Check out FLIP, the Floating Instrument Platform. This strange boat is more like “a huge specialized buoy” which turns itself on end and becomes a research platform for up to 16 people. It takes 28 minutes for its empty compartments to fill with water and sink the lower 300 feet. The passengers stand on the outside decks during the flip, and I’ll guess that Fred Astaire references are frequently made by newcomers.

Herr’s Changing Cheddar Magic Popcorn actually changes color from pink to green while you’re chomping away at it. The metallic bag features a section that acts as a mirror so you can see your tongue turn colors. Someone set up Willy Wonka with snack foods.

Luminex is a fabric that actually emits its own light. It’s not just reflective. Of course this means it needs its own power source, so your next pair of pants for that rave may have a pocket with a battery in it.

I’m taking a few days off…we’re moving to a new house. Back on Monday!

There are finally signs of forward motion on trans fat labeling. The National Academy of Sciences is preparing a nutritional study that includes information on trans fats, and I doubt it will be in favor of them. The FDA is expected to go ahead with their delayed nutritional label changes after the study is released this summer. Their original attempt to get the label to list the amount of trans fats was stalled with opponents arguing that the research was flawed. I’m not wondering who those opponents were. Just take a look at most prepared food labels and you can see that the food industry will suffer greatly from having to expose an unhealthy number on their boxes of cereal, ramen noodles, crackers, diet cookies, bags of tortilla chips, tortillas themselves, the list goes on and on. Frito-Lay has a helpful page that lists their products which don’t have hydrogenated oil (Smartfood cheese popcorn is very yummy).

Why didn’t the airlines think of this sooner (or did they)? Delta will be selling upgrades to first class at the gate, subject to availability of course. They are priced according to flight distance. Although budget travelers may not spring for the opportunity, many will find it an enticement as it appeals to a traveler’s psychology. It spreads out the spending of money and is a much easier splurge to make then when you are buying your original tickets, especially if you’re sitting right there, hungry and tired, unhappy from traveling. It’s also a great enticement for business travelers whose companies paid for their original coach ticket. Unfortunately, the losers are probably those with frequent flier upgrades, though Delta says the most frequent fliers will still get priority on upgrade requests.

Achoo! A new discovery may help alleviate allergies. The antibodies which cause allergies attach to mast cells, which then release irritants that cause allergy symptoms. They can stick to the cells for weeks and researchers have discovered that the usually bent antibody will unbend to secure itself to the mast cells. Genentech has a drug called Xolair which interferes with these antibodies, but it is a large molecule which must be injected. The new findings may help scientists create a design a pill that keeps the antibodies bent. Until then, I’m sticking to the cromolyn.

Smith College’s traveling exhibit “Corot to Picasso” has been making its way around the country. It includes an unfinished painting by Gustave Courbet which was titled “The Preparation of the Bride,” until it was discovered that someone had painted clothes on the “bride” in order to alter a morbid, previously thought missing, painting called “The Preparation of the Dead Girl.” It is thought that the bridal theme was considered more marketable when the painting was sold after Courbet’s death, and thus the alteration was made. X-Rays revealed the truth underneath. The exhibit includes other unfinished works, appropriate for an educational institution’s collection, which reveal the creation process.

A “purple and crimson” diamond is being touted as “the world’s most valuable natural object in existence, on a weight to weight basis.” Its owner, who probably did not expect such a brouhaha over the gem, took it out for appraisal and it was subsequently publicized. Crimson diamonds have been discovered before, but no purple ones are known to exist. This one is between two and five carats, the jeweler won’t say exactly. If the owner is intending to sell it, perhaps the publicity is welcome.

Notes from Alton Brown’s Booksigning in San Jose, 6/15/2002
Alton had to buy one of his own books at a signing in L.A. He signed it with the wrong name (Rick/Eric) so he is passing it around at his appearances for everyone else to sign, like a “yearbook” (he claimed not many people wanted to sign his high school yearbook). Someone outright asked if he liked Emeril. He replied (I’m paraphrasing): “If it wasn’t for Emeril I wouldn’t be here today. He opened up the television food business. Also, the steak I had at his restaurant in New Orleans was the best I’ve ever had.” At one point during the lengthy signing session, Alton got up to yell at the people towards the end of the huge line, asking how they were doing, telling them that the supply drop would be arriving any minute. For photos, he posed everyone differently. For our photo, he turned his back to the camera. I asked if his daughter was the girl in the episode with the tea party, he said no, that was a neighbor’s daughter, but his daughter was in the honey show, “she was much smaller then.” Someone asked where he ate dinner last night and what he had. He said his driver, who was Chinese, dropped him off in a dark alley in Chinatown and he had yummy garlic prawns and other dishes I can’t recall. He also said he was trying to get into Chez Panisse tonight (he’s never eaten there). He joked that he was going to bring the poster for his book with him and hold it up next to his face. He may market a ready-made brine mix. His final meal request would be duck confit (it takes 3 days to prepare). To sum up, a really nice guy with a lot of wit and charm, very happy to meet and interact with his fans.