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The Curry Chronicles
Curry is, supposedly, Indian. But there is no such word in any of the country’s many official languages—and no Indian would use the term to describe …
6 years, 11 months ago
The Bagelization of America
Today, it’s a breakfast staple, but, as recently as 1960, The New York Times had to define it for readers—as “an unsweetened doughnut with rigor mort…
6 years, 11 months ago
Can Diet Stop Alzheimer’s?
Every three seconds, someone in the world develops Alzheimer’s disease. It’s a devastating disease: millions of people, as well as their caretakers, …
7 years ago
Seeds of Immortality
When seeds first evolved, hundreds of millions of years ago, they not only revolutionized the plant world, but they also eventually sowed the path fo…
7 years ago
Pick A Pawpaw: America’s Forgotten Fruit
In 1916, agricultural experts voted the pawpaw the American fruit most likely to succeed, ahead of blueberries and cranberries. But today, most peopl…
7 years ago
Eating to Win: Gatorade, Muscle Milk, and… Chicken Nuggets?
Ancient Greek Olympians swore by beans to give them a competitive edge. Japanese sumo wrestlers rely on a protein-rich soup called chankonabe to get …
7 years, 1 month ago
The Secret History of the Slave Behind Jack Daniel’s Whiskey
Back in 1866, Jack Daniel’s became the first registered distillery in the United States; today, it’s the top-selling American whiskey in the world. F…
7 years, 1 month ago
Sweet and Low (Calorie): The Story of Artificial Sweeteners
For decades, ads for treats sweetened with substances like Sweet’N Low, NutraSweet, and Splenda have promised what seems like a miracle of modern sci…
7 years, 2 months ago
Dirty Tricks and Data: The Great Soda Wars, Part 2
Over the past five years, more than forty cities and countries around the world have passed a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. These soda taxes are …
7 years, 3 months ago
Souring on Sweet: The Great Soda Wars, Part 1
Public health researchers agree: the evidence is clear that Americans consume way too much sugar, that sugar contributes to weight gain, and that ris…
7 years, 3 months ago