Monday, March 31, 2008

Mystery Substance

In intro chemistry labs, it is typical for the instructor to give the students "mystery" substances . The students conduct various tests to identify the the substances. They might check the pH, burn the sample, or see how the sample reacts with various reagents.

I'm going to share some clues now and you can guess the mystery substance.

1. This substance is very popular in some circles. The content of this bowl was consumed in approximately 5.38 minutes.

2. It is a heterogeneous mixture.

3. The color is green-brown. (Maybe more green than brown.)

4. The consistency and appearance of this mixture reminds me a lot of baby food peas. I'm not sure if this is quite accurate b/c it has been awhile since I've eaten baby food peas.

5. The main component of this mixture is readily available in the Dominican Republic. (I know this first-hand because I ate quite a bit of this while in the D.R.)

6. I once heard a story about how a person was eating this in a restaurant and was startled to see it moving in the bowl. (Worms.)

7. Adding lemon juice to this mixture helps to delay browning. This can also be accomplished by pressing plastic wrap into the mixture until serving time.

8. This is my favorite mixture to make. Okay, my food repertoire is not that extensive, but it is still my favorite thing to make.

Okay, I have run out of ideas for clues right now. Go ahead. Take a risk and make a guess or, better yet, offer some other clues. If you have had any interesting experiences with this substance, feel free to share those as well.

Later,

T

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

It must be what's left of your famous guacamole dip! I never liked the stuff until I had yours-it's amazing! In fact I was just thinking about the other day in the car...mmm, yum!

Justin said...

Another clue: other parts of the main component that are not used in this dish contain a toxic fatty acid derivative known as persin, which in sufficient quantity can cause equine colic and, with lack of.. treatment, death. The symptoms include gastrointestinal irritation, vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory distress, congestion, fluid accumulation around the tissues of the heart and even death. Birds also seem to be particularly sensitive to this toxic compound. Negative effects in humans seem to be primarily in allergic individuals.

Trent said...

Is this made in the bathroom? LOL!
-Green/Brown
-Worms (hey, some people have that kind of stuff)

I'm not too sure about the consuming part though.

I win!