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WEEKLY NEWS 4: Getting More Pop From Popcorn

Thanks to the miracle of science, there may finally be an answer to the age-old question of why some popcorn kernels don’t pop.

Microwave popcorn is particularly well known for leaving lots of kernels npopped. Aside from being a waste of popcorn, they can also be a choking hazard or damaging to teeth and fillings.

A new study published on April 7, 2005, in the on-line version of BioMacromolecules, the journal of the American Chemical Society, tries to discover the “pop-ability” factor of popcorn.

The researchers studied 14 different varieties of popcorn. The proportion of unpopped kernels after microwaving ranged from 4 to 47 percent for the different types of popcorn. By studying the better popping varieties, the researchers were able to determine what makes them so different.

The secret lies in the pericarp, or the outer hull of the kernel. When heated, the pericarp traps moisture inside, which leads to a build-up of pressure within the kernel. This pressure builds until the kernel ruptures--or pops. What we recognize as white, fluffy popcorn, is essentially the kernel turned inside out.

The better popping varieties of popcorn have a more ordered, crystalline-like structure of the cellulose molecules within the pericarp. This makes the pericarp stronger and better able to trap moisture within the kernel during heating.

Engineers will now be able to apply this knowledge to design better popping popcorn. Through selective breeding, chemical modifications or even genetic engineering, they may design a microwave popcorn that pops every last kernel.

--Written by Kristine Thornley

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