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May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
How Stuff Works: How corn works
By
Marshall Brain
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | (MCT)
Corn is one of those funny things that we take completely for granted, because corn is everywhere. Almost every food item that you buy at a fast food restaurant contains corn. Just think about it - there's corn oil, corn syrup, corn ethanol, corn-fed beef, popcorn ... . So let's take a look at how corn works.
Corn oil initially makes no sense. How do you get oil out of a corn kernel? With some grains and nuts it is very easy to see where the oil comes from. For example, if you squeeze a sesame seed or a sunflower seed between two sheets of paper, you can see the oil. Corn isn't quite that oily, but it does contain oil.
A kernel of corn has an outer husk surrounding a white or yellow starchy substance. At the core of the starchy substance and toward the pointy end of the kernel is the germ. The germ contains a small amount of oil. If you cut a popcorn kernel in half, you can see the husk, starch and germ. If you cut out the tiny piece of germ and squeeze the germ on a piece of paper, you will actually be able see the corn oil.
Corn starch comes from the starchy part of the corn. Corn contains no syrup directly - the syrup is made from the starch. Starch is a long-chain carbohydrate - a polysaccharide. A polysaccharide is simply a collection of glucose molecules chained together. Inside your stomach, a polysaccharide gets chopped up into its individual glucose molecules by enzymes so the glucose can enter your bloodstream.
To make corn syrup, enzymes are added to corn starch, and it is turned into a syrupy mixture that is mostly glucose. The enzymes do the work of chopping up the polysaccharides into the basic glucose units in the chains. Then, to make high fructose corn syrup, additional enzymes change the glucose molecules into fructose. Manufacturers stopped using sugar in food products, and started using high fructose corn syrup instead, when the manufacturing process for high fructose corn syrup made it cheaper than sugar.
The same kind of thing that allows a factory to turn corn starch into corn syrup also allows yeast to turn corn starch into ethanol. A bushel of corn produces about 2.8 gallons of ethanol. Today the United States produces billions of gallons of ethanol this way and about 70 percent of gasoline sold in the U.S. contains some percentage of ethanol.
Then there are corn-fed cattle. What is that all about? Why do we take an animal that is designed to eat grass and feed it corn instead? The reason is because corn-fed cattle grow much, much faster than grass-fed cattle do. Plus, the meat is better marbled, which means that it grades higher and tastes better.
What about popcorn? Popcorn is the same as "normal" corn in that it contains the husk, the starch and the germ. But the kernels have been bred for popping. There are three elements that work together to make popcorn pop: 1) Moisture inside the kernel, 2) Starch inside the kernel and 3) The hard shell surrounding the kernel.
When a popcorn kernel heats up (either in a popcorn popper or in the microwave), the moisture inside the kernel turns to steam and expands. Moisture is extremely important to a popcorn kernel. Unless the percentage of moisture in the kernel is just right, the kernel won't pop. When the pressure inside the hard shell gets high enough, the kernel explodes. That part seems normal enough - lots of things explode when you heat them.
The strange part is the white solid that forms during the process. But this isn't completely foreign. Bread or muffins expand and solidify (although at a much more leisurely pace) when they cook. It turns out that the steam inside the kernel turns the corn starch into a softened gelatin form. When the kernel bursts, the gelatin expands and then sets, sort of like an instant muffin.
Here is an experiment you can perform to get a better understanding of how popcorn works: First, try using a needle or pushpin to puncture the shells of a number of popcorn kernels (be sure to wear glasses when you do this - it is not as easy as it sounds!). Then try to pop the kernels. They won't pop because the pressure cannot build inside the punctured kernels.
As you can see, corn is everywhere. Corn-on-the-cob is the obvious way people eat corn, but we actually consume it in almost every bite we take.
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Previously:
How dog ID chips work
How President Obama's limousine works
How emergency power works
How aircraft carriers work
How antibiotics and vaccines work
How mucus works
How iron and steel work
How aspirin works
How igloos work
How the Predator UAV works
How retention ponds work
How water absorbers work
How melamine works
How digital music works
How coal mining works
How an economic depression works
How the liver works
How 3D movies work
How oil pipelines work
How jet packs work
How seismographs work
How Olympic technology works
How Personal Rapid Transit works
How 3G works
How the Global Position System (GPS) works
How octane works
How cruise missiles work
How submarines work
How miles work
How octane works
How food preservation works
How beer works
How holding your breath works
How smoke detectors work
How heat pumps work
How your night vision works
How concentrating solar collectors work
How your key fob works
How the common cold works
How the Large Hadron Collider Works
How making a TV show works
How dry cleaning works
How exoskeletons work
How an oil refinery works
How landfills work
How the Orion spacecraft works
The cutting edge in HDTV
Redefining the CD
How the HDMI cable scam works
How glow-in-the-dark toys work
How the subprime mortgage crisis works
How gift cards work
How Tasers work
How giant TV screens work
How foreclosure works
How Air Force One works
How wildfire fighting works
How vitamins work
How ejection seats work
How reattaching limbs works
How hot air balloons work
How paparazzi work
How counterfeiting works
How CDs work
How the Edsel worked
How Stinger missiles work
How hybrid cars work
How sharks work
How mosquitoes work
How diesel engines work
How water towers work
How the Dawn mission works
How Kassam rockets work
How the North American Eagle works
Why aren't we flying to work?
How tofu and soy milk work
How Colony Collapse Disorder works
How airbags work
How the U.S. income tax works
How gum works
How caffeine works
How Daylight Saving Time works
How a cruise missile works
How snow making works
© 2007, How Stuff Works Inc. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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