What Does the Moon Smell Like?: 151 Astounding Science Quizzes (13 page)

mating. A closer look at the sex lives of jungle fowl reveals a strategy that seems superficial: they choose their mates based on looks. Studly roosters go for the hottest chicks and vice versa. Most of us have some idea of what’s hot for humans, but what could possibly be hot, or not, for chickens?

What makes chickens attractive to the opposite sex?

a) a big beak

b) a voluptuous comb

c) small ears

d) the yellowest feet

165

Chicken Beautiful

What makes chickens attractive to the opposite sex?

A

a) a big beak

b) a voluptuous comb

c) small ears

HOT

d) the yellowest feet

CHICKEN

CORRECT ANSWER:

b) a voluptuous comb

The comb is the fleshy red tissue on top of a

chicken’s head, and it’s what makes a chicken hot, or not. The bigger, brighter, and more voluptuous the comb, the more attractive and desirable the chicken.

That goes for males and females, both wild and

domesticated. Now, before you write the chicken off as vain and shallow, consider this: only healthy chickens have healthy-looking combs, and a robust mate is a chicken’s best shot at producing healthy offspring.

Chickens may not be rocket scientists, but when it comes to the survival of their species, they’ve got great instincts.

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Gamy Roosters

Roosters live for two things: fighting and fertilizing. A Q

rooster’s got to do what a rooster’s got to do to father as many offspring as he can, and preferably more than the other roosters. Some part of his tiny brain HOT

weighs the odds of mating success in different situa-CHICKEN

tions, and prompts the rooster’s behaviour.

Sometimes it’s in his best interest to give a lot of sperm to a hen, and sometimes it’s not. It all depends on the circumstances, and his status in the flock.

When will a dominant rooster give a hen the most sperm? When . . .

a) she’s one of many hens

b) she’s the only hen

c) there are no other roosters present

d) there are other roosters present

167

Gamy Roosters

When will a dominant rooster give a hen the most A

sperm? When . . .

a) she’s one of many hens

b) she’s the only hen

HOT

c) there are no other roosters present

CHICKEN

d) there are other roosters present

CORRECT ANSWER:

d) there are other roosters present

The amount of sperm a dominant wild rooster contributes depends on whether there are other males around, and how many of them there are. When

rivals are present, a dominant rooster gives more sperm, in a bid to win the fertilization competition.

Low-ranking roosters do the opposite, reducing their sperm output when rivals rule the roost. Maybe

they’re waiting for a better, less competitive situation to come up. If there are no rivals around, roosters give the minimum amount of sperm required for fertilization, but even in that situation, they give more to the attractive hens than to the homely ones.

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Egg Layers

Chickens are egg-laying machines. They lay more eggs Q

than any other bird. With all that mating going on, most eggs get fertilized in the wild. Laying them fulfills the hen’s biological imperative to bring more chicks HOT

into the world, and domestic chickens can’t turn that CHICKEN

egg-laying instinct off, even when there are no roosters around to fertilize their eggs. As long as the eggs are removed, hens just keep on laying them. In the right circumstances, a hen will lay up to 300 eggs a year.

Now you know why hens lay so many eggs, and you know how many, but do you know how those eggs

form? Which part of the egg comes first: the shell, the white, or the yolk? That’s the question . . .

In which order is an egg formed inside the hen?

a) shell, white, yolk

b) shell, yolk, white

c) white, yolk, shell

d) yolk, white, shell

169

Egg Layers

In which order is an egg formed inside the hen?

A

a) shell, white, yolk

b) shell, yolk, white

c) white, yolk, shell

HOT

d) yolk, white, shell

CHICKEN

CORRECT ANSWER:

d) yolk, white, shell

When a hen ovulates, the yolk is released and starts its journey through the more than 60-centimetre (2 ft) long oviduct. First the yolk gets covered with a thin membrane and structural fibres, and then in layers of egg white, or albumin. As it moves through the long, spiralling oviduct, the fibres twist and form into two thick ropes that keep the yolk centered in the egg.

The final step takes place in the shell gland, where the shell forms. This stage takes the longest, about 20

hours. If it’s a brown egg, there’s an extra step during the last few hours of shell formation when the colour is added. The brown pigment is a breakdown product of the hemoglobin in the chicken’s blood. Other than pigment on the shell, there’s no difference between brown and white eggs.

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Headless Chicken

Have you ever heard the saying “running around like a Q

chicken with its head cut off”? Maybe you’ve seen cartoons with some hapless animated chicken running around frantically looking for its disembodied head.

HOT

Although it sounds like cartoon fodder, or an urban CHICKEN

myth, it’s not. Headless chickens can survive in certain circumstances. How is that possible? And even if it is possible, how long could a chicken possibly live without a head? You just had to ask, didn’t you?

How long has a chicken survived after its head was cut off?

a) 18 hours

b) 18 days

c) 18 months

d) 18 years

171

Headless Chicken

How long has a chicken survived after its head was A

cut off?

a) 18 hours

b) 18 days

HOT

c) 18 months

CHICKEN

d) 18 years

CORRECT ANSWER:

c) 18 months

A chicken who was supposed to be dinner became a headless celebrity instead. Mike the Rooster’s journey began with a botched decapitation. The thinking parts of his brain were chopped off, but an ear and most of his brain stem remained intact. The brain stem controls basic physical functions, so Mike could do most things that didn’t require having a head. He became an instant celebrity when
Life
magazine covered him in 1945. Soon Mike had a manager and was touring America. During his 15 minutes of freak show fame, Mike made a small fortune — more than

$50,000 a month in today’s dollars. Then, when he was 18 months old, tragedy struck, and neither his fame nor his fortune could save him. After a gig, back in the motel room he shared with his owners, he choked on his own mucus in the middle of the night.

Whether his owners ate him at that point is

unknown.

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YOUR BRAIN ON CHOCOLATE

Will that Be Sex or Chocolate?

Women have a very special relationship with choco-Q

late. Of the females in an American survey, 93% said that they ate it. More than half said that chocolate made them happy. In a British survey, 66% of the women described chocolate as a mood enhancer, but only 38% of the men knew that chocolate seduces the brain into releasing feel-good chemicals called endor-phins. They act like drugs to kill pain, reduce stress, and induce feelings of euphoria. Is it any wonder women have a love affair with chocolate?

How many women said they’d rather have chocolate than sex?

a) 71%

b) 52%

c) 25%

d) 17%

173

Will that Be Sex or Chocolate?

How many women said they’d rather have chocolate A

than sex?

a) 71%

b) 52%

YOUR

c) 25%

BRAIN

d) 17%

ON

CHOCOLA

CORRECT ANSWER:

b) 52%

TE

About 52% of the women in the British survey said that they’d rather indulge in chocolate. Imagine the disappointment of the men surveyed: 87% of them said they’d rather have sex. So, what’s the big deal with chocolate? One woman may have hit the nail on the head when she said that chocolate provides “guar-anteed pleasure and never disappoints.” Is there anything else on earth you can say that about? Half the men surveyed said that they regularly gave chocolate as birthday and thank-you gifts. Most women on the receiving end of chocolate probably appreciate it, but what (if anything) happens next depends on the man’s relationship with the woman, and the woman’s relationship with chocolate.

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In Love with Chocolate

Have you ever fallen in love? You feel stimulated and Q

excited, maybe even giddy, but with a sense of well-being. If you like that feeling, you can try to fall in love on a regular basis, or you can try eating choco-YOUR

late. Falling in love steeps your brain in a stimulating chemical called phenylethylamine, a.k.a. the “love BRAIN

drug,” which just happens to be found both in your brain and in chocolate. When you eat chocolate, the ON

“love drug” makes its way to your brain and works its CHOCOLA

magic. Phenylethylamine revs up your brain, but it’s not the only stimulant in chocolate. You’ve probably TE

heard there’s caffeine in it too, but do you know how much? Let’s say that a cola is a 355-millilitre (12 oz) can, and that the other beverages are 237-millilitre (8

oz) cups.

How much caffeine is in 28.5 grams (1 oz) of chocolate? About as much as . . .

a) brewed coffee

b) cola

c) decaffeinated coffee

d) tea

175

In Love with Chocolate

How much caffeine is in 28.5 grams (1 oz) of choco-A

late? About as much as . . .

a) brewed coffee

b) cola

YOUR

c) decaffeinated coffee

BRAIN

d) tea

ON

CHOCOLA

CORRECT ANSWER:

c) decaffeinated coffee

TE

There isn’t much caffeine in chocolate. Some experts think that there isn’t any caffeine, but there definitely is another stimulant, theobromine, that’s similar to caffeine in some ways. Apparently, if you eat enough chocolate, the theobromine can keep you awake at night. Well, I confess to having consumed mass quantities of chocolate, and it’s never kept me awake, but your mileage may vary. Theobromine is a kinder, gentler stimulant than caffeine. It doesn’t deliver a jolt, and lasts longer. The word theobromine comes from the cacao plant’s botanical name,
Theobroma
, which means food of the gods. It was named by the famous Swedish naturalist Linnaeus. Food of the gods, eh? Do you think he was in love with chocolate?

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High on Chocolate

Chocolate is a drug. Its active ingredients alter the Q

chemistry of the brain and body. Everything you eat or drink alters your brain and body and is a drug in that sense, but chocolate has some extra special YOUR

mind-altering qualities. Scientists know of nearly 400

chemicals in chocolate, but there are still surprises BRAIN

hidden deep inside the dark mass of edible delight.

Three compounds that resemble a brain chemical

ON

called anandamide were discovered not long ago.

CHOCOLA

Anandamide induces a marijuana-like high because it fits into the same brain receptors as THC, the active TE

ingredient in cannabis. If the anandamide in chocolate mimics THC in the brain, is it possible to get high on chocolate?

How much chocolate would a 59-kilogram (130 lb) person have to eat in one sitting to get high?

Approximately . . .

a) 0.9 kg (2 lb)

b) 4.5 kg (10 lb)

c) 9 kg (20 lb)

d) 11.4 kg (25 lb)

177

High on Chocolate

How much chocolate would a 59-kilogram (130 lb) A

person have to eat in one sitting to get high?

Approximately . . .

a) 0.9 kg (2 lb)

YOUR

b) 4.5 kg (10 lb)

BRAIN

c) 9 kg (20 lb)

d) 11.4 kg (25 lb)

ON

CHOCOLA

CORRECT ANSWER:

d) 11.4 kg (25 lb)

TE

Even though 11.4 kilograms (25 lb) of chocolate contain enough chemicals to induce a high, you can’t really get high on chocolate because you can’t eat enough. Neuroscientists studied the effects of too much chocolate by imaging the brains of chocoholics as squares of chocolate melted slowly in their

mouths. The subjects consumed anywhere from 40 to 170 grams (1 to 6 oz) of chocolate during the experiment. At first, the pleasure centres of their brains lit up in the areas activated by addictive drugs, such as cocaine, but when they ate too much, the thrill was gone. The more they had to eat, the less pleasurable it became until, eventually, forcing themselves to eat the chocolate felt like punishment. Now imagine trying to make yourself eat 100 times the amount that made the chocoholics suffer. I bet your brain

wouldn’t like it.

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Chocoholics Live Longer

Chocolate lovers live longer. That’s the conclusion of Q

two different studies: one of 8,000 Harvard University graduates, and the other of a group of elderly Dutch men. In the Dutch study, chocolate eaters had lower YOUR

blood pressure, and healthier cardiovascular systems than those who didn’t eat it. The men who ate the BRAIN