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18th February 2005 Issue: 19

That’s Valentine’s Day over with for another year, but just in case you’ve not had enough of all that mushy, slushy stuff then here’s a Valentine’s Wired-Up Special to set your heart all aglow (again!). Here’s what to look out for:

  1. GEAR FOR GRABS – Love is in the air (and in February’s quiz too!)
  2. PLANET PICKS – Black is back and more fashionable than ever!
  3. THE WIRE – How your printer could cook up a treat!
  4. MAKE A DATE – Places to go and things to see and do...
  5. TRY THIS UPDATE – Our Science Week experiment reminder.
1. GEAR FOR GRABS – You’ve got to be in it to win it...

If you’ve visited the Planet Science website this month, you’ll know it’s like taking a journey along the tunnel of love! The first of one of two new features is a comic-strip quiz that’s sure to put Mills and Boon off the shelves. The quiz features Mina and Ben as they face the elements in the Jungle of Lurve...

As you read through the botanical romance story, select the correct words in the drop-down menus to make the story seamless and scientifically accurate. If you get all ten answers right then you’ll be entered into the draw to win a twistable heart-shaped Cushtie!

For those of you reaching for a dictionary to look up ‘cushtie’ – it’s an incredibly soft and squishy cushion. And this wouldn’t be a science newsletter if we didn’t tell you the science behind it. The secret to Cushtie's staggering squeezability, is its stretchy outer skin, which encases thousands of polystyrene micro-granules. This allows Cushtie to mould itself into the shape it's being pressed into – be it your head, hands, face or body. And no matter what you do to Cushtie, its bead filling will just squish it back into shape!

Also up for grabs are a couple of Valentine-themed chemical hot packs to keep you warm on these long cold nights. All you have to do is click on this link: http://www.planet-science.com/wired/comp_quiz/02_05_Lurve/

...and settle down to the love story.
2. PLANET PICKS – News from the world of Planet Science...

So that’s the romance literature sorted, now where are the flowers? How do you think your Valentine would react to a bouquet of black roses? They’d certainly think it was unique. Well, enter the Planet Science zone called ‘A Bouquet of Black’ and we’ll let you into a little secret; black is the new black!!

For years, horticulturalists and plant breeders have been trying to perfect the art of breeding flowers with pure black petals. Let me tell you now – it’s been bloomin difficult. Just ask Karen Platt, one of the world’s leading authorities on dark plants. She’s been trying for years!

If you want more information then take a trip on the dark side by clicking on this link: http://www.planet-science.com/outthere/flowers/

Not only will you find the science behind dark plants and flowers, but you can also browse a gallery of dusky beauties and find out the role of black in nature. When you’re done with the reading, move onto ‘The Pollinator’ – our online gene machine where you can try your hand at breeding a black plant for yourself. Bloomin marvellous it is!
3. THE WIRE – Science news delivered to your inbox...

Romance story – check, flowers – check, table for two – check, but are you like me? Can you never decide between the dishes on the menu? In fact, do you just want to eat the whole menu?! Well, it might be possible one day, thanks to a chef who has designed an ink-jet printer that prints your lunch!

Homaru Cantu has created a special printer that uses cartridges filled with fruit and vegetable juices instead of ink. The printer’s paper tray contains edible sheets of soybean and potato starch, and when you put the two together – you’ve got one tasty piece of paper!

Cantu’s flavours range from birthday cake to sushi, and he even uses the printer to print the menus at his restaurant so diners can nibble while they wait for their food.

In the future, Cantu hopes to design food magazines you can actually taste. Instead of trying a new product by buying it at the supermarket, you simply tear out a page from the magazine and eat it instead.

Now that’s fast food!
MAKE A DATE – Science things to see and do...

If your date on Valentine’s weekend didn’t live up to much then here are two dates for you (and your diary) that promise not to stand you up...

If you live in the south east of England then the Brighton Science Festival on 25th and 26th February is well worth a visit. Highlights include a beginner's guide to quantum physics, the 'essential' difference between men and women, a tour through the chemicals of everyday life, a look at natural disasters and the strange tale of an 18th century French weaver who paved the way for modern computing technology. And that's just on the Friday.

Saturday is devoted to 'Bright Sparks' so expect explosions, forensics, creepy crawlies, moon rocks and steam engines for the whole family. Then between 6.00pm and 9.00pm it's Einstein-a-Go-Go as time and space make way for an evening celebrating 100 years of Relativity Theory. All the Festival events take place at City College, Brighton, so read more and book your tickets here: http://www.BrightonScience.com.

The next dates for your diary run from 9th until 13th March when the Festival of Science and Culture is taking place at the National Space Centre in Leicester. The object of the festival is to celebrate the cultural diversity of scientific achievement, and the guest of honour will be Dr Bernard Harris, the first black astronaut to walk in space. It's the 10th anniversary of his historic expedition, and it will be celebrated in festive style, with a carnival atmosphere over the weekend (12th-13th March). Find out more at: http://www.festivalofscienceandculture.co.uk
5. TRY THIS! – Turn your kitchen into a lab and cook up some real science treats...

Finally, we’ve just got time to remind you about our lemon juice experiment as featured in the last issue of Wired-Up. The results have been coming in thick and fast so to say thank you, we’re sending a frisbee to the first 250 readers who write in with their results. We’re also entering all the entries into a draw to win £100 worth of science kit as a bonus.

If you didn’t receive last issue and you’re interested in completing the experiment, you’ll need lemon juice, kitchen scales and cotton wool balls. Here’s what you do:

  1. Squirt a drop of lemon juice onto your tongue and swish it around your mouth for 10 seconds.
  2. Get a cotton wool ball and soak up all the saliva (spit) in your mouth. Use as many cotton wool balls as you need.
  3. Put the used cotton wool balls on the scales and see how much they weigh. Make a note of this measurement.

Scientists claim that the amount of saliva you produce after putting a drop of lemon juice on your tongue might have something to do with what type of person you are. Apparently, extroverts are expected to produce less saliva than introverts and it’s all to do with a part of your brain called the Reticular Activating System. All will be revealed when we announce the results of the experiment in our Science Week Special in March.

You can join in with the experiment by sending the total weight of your cotton balls (in grams) to: randomised.news@nesta.org.uk with ‘I’M A LITTLE SQUIRT” as the subject. To find out whether the lemon juice experiment results tally up, you also need to include in your email whether you think that you are an introvert or an extrovert.

We’ve still got lots of frisbees left so reach for the lemon juice now!
THAT’S ALL FOR NOW

Got Wired-Up? Got clued up!

Don’t forget that Wired-Up will be hitting your inboxes every fortnight from now on, but in the meantime, send any questions, comments, jokes or experiment ideas to: randomised.news@nesta.org.uk

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