Rachel Swaby took a look at the history of ketchup. Some of the fascinating finds include:

• The original ketchup was a type of fish paste made of anchovies.
• After a while people started experimenting with mushroom, walnut, grape and oyster ketchups among others.
• Part of the appeal of ketchup is the high amount of salt and vinegar – these acted as a preservative and ensured that ketchup could stay on shelves a long time – crucial in the time before refrigerators.
• In the 1960s mechanical harvesters which were more likely to bruise tomatoes became the norm. In response to this scientists at Heinz developed a tomato with a thick skin and more meat so that it could stand up to the harvester.
• Heinz tomato plants used to produce 22 tons of tomatoes per acre. Now they produce more than double that.
• There are just four hours between a tomato being plucked and it being turned into a tomato paste.
• A ‘spice pack’ is added to ketchup to add flavour.

To read about the 6000 test tomato seeds that could go on to form the basis of your next bottle of tomato ketchup, when exactly tomatoes became the most popular form of ketchup, why tomato ketchup used to be coloured brown, why Heinz developed plants that stay ripe longer, and how the six billion seeds are distributed by Heinz each year click here.

Source: Gizmodo

Researchers took a look at the relationship between work commute and health. Bill Briggs reported on some of the findings:

• Those who have a longer commute weigh more and have a higher blood pressure.
• This is possibly because they don’t have as much time to exercise.
• Other potential explanations include less time for sleep, and snacking on fast food.
• Every 10-mile increase in your commute increases your BMI by 0.17 units.

To read more details about the study, why you should honk at the person in front of you, and why more driving is likely to lead to higher stress levels, click here.

Source: Life Inc.

In 1974 the Canadian government launched a pilot program where they guaranteed everybody a minimum income reports Vivian Belik. The data from the study has yet to be properly coded but analysis so far shows that:

• The program called ‘mincome’ covered ~1,000 families.
• The program ended up costing $17 million – substantially more than the few million it was projected to cost.
• The program came to a premature end during an economic recession in 1978.
• Hospital visits dropped by 8.5% possibly as a result of the program. Many hospital visits are the consequences of poverty.
• If Canada were to reduce hospital visits across the country by 8.5% today then it would save the government $4 billion.
• Mothers did reduce the amount of time that they worked but that was because they now had the option to stay at home and take care of their children.
• Teenagers worked less as well. They were more likely to graduate, and since they weren’t as pressured to find a job, they waited until something they could be passionate about came along.
• By introducing such a program the government could also remove all other welfare programs – thus significantly saving upon administrative costs.

To read about what happened to overall productivity, how mincome was different from welfare, what a contemporary mincome program would look like, why those who are currently on welfare are penalized, why the program has its political detractors, and the conservative senator who would support such a program, click here.

Source: The Dominion

In an article that looks at society’s relationship with risk, Edward Tenner’s discussion of the smoking lounge on the doomed Hindenburg stands out:

• The idea of a smoking lounge nested under a large balloon filled with highly flammable Hydrogen gas seems ridiculous.
• Yet during the time of the Hindenburg smoking was an integral part of people’s lifestyles.
• The Hindenburg had to compete with luxury cruise ships to attract passengers. Not allowing people to smoke would have hurt the appeal of travelling via airship.
• Passengers would have been incredibly bored during times when there was no land in sight if they didn’t have the refuge of a smoking lounge.
• To try to mitigate the risk all lighters were confiscated when passengers boarded the ship. The smoking lounge was specially designed and contained electric lighters. A steward ensured that guests didn’t leave the lounge with lit cigarettes.

To read more about the appeal of a mode of transportation that can carry “56 people at the speed of a Buick at an altitude you could hear dogs bark”, why there’s unlikely to be a smoking renaissance ahead, how the Hindenburg was still safer than the Titanic, the role that Congress played in the Hindenburg disaster, and why blimps might become a popular method of transportation once again, click here.

Source: The American

Via: Marginal Revolution

America has traditionally believed that low prices are the most important thing. Yet in recent years there has been some evidence to suggest that Americans would prefer to pay a higher price if it means better quality. This battle between price and quality is most evident in the world of beer according to David Sirota. Highlights of his article include:

• Beers produced by the major brewers taste bad. They use cheap ingredients and don’t contain much alcohol in order to produce high volumes at low costs.
• This is why you’re often encouraged to drink your beer cold. It hides the taste.
• This is reflected in their marketing strategies. Rather than talk about how good their beers taste, beer adverts generally focus creating a link between a beer’s brand and an entire class of people. The beer you drink becomes a statement of your identity.
• In contrast micro-brewers produce beers that cost more but taste much better. Sales increased by 15% this year and these beers make up 5.7% of total beer sold by volume and 9.1% of beer sold by dollars.
• Rather than attempt to emulate this model and produce better quality beers, major beer companies have tried to further distract from the taste of their product and focus on trivialities. Examples include Coors Light which is introducing colour-changing cans and Miller which is introducing Punch-top cans that allow you to drink your beer quicker. The idea being that you should be able to quickly consume their beer without having to taste it.

To read more about how Apple and Wal-Mart fit into this, the strategies that micro-brewers are pursuing, and why the United States might be moving towards a German economic model, click here.

Source: Salon

Ben Morris took a look at the economics of making a Hollywood blockbuster film:

• These days a big-budget film is a movie that costs at least $200 million to make.
• If your movie is based off of a book then you might have to pay $2 million for rights.
• Directors can charge up to $10 million and may demand some of the film’s profits.
• Actors can charge up to $20 million.
• Filming location matters. If you film in New York City your costs will be higher than if you film in a rural area. Filming at night requires elaborate lighting and thus is more expensive than filming in the day.
• A standard film will have production costs of around $500,000 a day. This will be substantially higher if you want special action sequences or CGI.
• An original pop song from a famous artist will cost $1 million.

To read about why studio chairmen can’t always approve big budget films, how much it costs to hire a script-writer, why New Zealand is an attractive filming location, the amount of money that movies make from in-flight entertainment, and how much money is made through DVD sales and rentals, click here.

Source: BBC News

One in five women in England in the 1700s were prostitutes reports Zoe Brennan:

• The number of prostitutes in London at the time is estimated to be 63,000.
• Women engaged in prostitution because the pay was 80 times higher than the alternative of living a life of drudgery as a housemaid.
• Overall the prostitution industry was worth about 1.5 billion inflation adjusted pounds.

To read more about the horrific practices that were used to trap women into prostitution, 17^th century condoms, how prostitutes were the celebrities of their times, and the prevalence of venereal diseases, click here.

Source: Daily Mail