Friday's Fact: Scratch and Sniff

How do scratch-and-sniff stickers work?

Scratch-and-sniff stickers are one of those novelty technologies that sound like such a good idea... But they never really caught on except in children's books and the occasional perfume strip in a magazine. Why shouldn't nasal information be just as important audio and visual information? Perhaps because no one has figured out how to encode language in smells.

Nonetheless, if you have kids, you probably have a scratch-and-sniff book around the house. And even if the book is 20 years old, it still works! The reason the stickers last so long is because of the microencapsulation technology used to create them. The basic idea behind scratch-and-sniff is to take the aroma-generating chemical and encapsulate it in gelatin or plastic spheres that are incredibly small -- on the order of a few microns in diameter. When you scratch the sticker, you rupture some of these spheres and release the smell. The smell is essentially held in millions of tiny bottles, and you break a few of the bottles every time you scratch the sticker. The tiny bottles preserve the fragrance for years.

It turns out that the microencapsulation technology used in scratch-and-sniff was first developed to create carbonless copy paper. The top sheet of paper is coated with microcapsules containing a colorless ink. When you write on the paper, it breaks the capsules and releases the ink. The ink mixes with a developer chemical on the next sheet of paper to create a dark color.

"How do scratch-and-sniff stickers work?." 01 April 2000. HowStuffWorks.com. <http://science.howstuffworks.com/question274.htm> 29 January 2009.

Say What You Will....

From the mind of Michael Ramirez, Editorial Cartoonist for Investor's Business Daily.

A pig is a pig whether you take it into town, or to the trough...

I guess the reason it didn't work last year was that there wasn't enough money in it. Yeah, that's it.

What's the old rambling about repeating something over and over again, hoping for different results?

Oh yeah, now I remember.....insanity.

Wednesday's Worst - #19

#19

WORST DRINK

Chocolate Moo'd Power Smoothie

30 fl oz

900 calories

10 g fat

183 g carbs

(166 g sugars)

This is a smoothie???? Well, Jamba Juice thinks so. Ready for a pop quiz? Here we go. What has more sugar: One (1) Jamba Juice Chocolate Moo'd Power Smoothie or Two (2) pints of Ben and Jerry's Butter Pecan ice cream?

Ready to finish off that Michelin midsection? How about that third and fourth chin you've been dreaming about. Look no further. 75% of this chain's power smoothies are in excess of 100 grams of sugar. Their fruit smoothies are the only items with no added sugar. Do yourself another favor and order the small while you're at it.

Next week: Just how bad can bad be at your local grocer's freezer? I'll tell you!

What A Relief...It's Just A Virus!

And here I thought diet and exercise were the most effective. Looks like just keeping my hands clean, using Clorox wipes, and Lysol spray were all I had to do...sheesh

Here's your link.

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Obesity can be "caught" as easily as a common cold from other people's coughs, sneezes and dirty hands, scientists are set to declare today. The condition has been linked to a highly-infectious virus which causes sniffles and sore throats. Professor Nikhil Dhurandhar said the virus, known as AD-36, infects the lungs then whisks around the body, forcing fat cells to multiply and also causing sore throats.
"When this virus goes to fat tissue it replicates, making more copies of itself and in the process increases the number of new fat cells, which may explain why the fat tissue expands and why people get fat when they are infected with this virus," Dhurandhar said. In one test, a third of obese people had the rare and highly contagious virus compared to just 11 percent of thinner people. Weight gain can last three months until the body has built up resistance to the bug. New research supports earlier theories from studies on weight gain; evidence in tests on mice and chickens shows the bug could cause overweight people to gain weight. "People could be fat for reasons other than viral infections, so it’s pointless for fat people to try to
avoid infection," said Dhurandhar. The study also reveals research claiming dieters always feel hungry because humans have a "natural body weight" and they will always suffer hunger pangs.