Alexander Fedorchenko Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague
The reason porridge sticks to non-stick pans is explained by the physics of fluids, specifically the thermocapillary effect. Earlier this year, a colleague and I explained, through experiments, the phenomenon of food sticking to a pan while frying, (Physics of Fluids)doi.org/f8pq).
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When cooking porridge, water moves to the periphery of the pot, exposing a dry spot in the centre. This means the centre of the pan overheats and the dry cereal sticks to the pan. To prevent this, turn the heat to minimum after the porridge boils and stir it continuously. Bon appetit.
Health | Leader 5 May 2021
A woman waits to get tested for coronavirus at a COVID-19 testing centre in Srinagar.
Idrees Abbas/SOPA Images via Getty Images
THE situation in India continues to worsen, with more than 20 million cases of covid-19 recorded and health systems overwhelmed. But there is nothing unique about India that means it alone could face such a crisis. Around the world, country after country is being hit by surging coronavirus cases, driven in part by new variants that are harder to control.
The pandemic is accelerating across South America, and cases are rising in many African countries too. In most low …
Lewis O’Shaughnessy Nottingham, UK
Smell and taste are closely linked, but there are many differences.
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The flavour and smell of coffee aren’t the result of a single chemical, but a complex cocktail of more than 1000 compounds.
The exact balance of flavour can be adapted by varying a range of factors, including the beans, how long they are roasted and specifics of the brewing method such as grind size, temperature and pressure. This affects how many of the harder-to-extract flavours are present in the final cup of coffee.
Of these different flavour compounds, some will easily vaporise, allowing them to diffuse through the air and enter your nose where you smell them. Others, often those that are much larger, need higher temperatures to vaporise and so you will smell them less or not at all.
Feedback is our weekly column of bizarre stories, implausible advertising claims, confusing instructions and more 5 May 2021
Greenfinger
No finer monument graces central London’s skyline than the very large, very hush-hush building just by Vauxhall Bridge that houses Her Majesty’s Secret Intelligence Service. From that edifice emerges the news that, besides cat-stroking villains plotting world domination from their volcano lairs, the spooks of MI6 now have climate polluters in their sights.
Climate change is the “foremost international foreign policy agenda item for this country and for the planet”, the head of the UK spy agency, Richard Moore – known as “C” to his friends – told Times Radio. This is why MI6 has started “green spying” …