Shake it, sweetieThis Halloween you might find something spooky going on in your bag of loot. Researchers at the University of Twente in the Netherlands have discovered some strange properties of candy mixing. They mixed candies of two different sizes and placed them in a larger container that was divided in two by a partial wall. Heavily shaking the container left candies evenly distributed between the compartments, as you might expect. The strange twist is that moderate shaking corralled all the candy into the compartment that started with mostly large candies, but mild shaking slowly gathered all the candy to the other side.Sources: Eurekalert, American Physical Society–Rosemary McNaughtonEat candy, live longerPublic health researchers at Harvard University report that people who eat sweets tend to live longer. Corrected for other factors like smoking, age and exercise, they found that of 500 Harvard alumni who died between 1988 and 1993, those who ate candy lived almost a year longer on average than those who claimed to never indulge a sweet tooth.
The data did not distinguish chocolate from other sweets, but the scientists speculated that the antioxidants in chocolate might be the key to this effect. On the other hand, maybe chocolate just makes people feel good and reduces stress. Any volunteers for a follow-up study?Source: Science News Online–Matt Asma
