit, super taste. Kay, 228 00:11:19,520 --> 00:11:23,640 Speaker 1: spicy food, Jerry, I love spicy food, but you just 229 00:11:23,720 --> 00:11:26,400 Speaker 1: like the torture of I guess I'm not sure what's happening. 230 00:11:29,640 --> 00:11:31,840 Speaker 1: Oh man, that's so disappointing. You've given us a lot 231 00:11:31,920 --> 00:11:34,880 Speaker 1: to think about. Yeah, I feel like I'm so cheated, 232 00:11:34,920 --> 00:11:36,640 Speaker 1: Like not only can I not see those like three 233 00:11:36,720 --> 00:11:39,600 Speaker 1: D magic pictures, but also I can't taste these people. Yeah, 234 00:11:39,679 --> 00:11:41,959 Speaker 1: this is the worst. Okay, that's a bummer I was 235 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:45,320 Speaker 1: getting I think I was getting a slight taste of bitter. Okay, 236 00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:46,920 Speaker 1: here we go. Well, while we're having so much fun, 237 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:48,920 Speaker 1: what do you say we play a little quiz? Sounds good? 238 00:11:55,920 --> 00:11:57,600 Speaker 1: All right? So who do we have on the line today, Mango, 239 00:11:57,840 --> 00:12:00,320 Speaker 1: We've got Sarah Fiddler, who's got one of the list 240 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:02,320 Speaker 1: jobs in the world. She's a flavor guru at one 241 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:05,000 Speaker 1: of my favorite ice cream companies, Ben and Jerry's. We 242 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:07,160 Speaker 1: are so excited to have you on. Welcome to part 243 00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:10,520 Speaker 1: time genius, Sarah. Thank you for having me. So I'm 244 00:12:10,520 --> 00:12:13,000 Speaker 1: really curious how you got this job. I mean, what 245 00:12:13,120 --> 00:12:15,199 Speaker 1: sort of training and schooling do you have to have 246 00:12:15,280 --> 00:12:18,960 Speaker 1: to become a Ben and Jerry's flavor guru? Um? Well, personally, 247 00:12:19,360 --> 00:12:24,199 Speaker 1: I have a degree in Food science UM from the 248 00:12:24,280 --> 00:12:28,880 Speaker 1: University of Vermont and a degree in baking and pastry 249 00:12:29,040 --> 00:12:32,960 Speaker 1: from the Culinary Institute of America. There are a group 250 00:12:33,040 --> 00:12:36,320 Speaker 1: of us flavor gurus here, and everybody's got kind of 251 00:12:36,320 --> 00:12:40,440 Speaker 1: a mixed background, from chefs to food scientists, all comes 252 00:12:40,440 --> 00:12:44,079 Speaker 1: from different backgrounds. It's very cool. And and how are 253 00:12:44,160 --> 00:12:46,960 Speaker 1: flavors decided upon? Like, how do you guys decide? You 254 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:49,840 Speaker 1: have so many fun and creative and awesome flavors. How 255 00:12:49,880 --> 00:12:52,559 Speaker 1: do you guys come up with these? Well, we start 256 00:12:52,600 --> 00:12:56,800 Speaker 1: out by being very creative and kind of playing around 257 00:12:56,960 --> 00:13:01,559 Speaker 1: in our test kitchens, and then we meet with our 258 00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:05,960 Speaker 1: marketing team or brand management team sometimes the social mission 259 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:10,000 Speaker 1: team and figure out which of our crazy flavors makes 260 00:13:10,040 --> 00:13:14,480 Speaker 1: the most sense to launch for the next season. And 261 00:13:14,520 --> 00:13:16,920 Speaker 1: so how many flavors are you typically playing with? It 262 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:22,640 Speaker 1: could be arranged anywhere from maybe three to ten at 263 00:13:22,640 --> 00:13:26,760 Speaker 1: a time. That's that's a pretty crazy UM. I heard 264 00:13:26,800 --> 00:13:28,959 Speaker 1: that the Ven and Jerry's staff takes a field trip 265 00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:32,280 Speaker 1: every year to research new flavors. Is that true. Yeah, 266 00:13:32,400 --> 00:13:35,880 Speaker 1: we go on what we call trend tracks. UM take 267 00:13:36,200 --> 00:13:41,200 Speaker 1: a city or area that seems to be filled with 268 00:13:41,720 --> 00:13:48,920 Speaker 1: really up and coming food places, sometimes cocktail places, farms, 269 00:13:49,040 --> 00:13:52,760 Speaker 1: and go as a group and eat as much as 270 00:13:52,840 --> 00:13:56,760 Speaker 1: we possibly can, and then come back and make ice 271 00:13:56,800 --> 00:14:00,560 Speaker 1: cream inspired by what we ate. That's so cool. Well, 272 00:14:00,760 --> 00:14:03,720 Speaker 1: where are some of the fun places you've trecked to? UM? Well, 273 00:14:03,920 --> 00:14:06,440 Speaker 1: I'm relatively new to the company, so I have yet 274 00:14:06,480 --> 00:14:08,400 Speaker 1: to go on a truck, but I've heard that they've 275 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:13,959 Speaker 1: gone to San Francisco, Portland's UM I believe there was 276 00:14:13,960 --> 00:14:17,760 Speaker 1: a trip to Japan before I started. Very cool. That's 277 00:14:17,760 --> 00:14:20,160 Speaker 1: so jealous of this job. That sounds pretty great. Now 278 00:14:20,200 --> 00:14:23,600 Speaker 1: we also know about the flavor graveyard at Ben and Jerry. 279 00:14:23,680 --> 00:14:26,600 Speaker 1: So are there are there ceremonies when flavors are buried there? 280 00:14:26,720 --> 00:14:28,480 Speaker 1: And how does this work? How do you pay your 281 00:14:28,480 --> 00:14:32,280 Speaker 1: respects um? I think for some of the flavors that 282 00:14:32,520 --> 00:14:36,600 Speaker 1: were a little bit more love, uh, they do ceremonies 283 00:14:37,080 --> 00:14:42,600 Speaker 1: and sometimes it's more of a quiet affair. You won't 284 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:46,040 Speaker 1: get into that then. So that's pretty great. All right, 285 00:14:46,080 --> 00:14:48,360 Speaker 1: So ango, what game are we playing today with Sarah? 286 00:14:48,640 --> 00:14:51,480 Speaker 1: It's called do Me a Flavor? Mostly because I just 287 00:14:51,520 --> 00:14:53,520 Speaker 1: wanted to hear you say do me a flavor things. 288 00:14:53,920 --> 00:14:57,800 Speaker 1: I really, I really appreciate that. That's a pretty terrible t. 289 00:14:57,840 --> 00:14:59,720 Speaker 1: I don't know. How do we play? Basically, we're giving 290 00:14:59,720 --> 00:15:02,680 Speaker 1: Sarah three popular flavors from an iconic food or drink 291 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:04,760 Speaker 1: brant and she just has to tell us what we're 292 00:15:04,760 --> 00:15:07,320 Speaker 1: talking about. Okay, that sounds fun. All right, Sarah? You 293 00:15:07,320 --> 00:15:11,960 Speaker 1: ready to play? I'm ready? Okay. Question number one? This 294 00:15:12,040 --> 00:15:15,840 Speaker 1: chip comes in cool Ranch, nacho, cheese, and heat wave flavors. 295 00:15:15,880 --> 00:15:18,000 Speaker 1: So do me a flavor and tell me what product 296 00:15:18,080 --> 00:15:21,720 Speaker 1: we're talking about. You Yeah, you got it for one 297 00:15:21,880 --> 00:15:25,120 Speaker 1: Question number two. The most popular flavors of this candy 298 00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:29,240 Speaker 1: include very cherry and buttered popcorn, though the blueberry flavor 299 00:15:29,360 --> 00:15:32,400 Speaker 1: was particularly popular in the nineteen eighties when it was 300 00:15:32,440 --> 00:15:35,520 Speaker 1: created for Ronald Reagan. Do me a flavor, manger A, 301 00:15:35,520 --> 00:15:38,520 Speaker 1: you're gonna make me say. Do me a flavor and 302 00:15:38,560 --> 00:15:44,800 Speaker 1: tell me what brand we're talking about for two question 303 00:15:44,880 --> 00:15:48,520 Speaker 1: number three. This sports drink originally came in lemon, lime, 304 00:15:48,640 --> 00:15:52,520 Speaker 1: and orange flavors. It has since expanded to include rainberry, 305 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:57,000 Speaker 1: glacier freeze, and cool blue. Do me a flavor and 306 00:15:57,040 --> 00:16:01,360 Speaker 1: tell me what beverage I'm talking about. Yes, sorry, she's 307 00:16:01,400 --> 00:16:02,840 Speaker 1: three for three. Let's see if she can get the 308 00:16:02,880 --> 00:16:06,400 Speaker 1: last two question number four. While this O shaped breakfast 309 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,320 Speaker 1: cereal does come in flavors like fruity and frosted, the 310 00:16:09,360 --> 00:16:13,000 Speaker 1: most popular varieties are still original and honey nut. Do 311 00:16:13,120 --> 00:16:15,200 Speaker 1: me a flavor and tell me what breakfast cereal I'm 312 00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:19,520 Speaker 1: talking about. Okay, we've saved the hardest for last. Good 313 00:16:19,600 --> 00:16:23,560 Speaker 1: luck on this one. Okay, Question number five. This iconic 314 00:16:23,680 --> 00:16:27,440 Speaker 1: ice cream brand has the best puny flavors, including Fish Food, 315 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:31,360 Speaker 1: American Dream, and the Tonight Dough. Do me a flavor 316 00:16:31,360 --> 00:16:33,640 Speaker 1: and tell me what really wonderful ice cream company we're 317 00:16:33,640 --> 00:16:37,000 Speaker 1: talking about? All right? That would have been kind of 318 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:42,800 Speaker 1: embarrassing if she missed out. Well, Sarah when an astounding 319 00:16:42,920 --> 00:16:45,600 Speaker 1: five for five, which wins her the grand prize, a 320 00:16:45,640 --> 00:16:48,160 Speaker 1: handwritten note from us to her mom or boss singing 321 00:16:48,160 --> 00:16:51,840 Speaker 1: her praises. So, congratulations Sarah, and thank you so much 322 00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:56,920 Speaker 1: for playing. That's awesome. Congratulations Sarah. Please tell all the 323 00:16:56,920 --> 00:16:59,000 Speaker 1: people that Ben and Jerry's we say thank you for 324 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:13,720 Speaker 1: making wonderful ice or even keep up the great work. 325 00:17:18,520 --> 00:17:20,760 Speaker 1: I guess what will? What's that mango? I'm coming to 326 00:17:20,920 --> 00:17:22,679 Speaker 1: terms with the fact that I'm not a super taste 327 00:17:22,800 --> 00:17:25,960 Speaker 1: al right. Well, lucky for you, we've been talking about 328 00:17:25,960 --> 00:17:28,800 Speaker 1: the fact that flavor is so much more than just taste, 329 00:17:29,160 --> 00:17:32,280 Speaker 1: and then we just talked about taste. But I think 330 00:17:32,280 --> 00:17:34,640 Speaker 1: it's time we backed that statement up and talk about 331 00:17:34,640 --> 00:17:37,560 Speaker 1: another key component of flavor, and that smell. All right, 332 00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:40,040 Speaker 1: talk to me about smell. Well, if you think taste 333 00:17:40,040 --> 00:17:42,760 Speaker 1: is a complicated thing, it's nothing compared to the complexity 334 00:17:42,800 --> 00:17:45,679 Speaker 1: of smell. Think about the millions upon millions of smells 335 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:47,480 Speaker 1: in the world and how our noses have to make 336 00:17:47,560 --> 00:17:50,080 Speaker 1: sense of them and help us identify what things are. 337 00:17:50,520 --> 00:17:53,760 Speaker 1: In fact, as Holmes points out, the old faction researcher 338 00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:58,240 Speaker 1: Joel Mainland estimates that they're about twenty seven billion smelling 339 00:17:58,320 --> 00:18:01,320 Speaker 1: molecules in the world. And while that doesn't mean they're 340 00:18:01,320 --> 00:18:05,639 Speaker 1: about billion smells because some might be identical, that's still 341 00:18:05,720 --> 00:18:08,560 Speaker 1: this incredible number. Well, the other thing, Holmes explains that 342 00:18:08,600 --> 00:18:10,800 Speaker 1: I find so interesting, and this goes back to your 343 00:18:10,800 --> 00:18:14,600 Speaker 1: electric lollipop example, but that's how different taste and smell are. 344 00:18:15,000 --> 00:18:17,639 Speaker 1: So our sense of taste is pretty easy to break down. 345 00:18:17,880 --> 00:18:19,920 Speaker 1: We can enjoy a dish of sweet and sour pork 346 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:22,720 Speaker 1: and understand that it's sweet and sour, or have some 347 00:18:22,800 --> 00:18:25,440 Speaker 1: catch up and know that it's sweet, sour, salty and 348 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:28,600 Speaker 1: new mommy. And maybe we're not thinking about those things actively, 349 00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:31,000 Speaker 1: but those are all there and we can identify them. 350 00:18:31,040 --> 00:18:34,000 Speaker 1: So but smell is different because you really can't break 351 00:18:34,040 --> 00:18:37,200 Speaker 1: it down. Instead, our brains take all the information from 352 00:18:37,240 --> 00:18:40,600 Speaker 1: the smelly molecules and create a single perception of smell. 353 00:18:41,119 --> 00:18:44,720 Speaker 1: As Holmes writes, if you combine ethyl isobuterate which is 354 00:18:44,720 --> 00:18:48,520 Speaker 1: a fruity odor ethyl maltall it's just caramel like an 355 00:18:48,520 --> 00:18:53,600 Speaker 1: allyl alpha ionine, which is violet like in the proper proportions. 356 00:18:53,600 --> 00:18:56,600 Speaker 1: For example, what you smell is not caramel coated fruit 357 00:18:56,640 --> 00:18:59,920 Speaker 1: on a bed of violets, but pineapple. And it's made 358 00:19:00,119 --> 00:19:02,600 Speaker 1: much more complicated by the fact that in English we 359 00:19:02,640 --> 00:19:05,280 Speaker 1: really don't have the language to describe smells in any 360 00:19:05,320 --> 00:19:08,400 Speaker 1: significant way other than seeing what they smell like. So 361 00:19:08,440 --> 00:19:11,639 Speaker 1: we might say something smells fishy or like grass or whatever. 362 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:14,399 Speaker 1: But this isn't the case everywhere, and especially in places 363 00:19:14,440 --> 00:19:17,280 Speaker 1: that depend much more on those smells for survival, such 364 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:20,840 Speaker 1: as the remaining hunter gatherer tribes. Take the Jehi tribe 365 00:19:20,840 --> 00:19:23,800 Speaker 1: of Thailand. A research team set up a smell test 366 00:19:23,840 --> 00:19:25,919 Speaker 1: between a group of Jehi men and a group of 367 00:19:25,920 --> 00:19:28,720 Speaker 1: men from Texas, and when the Jehi men were presented 368 00:19:28,760 --> 00:19:31,920 Speaker 1: with certain smells, they had just an easy time communicating 369 00:19:31,920 --> 00:19:34,600 Speaker 1: what they smelled with very descriptive words, as they did 370 00:19:34,600 --> 00:19:37,240 Speaker 1: in describing colors. And the Texans, on the other hand, 371 00:19:37,240 --> 00:19:39,840 Speaker 1: were of course able to describe colors, but they struggled 372 00:19:39,880 --> 00:19:42,520 Speaker 1: when asked to describe smells. When there's one more reason 373 00:19:42,520 --> 00:19:44,960 Speaker 1: why smell is just so difficult for us to understand 374 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:47,959 Speaker 1: and talk about what's not alright, So humans have around 375 00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:51,040 Speaker 1: four hundred odor receptors. But the part that makes things 376 00:19:51,080 --> 00:19:54,320 Speaker 1: complicated is that only about half of those receptors work 377 00:19:54,359 --> 00:19:57,280 Speaker 1: and pretty much everyone. But then of the other half, 378 00:19:57,320 --> 00:19:59,719 Speaker 1: there's this wide range of which one's work and some 379 00:19:59,760 --> 00:20:02,119 Speaker 1: p bowl and not in others. So that leads to 380 00:20:02,200 --> 00:20:04,920 Speaker 1: an incredibly wide range of smells that humans are capable 381 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:08,560 Speaker 1: of processing. In fact, for the most part, no two 382 00:20:08,600 --> 00:20:11,680 Speaker 1: people have the same sense of smell, which is pretty crazy. Yeah, 383 00:20:11,720 --> 00:20:13,800 Speaker 1: but needless to say, our sense of smell and makes 384 00:20:13,800 --> 00:20:16,520 Speaker 1: a huge contribution to the flavors we process. And there's 385 00:20:16,520 --> 00:20:18,960 Speaker 1: another biggie to add to taste and smell, and that's 386 00:20:19,000 --> 00:20:21,679 Speaker 1: the sense of touch. Think about the burn of a 387 00:20:21,760 --> 00:20:24,160 Speaker 1: chili pepper, or the chili feeling in your mouth when 388 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:27,000 Speaker 1: you're chewing on a menty piece of gum, or visit 389 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:30,280 Speaker 1: a carbonated drink. Oh man, that first sip of a coke? 390 00:20:30,359 --> 00:20:33,560 Speaker 1: How good is this first sip of a coke? So good? 391 00:20:33,680 --> 00:20:38,800 Speaker 1: I think I'll have one right now, all right to Atlanta. 392 00:20:39,480 --> 00:20:42,199 Speaker 1: So it's interesting how little is really understood about this 393 00:20:42,280 --> 00:20:45,080 Speaker 1: component of flavor at least how few studies have been 394 00:20:45,119 --> 00:20:47,720 Speaker 1: done on it, but we do know that spicy hot, 395 00:20:47,760 --> 00:20:50,879 Speaker 1: for example, is not a taste. It's something you feel, 396 00:20:51,240 --> 00:20:53,720 Speaker 1: and that we have specific receptors that cause the heat 397 00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:57,520 Speaker 1: sensation when we eat spicy things. Speaking the spicy hot. 398 00:20:57,640 --> 00:21:00,119 Speaker 1: Do you know how the Scoville units, which measure or 399 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:03,320 Speaker 1: the heat of chili peppers got its start. Well, apparently 400 00:21:03,359 --> 00:21:06,280 Speaker 1: it goes back to this pharmacist and researcher Wilbur Scoville. 401 00:21:06,560 --> 00:21:09,119 Speaker 1: Scoville came up with a scale back in and it 402 00:21:09,200 --> 00:21:11,639 Speaker 1: was a pretty smart way of doing it. You figured 403 00:21:11,680 --> 00:21:13,760 Speaker 1: out that you could create a scale based on the 404 00:21:13,800 --> 00:21:16,720 Speaker 1: amount of dilution required before the burn of a chili 405 00:21:16,920 --> 00:21:19,840 Speaker 1: could no longer be felt, So super hot pepper would 406 00:21:19,840 --> 00:21:22,720 Speaker 1: take much more dilution. Oh, that is pretty smart. Yeah, 407 00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:24,960 Speaker 1: and now it's easier for scientists to just measure the 408 00:21:24,960 --> 00:21:27,480 Speaker 1: amount of capt sasan, which is the main ingredient that 409 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:30,120 Speaker 1: makes a chili hot, and then just convert those into 410 00:21:30,119 --> 00:21:33,399 Speaker 1: Scoville units. It's pretty wild how hot some peppers can be. 411 00:21:33,920 --> 00:21:36,680 Speaker 1: Take halapinos, for example, which we think of is pretty hot. 412 00:21:36,720 --> 00:21:40,280 Speaker 1: They come in about five thousand Scoville units. Cayans are 413 00:21:40,280 --> 00:21:43,359 Speaker 1: at about forty thousand. The Habbaniro comes in it over 414 00:21:43,520 --> 00:21:46,680 Speaker 1: a hundred thousand, maybe even up to three hundred thousand. 415 00:21:47,080 --> 00:21:50,119 Speaker 1: But even the Habbaniro doesn't hold a candle to the 416 00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:53,239 Speaker 1: Carolina Reaper. And how many Scoville units does that one have? 417 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:59,800 Speaker 1: Two point two millions and unbelievable. That's basically like police 418 00:22:00,040 --> 00:22:02,960 Speaker 1: aid pepper spray. And there's a new contender out there. 419 00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:05,800 Speaker 1: It's called Dragon's Breath, which is a tiny pepper that 420 00:22:05,840 --> 00:22:08,719 Speaker 1: can possibly kill you, but it sounds so cute. So 421 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:11,880 Speaker 1: we have no old Brown here to test this. Why 422 00:22:11,880 --> 00:22:14,120 Speaker 1: would you even make a pepper that hot. Well, it's 423 00:22:14,160 --> 00:22:17,359 Speaker 1: so unbelievably hot that can actually numb your skin to touch, 424 00:22:17,720 --> 00:22:20,119 Speaker 1: and that makes it useful as an anesthetic in areas 425 00:22:20,119 --> 00:22:23,119 Speaker 1: without medical supplies. But let's leave the hottest of the 426 00:22:23,119 --> 00:22:25,760 Speaker 1: hot peppers aside for a minute. It's interesting that we 427 00:22:25,880 --> 00:22:29,399 Speaker 1: humans enjoy inflicting this burning pain on ourselves and we 428 00:22:29,480 --> 00:22:32,119 Speaker 1: don't know exactly why this is. I mean, I know, 429 00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:34,600 Speaker 1: we know about the endorphin release that happens when we 430 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:37,600 Speaker 1: eat spicy foods, but that still doesn't answer the question 431 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:40,280 Speaker 1: of why that happens. You know, first we feast does 432 00:22:40,320 --> 00:22:42,840 Speaker 1: that chili head enthusiast show. And I was reading an 433 00:22:42,840 --> 00:22:44,920 Speaker 1: interview that said it's much easier to get people to 434 00:22:45,000 --> 00:22:47,840 Speaker 1: drop their inhibitions when they eat a chili pepper because 435 00:22:47,840 --> 00:22:50,600 Speaker 1: they're like sweating and it's like they've just exercised. So 436 00:22:50,880 --> 00:22:52,960 Speaker 1: instead of those awkward questions you go through in the 437 00:22:53,000 --> 00:22:55,400 Speaker 1: beginning of an interview, people just get past that by 438 00:22:55,400 --> 00:22:59,000 Speaker 1: eating chilies. Anyway, we know humans like heat, but researchers 439 00:22:59,040 --> 00:23:01,480 Speaker 1: have yet to identify another mammal that seeks the heat 440 00:23:01,480 --> 00:23:03,919 Speaker 1: of chili peppers. I mean, birds eat plenty of them, 441 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:05,920 Speaker 1: but they don't actually have the receptors that would feel 442 00:23:05,960 --> 00:23:08,280 Speaker 1: the heat of kept sastion, so there's no sensation at 443 00:23:08,280 --> 00:23:10,399 Speaker 1: all for them even in eating a super hot pepper. 444 00:23:10,520 --> 00:23:12,760 Speaker 1: I wonder if birds enjoy the first sip of a coke. 445 00:23:13,240 --> 00:23:20,160 Speaker 1: Oh man, Alright, while we savor our beverages, why don't 446 00:23:20,160 --> 00:23:31,600 Speaker 1: we take a break for a quiz. Our guest today 447 00:23:31,600 --> 00:23:34,000 Speaker 1: has been a science writer and correspondent for New Scientist 448 00:23:34,119 --> 00:23:37,160 Speaker 1: magazine for over twenty years, and as the author of Flavor, 449 00:23:37,240 --> 00:23:39,560 Speaker 1: the brilliant book we've been talking about in this episode, 450 00:23:40,080 --> 00:23:41,960 Speaker 1: and for those who listen to our episode on how 451 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:44,440 Speaker 1: Clean We Should Be. You know, I'm not surprised that 452 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:46,960 Speaker 1: a new scientist writer would produce such a great book. 453 00:23:47,400 --> 00:23:50,880 Speaker 1: Bob Holmes, Welcome to Part Time Genius. Thanks for having me, 454 00:23:51,320 --> 00:23:53,680 Speaker 1: Bob and Flavor. You mentioned that we can pretty much 455 00:23:53,720 --> 00:23:56,200 Speaker 1: do away with the idea that we have previously had 456 00:23:56,280 --> 00:23:59,160 Speaker 1: about taste maps, where different parts of our tongues helped 457 00:23:59,200 --> 00:24:02,800 Speaker 1: us experience different taste. So our taste maps really not 458 00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:05,840 Speaker 1: a thing we should think about anymore. They really aren't, 459 00:24:05,880 --> 00:24:08,280 Speaker 1: And it's it's pretty easy to demonstrate that. All you 460 00:24:08,320 --> 00:24:09,960 Speaker 1: have to do is take a que tip and dip 461 00:24:09,960 --> 00:24:12,520 Speaker 1: it in salt water and brush it around your tongue. 462 00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:15,280 Speaker 1: You know, the taste map says that he tastes salty. 463 00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:16,960 Speaker 1: I think it's right at the tip of your tongue, 464 00:24:17,520 --> 00:24:19,920 Speaker 1: and you'll find that you can taste the salt anywhere. 465 00:24:20,760 --> 00:24:25,000 Speaker 1: So how did this come about? I'm not sure. It 466 00:24:25,000 --> 00:24:28,639 Speaker 1: turns out there are slight differences in different parts of 467 00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:32,399 Speaker 1: the tongue, and you've got a few more bitter taste 468 00:24:32,400 --> 00:24:35,400 Speaker 1: buds right at the back and a few more sweets 469 00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:37,520 Speaker 1: at the front. Things like that. But it's it's not 470 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:40,439 Speaker 1: enough to make much of a difference at all. You 471 00:24:40,480 --> 00:24:44,120 Speaker 1: also write the possibility of a sixth taste or even 472 00:24:44,160 --> 00:24:45,879 Speaker 1: more than that, and could you talk a little bit 473 00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:49,840 Speaker 1: about that? Sure, Yeah, I mean it's almost certainly at 474 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:53,000 Speaker 1: least like the taste and made quite a few more. Uh. 475 00:24:53,040 --> 00:24:55,320 Speaker 1: You know, we all know about sweet, salty, sower, bitter, 476 00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:58,240 Speaker 1: and most of us know about mommy, which is a 477 00:24:58,359 --> 00:25:03,959 Speaker 1: fifth taste that's sort of safe retaste. But almost certainly. 478 00:25:03,960 --> 00:25:06,160 Speaker 1: I think the evidence is really good now that there 479 00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:09,520 Speaker 1: is in fact a taste for for fat, or more specifically, 480 00:25:09,560 --> 00:25:13,360 Speaker 1: for the fatty acid breakdown products of fat. And these 481 00:25:13,359 --> 00:25:18,520 Speaker 1: are actually the nasties. The researcher who demonstrated this is 482 00:25:18,640 --> 00:25:20,960 Speaker 1: the easiest way to think about what they taste like 483 00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:27,440 Speaker 1: is to imagine old ransoid French fry oil. It's gone off, 484 00:25:27,760 --> 00:25:32,639 Speaker 1: and that's what fatty acids taste like. Yeah, I definitely 485 00:25:32,640 --> 00:25:35,560 Speaker 1: know that, almost certainly one of those warning tastes to 486 00:25:35,720 --> 00:25:39,480 Speaker 1: keep us away from rancid fats. And is there anything 487 00:25:39,480 --> 00:25:41,640 Speaker 1: good that can be done with it? A little bit 488 00:25:41,800 --> 00:25:45,320 Speaker 1: of these nasty fatty acids are part of what makes 489 00:25:45,400 --> 00:25:51,840 Speaker 1: aged cheese interesting. So yeah, and probably also a little 490 00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:55,679 Speaker 1: bit in aged meat and things like that, So in 491 00:25:55,880 --> 00:25:59,320 Speaker 1: very small quantities, you know, just like putting a little 492 00:25:59,320 --> 00:26:01,760 Speaker 1: bit of cappy, I persume actually is a good thing. 493 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:07,200 Speaker 1: You know, these nasties in our food probably do add 494 00:26:07,240 --> 00:26:10,439 Speaker 1: interest if there's little enough of them. You know. One 495 00:26:10,440 --> 00:26:12,040 Speaker 1: of the other things that you explained that I thought 496 00:26:12,080 --> 00:26:14,760 Speaker 1: was was super interesting is that humans get a bad 497 00:26:14,840 --> 00:26:18,359 Speaker 1: rap for having an inferior sense of smell. So is 498 00:26:18,400 --> 00:26:21,600 Speaker 1: this really a myth? We have fewer odor receptors in 499 00:26:21,640 --> 00:26:24,840 Speaker 1: our nose than something like a dog does, so they 500 00:26:24,880 --> 00:26:28,960 Speaker 1: probably are better than us, but not nearly as much 501 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:33,399 Speaker 1: better than us as we think. Uh. When people have looked, 502 00:26:33,760 --> 00:26:37,280 Speaker 1: they found that that humans are actually pretty good at 503 00:26:37,280 --> 00:26:41,320 Speaker 1: smelling stuff. But a blindfolded person can follow a chocolate 504 00:26:41,320 --> 00:26:44,879 Speaker 1: trail across the lawn on their hands and he's sniffing 505 00:26:44,920 --> 00:26:50,560 Speaker 1: to find where the chocolate was ding. Uh. So you know, 506 00:26:50,880 --> 00:26:52,720 Speaker 1: most of the reason that we think we're so bad 507 00:26:52,760 --> 00:26:55,080 Speaker 1: at smell is that our noses are way up in 508 00:26:55,080 --> 00:26:56,800 Speaker 1: the air and all the smells are done there on 509 00:26:56,840 --> 00:26:59,840 Speaker 1: the ground. So if we were too, if we were 510 00:26:59,880 --> 00:27:03,359 Speaker 1: to explore our worlds just like our dogs do, we 511 00:27:03,480 --> 00:27:06,880 Speaker 1: find there were stuff there we could smell. People can 512 00:27:06,920 --> 00:27:11,640 Speaker 1: go into a into a into a bookshelf and pick 513 00:27:11,680 --> 00:27:15,120 Speaker 1: out which book someone has just handled by the smell alone. 514 00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:20,200 Speaker 1: And the other place we're really good at smell actually 515 00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:22,959 Speaker 1: is in flavor. You know, the shape of our heads 516 00:27:23,119 --> 00:27:26,720 Speaker 1: mean that the flavors foods that are inside our mouth 517 00:27:26,800 --> 00:27:31,320 Speaker 1: has very quick access to to the olfactory part of 518 00:27:31,359 --> 00:27:34,359 Speaker 1: the nose, and so we're probably way better than our 519 00:27:34,400 --> 00:27:39,240 Speaker 1: dogs are at appreciating flavor. M that's really interesting, that's 520 00:27:39,240 --> 00:27:41,240 Speaker 1: so crazy. I mean, I feel like that totally changes 521 00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:43,520 Speaker 1: the truffle game, like the truffle hunting game, Like you 522 00:27:43,520 --> 00:27:45,880 Speaker 1: don't need a pig if you're on all four four 523 00:27:46,880 --> 00:27:51,840 Speaker 1: that's probably right, But some people don't smell the key 524 00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:54,680 Speaker 1: compounded truffles. Yeah, I'd probably do it for the right 525 00:27:54,720 --> 00:28:00,760 Speaker 1: bar of chocolate. Yeah, alright, Well, being an expert on flavor, 526 00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:02,639 Speaker 1: we couldn't let you go without putting you to the 527 00:28:02,680 --> 00:28:07,040 Speaker 1: test on an ultimate flavor quiz. So, Mango, what what 528 00:28:07,119 --> 00:28:09,520 Speaker 1: game do we have? What game do we have Bob playing? Today? 529 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:13,120 Speaker 1: We're playing a game called Vintage Recipe or gourmet cat 530 00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:16,199 Speaker 1: food Flavor. That's right, So we'll be tossing you a 531 00:28:16,240 --> 00:28:19,800 Speaker 1: delicious sounding item delicious is in air quotes, which doesn't 532 00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:22,359 Speaker 1: work quite as well on podcasts. But you have to 533 00:28:22,440 --> 00:28:25,480 Speaker 1: tell us if it's a vintage recipe we found online 534 00:28:26,080 --> 00:28:29,080 Speaker 1: or a gourmet cat food flavor. So you're ready to 535 00:28:29,119 --> 00:28:35,040 Speaker 1: get started, all right. So the first one is ham 536 00:28:35,080 --> 00:28:39,640 Speaker 1: and bananas hollandaise, Ham and bananas hollandaise. Is this a 537 00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:43,360 Speaker 1: vintage recipe we found online or a gourmet cat food flavor? 538 00:28:44,440 --> 00:28:47,640 Speaker 1: I'm going to go vintage recite. Yeah, you would be right. 539 00:28:47,960 --> 00:28:50,120 Speaker 1: It's a great way to make use of your leftover 540 00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:58,880 Speaker 1: bananas and ham apparently. All right, Okay. Number two sea 541 00:28:58,920 --> 00:29:03,080 Speaker 1: beast in seas consume a I'm gonna got for that one. Yeah, 542 00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:06,880 Speaker 1: you're right. It's from Tiki Cats Hawaiian Queen Emma lul Line, 543 00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:16,520 Speaker 1: of course. Alright. Question number three liver sausage pineapple. I 544 00:29:16,560 --> 00:29:19,320 Speaker 1: can't imagine the cat eating pineapples. I'm gonna go with 545 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:23,840 Speaker 1: intoe recipe three for three. I really probably would have 546 00:29:23,840 --> 00:29:25,720 Speaker 1: guessed cat food on that though, just because the word 547 00:29:25,760 --> 00:29:28,240 Speaker 1: liver would have thrown me off. I think. Alright. Number 548 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:34,760 Speaker 1: four lime cheese salad recipe is correct. Yeah, you're right, 549 00:29:34,880 --> 00:29:37,840 Speaker 1: it's a um it was a recipe from Jello and 550 00:29:37,840 --> 00:29:41,120 Speaker 1: and uh it's a Jello bed with a seafood salad 551 00:29:41,120 --> 00:29:48,280 Speaker 1: plopped on top. I think I've got that Midwestern church. Alright, 552 00:29:48,320 --> 00:29:50,560 Speaker 1: we've got two lefties. Four for four so far. Here 553 00:29:50,560 --> 00:29:55,600 Speaker 1: we go. Ocean fish, tuna and cheese sauce. That sounds 554 00:29:55,600 --> 00:30:00,200 Speaker 1: like it will appeal to a cat. And you're right, 555 00:30:00,240 --> 00:30:02,640 Speaker 1: it is a gort. I can't believe there's cheese sauce. 556 00:30:02,680 --> 00:30:07,240 Speaker 1: And yeah, it's from the Teeth Treasurers line. Right, fancy 557 00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:08,800 Speaker 1: cat food. All right, let's see if you can get 558 00:30:08,800 --> 00:30:19,280 Speaker 1: six for six spam in Lima's Spam and Lima's hip. Yeah, 559 00:30:19,400 --> 00:30:23,080 Speaker 1: it was a promotional recipe from hormel Um and it 560 00:30:23,200 --> 00:30:26,320 Speaker 1: had a Spanish gravy and frozen line of beans. That 561 00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:30,160 Speaker 1: is incredible. So, Bob, how has Bob done? He ran 562 00:30:30,280 --> 00:30:33,120 Speaker 1: the table. He went an incredible six for six, which 563 00:30:33,160 --> 00:30:37,600 Speaker 1: wins him today's grand prize, which is our endless admiration. Wow, 564 00:30:37,640 --> 00:30:43,840 Speaker 1: congratulations Bob. That is huge. Yeah, well, Bob, thanks so 565 00:30:43,920 --> 00:30:46,640 Speaker 1: much for writing a terrific book and for for joining 566 00:30:46,680 --> 00:31:03,600 Speaker 1: us today on part time genius. Guess what I've got 567 00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:06,480 Speaker 1: my pocket here? Mango? That sounds so creepy. Sorry, I 568 00:31:06,520 --> 00:31:09,640 Speaker 1: should have I probably should have phrased that a little differently. 569 00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:11,800 Speaker 1: But guess what I have in my pocket here that 570 00:31:11,920 --> 00:31:16,440 Speaker 1: rhymes with schmock blocks. That sounds even creepy here, But 571 00:31:16,520 --> 00:31:19,800 Speaker 1: you've got pop rocks, right. I know we've talked about taste, smell, 572 00:31:20,000 --> 00:31:23,120 Speaker 1: and touch, and that those are considered the flavor trinity, 573 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:26,520 Speaker 1: but we can't leave out sound or other multisensory effects 574 00:31:26,560 --> 00:31:29,440 Speaker 1: on how we experience flavor. Well, you're gonna crack open 575 00:31:29,480 --> 00:31:31,560 Speaker 1: those bad boys are not? All right, let's do it. 576 00:31:39,880 --> 00:31:42,560 Speaker 1: They are so good. Pop rocks reminded me of that. 577 00:31:42,600 --> 00:31:45,160 Speaker 1: You know that part in um the Eddieizard routine where 578 00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:47,840 Speaker 1: he's talking about chiropractors and how they live for the noise, 579 00:31:47,880 --> 00:31:50,440 Speaker 1: and that chiropracticing or what do you call it, chiropractic 580 00:31:50,920 --> 00:31:53,560 Speaker 1: cracking bones would be nothing if they didn't hear the sounds, 581 00:31:53,720 --> 00:31:55,720 Speaker 1: or just like I live for the noise, I crack 582 00:31:55,800 --> 00:31:59,840 Speaker 1: your bones anyway. All right? You remember how our friend 583 00:31:59,880 --> 00:32:02,320 Speaker 1: and former Mental Flaws editor O the pop rocks are 584 00:32:02,360 --> 00:32:04,920 Speaker 1: still just popping like crazy. I don't think I've had 585 00:32:04,920 --> 00:32:08,840 Speaker 1: one of these since I was ten. I need more. Okay, 586 00:32:09,440 --> 00:32:11,800 Speaker 1: So you remember our friend and former Mental Flaws editor 587 00:32:11,880 --> 00:32:15,280 Speaker 1: Jesson Collins used to talk about chip o'clock in the office. Yeah, 588 00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:17,040 Speaker 1: for your listeners. There was a period in the mid 589 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:19,560 Speaker 1: afternoon when the editorial staff and Mental Flaws used to 590 00:32:19,800 --> 00:32:22,080 Speaker 1: all go out for their afternoon snack and grab a 591 00:32:22,120 --> 00:32:24,720 Speaker 1: bag of chips. It made her crazy. Well, while that 592 00:32:24,800 --> 00:32:27,160 Speaker 1: sound may be difficult for the person not eating the 593 00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:30,080 Speaker 1: chips to listen to, for the people eating chips, that 594 00:32:30,200 --> 00:32:33,320 Speaker 1: sound likely increase their enjoyment. So papers have shown that 595 00:32:33,360 --> 00:32:36,240 Speaker 1: people rate chips his taste here if they provide a 596 00:32:36,240 --> 00:32:39,200 Speaker 1: louder crunch. There was even a study by Charles Spence 597 00:32:39,240 --> 00:32:41,680 Speaker 1: and Max m peeny that had people eat a hundred 598 00:32:41,720 --> 00:32:44,160 Speaker 1: and eighty pringles. I'm so envious that people got to 599 00:32:44,160 --> 00:32:46,040 Speaker 1: eat pringles for Scion. I mean, we did get to 600 00:32:46,080 --> 00:32:49,840 Speaker 1: have pop rocks coke and we got to watch Jerry 601 00:32:49,880 --> 00:32:52,920 Speaker 1: have that bitter taste. So, but as they did this, 602 00:32:53,040 --> 00:32:55,959 Speaker 1: they wore headphones that played back the sound of their crunch. 603 00:32:56,040 --> 00:32:57,840 Speaker 1: So as they work their way through the chips, the 604 00:32:57,880 --> 00:33:01,480 Speaker 1: researchers adjusted the volume level of the crunch feedback, and 605 00:33:01,520 --> 00:33:04,360 Speaker 1: they found that the louder crunching made them rate the 606 00:33:04,400 --> 00:33:08,120 Speaker 1: chips fifteen percent tastier than the softer crunching. I still 607 00:33:08,120 --> 00:33:11,600 Speaker 1: can't believe they got to eat sprinkles for signing. I 608 00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:13,680 Speaker 1: know the sound of an expensive coffee maker has been 609 00:33:13,720 --> 00:33:16,200 Speaker 1: showed to increase how people rated a cup of Joe, 610 00:33:16,520 --> 00:33:18,600 Speaker 1: But I also loved the study where Spence had a 611 00:33:18,600 --> 00:33:21,600 Speaker 1: group of subjects eat oysters while listening to different sounds. 612 00:33:21,920 --> 00:33:24,200 Speaker 1: Some of them heard the sounds of waves and seagulls, 613 00:33:24,240 --> 00:33:27,200 Speaker 1: and some of them heard sounds from barnyards like chickens 614 00:33:27,240 --> 00:33:30,560 Speaker 1: clucking and cow's moving. And not only did those who 615 00:33:30,640 --> 00:33:33,239 Speaker 1: heard the c sounds rate the oysters taste here, they 616 00:33:33,280 --> 00:33:36,160 Speaker 1: also experienced them as saltier. I love this stuff because 617 00:33:36,160 --> 00:33:39,360 Speaker 1: it kind of feels like food trickery. But I guess 618 00:33:39,360 --> 00:33:41,760 Speaker 1: as we understand that all our senses are involved in 619 00:33:41,760 --> 00:33:44,600 Speaker 1: how we experience flavor, it's really no more trickery than 620 00:33:44,640 --> 00:33:47,240 Speaker 1: anything else we do to enhance flavor. So let's talk 621 00:33:47,240 --> 00:33:49,720 Speaker 1: about some of the other multi sensory effects on flavor. 622 00:33:50,240 --> 00:33:52,520 Speaker 1: I love that music can affect how we experienced flavor, 623 00:33:52,640 --> 00:33:56,240 Speaker 1: like homes notes that really powerful music like Carl Orff's 624 00:33:56,320 --> 00:33:59,800 Speaker 1: Carmina Burana causes people to note the heavier flavors in 625 00:33:59,880 --> 00:34:03,200 Speaker 1: a red wine and what he describes as zingi music 626 00:34:03,240 --> 00:34:05,480 Speaker 1: actually brings out the brighter flavors and a white wine. 627 00:34:05,840 --> 00:34:07,640 Speaker 1: And with that in mind, I'd like to recommend after 628 00:34:07,640 --> 00:34:09,319 Speaker 1: the show we all listen to Hall and Notes and 629 00:34:09,360 --> 00:34:11,799 Speaker 1: need a bag of rollos. I bet that can only 630 00:34:11,840 --> 00:34:14,120 Speaker 1: make the experience of both better. And then we'll eat 631 00:34:14,160 --> 00:34:16,239 Speaker 1: one of those Reese's fast break bars and listen to 632 00:34:16,320 --> 00:34:19,239 Speaker 1: Ayah the Tiger. Yeah, it's science and action. Folks will 633 00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:22,520 Speaker 1: will report back. But there's some other fun and funny 634 00:34:22,560 --> 00:34:25,920 Speaker 1: results of experiments, Like there was this Goldilocks style experiments 635 00:34:26,040 --> 00:34:29,000 Speaker 1: using three bowls of yogurt. The yogurt was the same 636 00:34:29,040 --> 00:34:31,680 Speaker 1: in all three bowls, but the bowls weighed different amount 637 00:34:31,760 --> 00:34:34,000 Speaker 1: and how many bears were involved this is is zero. 638 00:34:34,120 --> 00:34:36,680 Speaker 1: It wasn't published in our bear reviewed medical journals, but 639 00:34:37,040 --> 00:34:39,440 Speaker 1: people did note that they enjoyed the yogurt in the 640 00:34:39,480 --> 00:34:42,600 Speaker 1: heaviest bowl, most like why should weight of a bowl 641 00:34:42,640 --> 00:34:45,880 Speaker 1: infect your enjoyment? And strawberry moose served on a white 642 00:34:45,880 --> 00:34:48,480 Speaker 1: plate was rated sweeter than the same dessert served on 643 00:34:48,480 --> 00:34:50,640 Speaker 1: a black plate. One of my favorite studies was the 644 00:34:50,680 --> 00:34:53,600 Speaker 1: one on hockey fans at Cornell and researchers found that 645 00:34:53,600 --> 00:34:56,080 Speaker 1: when the home team won, fans actually found the ice 646 00:34:56,120 --> 00:34:58,439 Speaker 1: cream to be sweeter, and when they lost, they knowed 647 00:34:58,440 --> 00:35:01,920 Speaker 1: it as more sour. How weird, that's almost as science, 648 00:35:01,920 --> 00:35:06,400 Speaker 1: he is. Okay, So if all these senses contribute to flavor, 649 00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:08,880 Speaker 1: why do we only associate flavor with the stuff happening 650 00:35:08,880 --> 00:35:11,000 Speaker 1: in our mouths. Well, that's the work of our brains. 651 00:35:11,080 --> 00:35:14,759 Speaker 1: It takes all that information smell, taste, texture, sound and 652 00:35:14,840 --> 00:35:17,960 Speaker 1: combines it into one experience, and then it tells us 653 00:35:18,000 --> 00:35:20,879 Speaker 1: that experience is happening in our mouths. So it's a side, 654 00:35:20,880 --> 00:35:23,759 Speaker 1: don't Many food scientists now say that while foods obviously 655 00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:28,480 Speaker 1: contain flavor molecules, they believe the actual flavors themselves aren't 656 00:35:28,480 --> 00:35:31,799 Speaker 1: created by the food, but instead by our brains, which 657 00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:33,360 Speaker 1: I guess would be a big part of the reason 658 00:35:33,360 --> 00:35:36,759 Speaker 1: why we all experienced flavor differently. That's just weird, Yes 659 00:35:36,840 --> 00:35:38,759 Speaker 1: it is. But we are not done with our weird 660 00:35:38,800 --> 00:35:40,560 Speaker 1: facts for the day. You know what time it is. 661 00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:43,080 Speaker 1: It's time for the part time Genius fact on the 662 00:35:43,160 --> 00:35:44,600 Speaker 1: part of the show where we share some of the 663 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:47,040 Speaker 1: interesting facts we learned recently but didn't get a chance 664 00:35:47,080 --> 00:35:56,720 Speaker 1: to mention just yet, So well, why don't you start 665 00:35:56,760 --> 00:36:00,320 Speaker 1: this round? All right? Sure? So, if you read airline magazines, 666 00:36:00,400 --> 00:36:02,920 Speaker 1: you often see that famous chefs pair up with airlines 667 00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:05,759 Speaker 1: to improve the end flight meals, but the odds are 668 00:36:05,800 --> 00:36:08,520 Speaker 1: stacked against them. According to a study commissioned by the 669 00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:12,680 Speaker 1: German airline carrier Lutanza, between the elevation and the dryness 670 00:36:12,680 --> 00:36:15,520 Speaker 1: that occurs in the cabin, your sensitivity to sweet and 671 00:36:15,560 --> 00:36:19,719 Speaker 1: salty foods decreases by about thirty which means the meal 672 00:36:19,840 --> 00:36:22,040 Speaker 1: probably tastes a whole lot better if you save it 673 00:36:22,080 --> 00:36:25,120 Speaker 1: for after you land. Do you know peanut butter and 674 00:36:25,160 --> 00:36:28,120 Speaker 1: mayo sandwiches used to be a popular thing like According 675 00:36:28,120 --> 00:36:30,640 Speaker 1: to Garden and Gun magazine, the sandwiches were a staple 676 00:36:30,719 --> 00:36:33,040 Speaker 1: during the depression and could be fancied up by adding 677 00:36:33,040 --> 00:36:35,360 Speaker 1: a few leaves of lettuce and some pickles. And so. 678 00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:37,840 Speaker 1: The editors at Food fifty two this other site also 679 00:36:37,880 --> 00:36:40,640 Speaker 1: tried the sandwich on reader recommendation, and their verdict was, 680 00:36:40,680 --> 00:36:42,440 Speaker 1: if you wear a blindfold when you take a bite, 681 00:36:42,600 --> 00:36:46,879 Speaker 1: it almost tastes like a tuna sandwich. All right, why 682 00:36:46,880 --> 00:36:48,959 Speaker 1: don't we just name a few odd recipes we've found 683 00:36:49,000 --> 00:36:51,800 Speaker 1: since we both looked them up. The Betty Crocker recommended 684 00:36:51,800 --> 00:36:54,960 Speaker 1: a tuna and jello pie, also known as a summer 685 00:36:55,000 --> 00:36:59,160 Speaker 1: pie devoid. The winter sales slump. Dr Pepper wren as 686 00:36:59,160 --> 00:37:01,239 Speaker 1: that you should heat the soda in a saucepan and 687 00:37:01,280 --> 00:37:03,879 Speaker 1: then poured over a lemon gross, which is why nothing 688 00:37:03,920 --> 00:37:06,080 Speaker 1: reminds me of Christmas more than a steaming mug of 689 00:37:06,160 --> 00:37:09,480 Speaker 1: Dr Pepper. Did you know that Johnny Walker makes a 690 00:37:09,560 --> 00:37:13,239 Speaker 1: mustache wax that enhances their drinks. The wax comes in 691 00:37:13,360 --> 00:37:16,880 Speaker 1: three flavors, pepper, citrus, and ginger, and it helps to 692 00:37:16,920 --> 00:37:20,400 Speaker 1: apply a generous amount to your stash. So I know 693 00:37:20,480 --> 00:37:23,040 Speaker 1: we talked about eating and texture today, but I learned 694 00:37:23,040 --> 00:37:26,080 Speaker 1: this isn't a completely new concept. In the nineteen thirties, 695 00:37:26,120 --> 00:37:28,640 Speaker 1: the Italian futurists played with food and texture in a 696 00:37:28,680 --> 00:37:33,439 Speaker 1: completely different way. Diners were clothed and textured pajamas, which 697 00:37:33,480 --> 00:37:36,399 Speaker 1: they stroked with one hand in a dark room while 698 00:37:36,480 --> 00:37:40,160 Speaker 1: burying their face in bank and when they looked up 699 00:37:40,160 --> 00:37:42,800 Speaker 1: for their plates a waiter, it splits them with perfume. 700 00:37:43,520 --> 00:37:45,719 Speaker 1: For some reason, the movement didn't take off. I can't 701 00:37:45,719 --> 00:37:49,920 Speaker 1: imagine why. Yeah, futurists hated pasta, and they like to 702 00:37:49,920 --> 00:37:52,480 Speaker 1: sculpt their meats. And there was also one course where 703 00:37:52,480 --> 00:37:54,719 Speaker 1: you ate salad out of a tiny box with one 704 00:37:54,760 --> 00:37:57,480 Speaker 1: hand and turned a crank with the other. As long 705 00:37:57,480 --> 00:37:59,520 Speaker 1: as you were turning the crank, your waiter would dance 706 00:37:59,560 --> 00:38:02,920 Speaker 1: for you. Call that is so good. I have to 707 00:38:02,920 --> 00:38:05,000 Speaker 1: give you this one, so you earned this week's fact off. 708 00:38:05,040 --> 00:38:07,320 Speaker 1: Speaking of which, we need to nominate a smarty pants 709 00:38:07,320 --> 00:38:09,719 Speaker 1: to our Hall of Genius. I'm thinking we should give 710 00:38:09,760 --> 00:38:12,840 Speaker 1: it to William Mitchell's family. Mitchell was a food inventor 711 00:38:12,880 --> 00:38:15,560 Speaker 1: who grew up on a farm, worked his way through college, 712 00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:18,239 Speaker 1: and then went on to invent cool whip, powdered egg 713 00:38:18,239 --> 00:38:22,719 Speaker 1: whites for cake mix, quick set jello tang and that's 714 00:38:22,800 --> 00:38:27,360 Speaker 1: so many amazing things and what and pop rocks. Apparently 715 00:38:27,400 --> 00:38:29,839 Speaker 1: the candy was supposed to be a carbonated drink mix, 716 00:38:29,920 --> 00:38:32,800 Speaker 1: but it worked better as a crazy kids treat. He's 717 00:38:32,920 --> 00:38:35,640 Speaker 1: in William Mitchell's family. You'll be getting a certificate in 718 00:38:35,640 --> 00:38:38,880 Speaker 1: the mail and special thanks to our brilliant nonfiction librarians 719 00:38:38,880 --> 00:38:41,680 Speaker 1: over at the Hoover Public Library and Hoover, Alabama for 720 00:38:41,719 --> 00:38:44,520 Speaker 1: recommending the book Flavored by Bob Holmes. If you like 721 00:38:44,600 --> 00:38:46,800 Speaker 1: what you heard, be sure to pick up a coffee today. 722 00:38:47,000 --> 00:39:04,000 Speaker 1: That's it for today's episode. Thanks for listening. Thanks again 723 00:39:04,000 --> 00:39:06,200 Speaker 1: for listening to Part Time Genius. Be sure to subscribe 724 00:39:06,200 --> 00:39:08,400 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your podcast. And because we're a 725 00:39:08,400 --> 00:39:10,799 Speaker 1: brand new show, if you're feeling extra generous, we'd love 726 00:39:10,800 --> 00:39:12,719 Speaker 1: it if you give us a rating on Apple Podcast. 727 00:39:13,239 --> 00:39:15,960 Speaker 1: Part Time Genius is produced by some of our favorite geniuses. 728 00:39:16,120 --> 00:39:18,879 Speaker 1: It's edited by Tristan McNeil, theme song and audio mixing 729 00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:22,200 Speaker 1: by Noel Brown. Our executive producer is Jerry Rowland. Our 730 00:39:22,239 --> 00:39:25,360 Speaker 1: research team is Gave Lozier, Lucas Adams, Autumn Whitefield in 731 00:39:25,360 --> 00:39:28,719 Speaker 1: the Toronto Austin Thompson, and Meg Robbins. Jason Hope is 732 00:39:28,719 --> 00:39:29,560 Speaker 1: our chief cheerleader.