Food Science

These electrode-embedded chopsticks can simulate saltiness.

Using Electric Currents to Fool Ourselves Into Tasting Something We're Not

Nimesha Ranasinghe is bringing a new dimension to virtual reality, embedding electric taste simulation technology into utensils

A photograph of Yamei Kin in 1912

The Chinese-Born Doctor Who Brought Tofu to America

Yamei Kin was a scientific prodigy who promoted the Chinese art of living to U.S. audiences

This science is poppin’

Popcorn-Powered Robots? Get 'Em While They’re Hot!

In an attempt to harness the power of pop, researchers went against the grain to push the boundaries of this staple starch

Fears materialized when a series of deadly botulism cases struck unassuming consumers throughout the country.

The Botulism Outbreak That Gave Rise to America’s Food Safety System

In late 1919 and early 1920, scientists and canners worked with the government to protect the public from the deadly toxin

Europe Applies Strict Regulations to CRISPR Crops

A court has ruled that plants modified with CRISPR technology are subject to the restrictions of the 2001 GMO Directive

Two tacos, extra ghost pepper sauce, please!

Tree Shrews Love Hot Peppers Because They Don't Feel the Burn

A genetic mutation prevents Chinese tree shrews from feeling the heat of capsaicin, making them the only other mammal besides humans that enjoys hot foods

A male bee releasing its seminal fluid at the USDA bee lab in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The male does not survive the process.

Is the Key to Saving Pollinators … Honey Bee Semen?

In the hopes of preserving their genetic diversity, entomologists are collecting and freezing this valuable fluid

Emirates Flight Catering and Crop One Holdings announced plans this week for what would be the world’s largest vertical farm, to be based in Dubai. This is another one of Crop One’s vertical farms, which don’t use pesticides and are more water-efficient than their soil counterparts.

Dubai Will Be Home To the World’s Biggest Vertical Farm

An indoor megafarm might be the best way for the United Arab Emirates—a country that imports an estimated 85 percent of its food—to attempt to feed itself

Thermodynamics holds the answers to your wildest campfire dreams.

The Scientific Quest For the Perfect S’more

A trial by fire

Optimizing cows

This Connecticut Farm Is Milking Cows for Data

Robotic milkers, video cameras and even sensors hidden inside cows will help the facility get the most milk from a healthy herd

This Beer Was Developed For Breast Cancer Patients

A Czech brewery's Mamma Beer is alcohol free and slightly sweet to help overcome the metallic taste of "chemo mouth"

Hangry like the wolf.

Being Hangry Is Real, But You Can Control It

Hunger elicits similar responses as emotions, but it only turns into "hanger" when people are already primed with negative feelings

Disgusting Things Fall Into Six Gross Categories

Open sores, body odors and other indicators of possible disease transmission top the list of things that gross us out

Those who hold out for the second marshmallow may come from more affluent households, and their future success is based on this economic advantage rather than sheer willpower

Why Delayed Gratification in the Marshmallow Test Doesn’t Equal Success

Socioeconomic status, family background amongst factors accounting for children's varying levels of self-control

Grape breeding PhD student Laise Moreira collects flower tissue for analyzing sex trait in grapevine as part of the VitisGen2 project at the University of Minnesota Horticultural Research Center in Excelsior, MN.

The Quest to Grow the First Great American Wine Grape

Genetics might be the key to creating vineyards that both resist disease and don’t taste like skunk

How Ketchup Revolutionized How Food Is Grown, Processed and Regulated

The condiment really is the perfect complement to the American diet

Tooth-mounted sensor

This Tiny Tooth Sensor Could Keep Track of the Food You Eat

The tooth-mounted device can recognize glucose, salt and alcohol, and researchers hope it can one day detect much more

How Do Tiny Chicks Crack Out of Their Eggs?

The secret is in the egg shells' nanostructure

This past fall, astronauts harvested Mizuna mustard, Waldmann's green lettuce and Outredgeous red romaine lettuce from the Veggie plant growth chamber on the International Space Station.

If Humans Want To Colonize Other Planets, We Need To Perfect Space Cuisine

At this year's Future Con, researchers will describe a future of food in space that is anything but bland

Scientists have created a hoppy beer without hops.

Scientists Brew a Hoppy Beer Without the Hops

Hops are expensive and require lots of water to grow, so researchers tried to recreate the distinctive taste

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