Popping noises. (No this is not a post about joint problems)

Imagine a world without sound. Then imagine seeing a little kid overjoyed with his mouth wide open and some sort of candy in his mouth. Chances are that kid would be eating Pop Rocks! As Pop Rocks continue to be famous, many people are drawn to them mainly because they'll support and buy something that makes no sense to them. My language arts teacher said this is also why George Bush was elected as president twice. Before I start, thanks to Julie for first bringing attention to this topic on her blog http://jewly1.blogspot.com/2014/02/pop-rocks.html from the article http://chemistry.about.com/od/howthingsworkfaqs/f/poprockscandy.htm.

So as Julie stated, the popping noise that fascinates so many people if the sound of carbon dioxide (CO2) being released. To make Pop Rocks, the candy mixture itself is initially made and then mixed with carbon dioxide. This carbon dioxide is then trapped in the candy like a *insert clever simile here*! When this candy is in your mouth, saliva melts the candy allowing the CO2 to escape and create the popping noise. Don't worry, these CO2 emissions are not harmful. Otherwise plenty of kids would flop on the ground on a daily basis due to CO2 inhalation.

After reading this, I thought of another food that is bought more for entertainment than taste, Rice Krispies cereal! Because what other food will you hold to your ear in amusement? Let me just say how many articles about arthritis and joint pain I had to go through to find one article about a cereal.

So scientists aren't entirely certain of the causes of this sound, for try to find a person who will donate money for the research of a cereal noise. Good luck with that. But there are theories! Apparently when Rice Krispies cook, high temperatures are used to form bonds between starch molecules. As the rice cereal begins to rise, air pockets begin to form in the cereal. Then add milk which pushes the air in the pockets creating pressure and ultimately breaking the cereal. Thanks to http://www.livescience.com/4098-rice-krispies-snap-crackle-pop.html for information.

Well there you have it. Sorry if I ruined your morning cereal ritual by invoking too much thought.