What’s the Difference between White Chocolate and Brown Chocolate?

One big difference seems to be that white chocolate doesn’t exist. We were shocked to consult five dictionaries and find that none of them has a listing for “white chocolate”. And the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates all the ingredients, properties, and definitions of chocolate, also does not recognize the existence of white chocolate.

Therefore, we may conclude that white chocolate is not a form of chocolate at all. Charlotte H. Connelly, manager of consumer affairs for Whitman’s Chocolates wrote that there is no legal definition of white chocolate, manufacturers are”not restricted to the type or the amount of ingredients that are incorporated in the ‘white chocolate’ recipe.”

In practice, however, there is only one difference between white and brown chocolate-brown chocolate contain cocoa powder. Richard T. O’Connell, president of the Chocolate Manufacturers Association of the United States of America, explains:

The cocoa bean from whence chocolate comes is ground into a substance called chocolate liquor(nonalcoholic) and when placed under hydraulic pressure, it splits into two parts, one of cocoa butter and the other cocoa powder and the other cocoa powder. In normal “brown” chocolate, the chocolate liquor is usually mixed with additional cocoa butter to get that “melt-in-your-mouth” flavor. In “white” chocolate (which is not a chocolate), cocoa butter is usually mixed with sugar. Cocoa butter is light tan in color and, therefore, the term “white” is given to it.

Vivian Delduca of Berkeley Heights, New Jersey.

Why Do Birds Tend to Stand on One Foot While Sleeping?

Bird can perch just as easily while standing on only one leg. Since can balance as easily as one leg as two, one of the main reasons for perching on one leg (whether or not they are sleeping) is simply to get the other leg a rest.

But Bird also seek warmth, and perching on one foot gives them a “leg up” on the situation, as Nancy Martin, naturalist at the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, explains :

“Since bird’s feet are not covered with feathers, they can lose significant amount of body heat through their feet, especially when standing on ice or in cold water. With their high metabolic rates, birds usually try to conserve as much energy as possible, hence the habit of standing on one leg.”

A corollary: Birds also stick their head under their feathers to preserve heat.

Taken from “Do Penguins Have Knees” by David Feldman, this article was submitted by Lee Dresser of Overland Park, Kansas.

Why Don’t You Feel or See a Mosquito Bite Until After It Begins to Itch?

We would like to think that the reason we don’t feel the mosquito biting us is that Mother Nature is merciful. If we were aware that mosquito was in process of sinking its mouth into our flesh, we might panic, especially because a simple mosquito bite takes a lot longer than we suspected.

A female mosquito doesn’t believe in a casual” slam bam, thank you, ma’am.” On the contrary, mosquitoes will usually rest on all six legs on human skin for at least a minute or so before starting to bite. Mosquitoes are so light and their biting technique so skillful that most humans cannot feel them, even though the insect may be resting on their skin for five minutes more.

When the mosquito decides to finally make her move and press her lancets into a nice, juicy capillary, the insertion takes about a minute. She lubricates her mouthparts with her own saliva and proceeds to suck the blood for up to three minutes until her stomach literally about to burst. She withdraws her lancets in a few second and flies off to deposit her eggs, assuring the world that the mosquito will not soon make the endangered species list.

A few sensitive souls feel a mosquito’s bite immediately. But most of us are aware of itching ( or in some cases, pain) only after the mosquito is long gone not because of the bite or the loss of blood but because of the saliva left behind. The mosquito’s saliva acts not only as a lubricant in the biting process but also as an anesthetic to the bitee. For most people, the saliva is a blessing, since it allows us to be oblivious to the fact that our blood is being sucked by a loathsome insect. Unfortunately, the saliva contains anticoagulant components that cause allergic reactions in many people. This allergic reaction, not the bite itself, is what causes the little lumps and itchy sensations that make us wonder why mosquitoes exist in this otherwise often wonderful world.

Taken from “Do Penguins Have Knees” by David Feldman, this article was submitted by Alesia Richards of Erie, Pennsylvania.