Tricky sticks.Does U+C = M, where U = you, C = chopsticks, and M = mess? If so, rest assured: You're not alone. An Uncle Ben's
Uncle Ben’s is a brand name for parboiled (“converted”) rice and related food products. Owned by Mars, Inc. in the U.S. company survey revealed that three out of every five British citizens avoid using chopsticks and suffer from consecotaleophobia (fear of chopsticks). The survey results prompted scientists Jim Al-Khalili Prof. Jim Al-Khalili (born 20 September 1962) is a British theoretical nuclear physicist, academic, author and broadcaster. Biography Born in Baghdad in 1962 to an Iraqi father and English mother, Al-Khalili studied physics at the University of Surrey. Graduated with a B. and Qiang Zhao from the University of Surrey The University of Surrey is a public university in Guildford, England. It received its charter on 9 September 1966, and was situated near Battersea Park in south-west London. The institution was known as Battersea College of Technology before gaining university status. in England to devise an equation to calculate exactly which foods are most chopstick-friendly, and which ones novice users should avoid. Here, physicist Al-Khalili answers Science World's questions about the tricky sticks: Q: What's the science behind using chopsticks? The physics is surprisingly straightforward. It has to do with how the top [the moving] chopstick is operated. The thumb acts as a pivot [point around which something rotates]. The index finger applies a force [push or pull] to move the top chopstick around the pivot. This is balanced by the equal and opposite force from the food resisting being squeezed between the sticks. How hard you have to squeeze food depends on kinetic friction kinetic friction See under friction. [resistance between two moving surfaces], which is why slippery foods are harder to pick up: You have to hold them tighter. Q: How did you test the new formula? Once we had the formula, it was fun to try it on different foods. What was surprising was the difficult of picking up something hard and smooth like a fried peanut. Q: What is the most challenging type of food to eat with chopsticks? I guess the hardest--and I'm not suggesting anyone would pick this up with chopsticks--would be an ice cube cube, in geometry, regular solid bounded by six equal squares. All adjacent faces of a cube are perpendicular to each other; any one face of a cube may be its base. The dimensions of a cube are the lengths of the three edges which meet at any vertex. ! But, it would be fun to try. Q: Any advice for novice chopstick users? When you go for a Chinese meal always take with you a measuring tape, a pocket calculator (computer) pocket calculator - A small battery-powered digital electronic device for performing simple arithmetic operations on data input on a keypad and outputting the result (usually a single number) to a simple LCD or other display. , a table of values of the coefficient coefficient /co·ef·fi·cient/ (ko?ah-fish´int) 1. an expression of the change or effect produced by variation in certain factors, or of the ratio between two different quantities. 2. of kinetic friction for various food types and a spring balance to measure the weight of each mouthful. Then again, you might like to eat your food before it gets too cold! To be honest, we're not sure who in their right minds would refer to the formula rather than just practice. Most of what goes into effectively using chopsticks comes from using the right muscles and finger positions. It's a case of practice makes perfect. KEY c=comfort factor [c.sub.o]=30 (unknown info such as length and angle of chopsticks) N=number of meals eaten with chopsticks n=texture parameter a=slipperiness of food d=diameter of food M=mass of food t=plate-to-mouth transit time transit time the time required for ingesta to pass through the gastrointestinal tract; a shorter transit time is seen in conditions associated with gut hypermotility, such as diarrhea. Delayed passage from any cause results in a longer transit time. (seconds) Lesson Plans Find out more about the chopstick equation here: www.surrey.ac.uk/news/releases/chopstick_04-2201.html For some fun information on chopsticks, including their history, and how to use them, visit: http://everythingchopsticks.com/ |
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