Archives
The grills of summer
[podcast]http://edwardwillett.com/wp-content/upLoads//2010/06/The-Grills-of-Summer.mp3[/podcast] We’ve had at least one nice day so far this spring, and based on previous years (although, of course, as they say about RRSPs, past performance is no guarantee of future results) we may get at least one more before first frost this fall, so there’s just a possibility a few people may break out their barbecues for some outdoor cooking in the near future. In the U.S., the Memorial Day weekend at the end of May is seen as prime barbecuing time, which is probably why LiveScience, one of the science sites I frequent, recently answered that burning (sorry) question: “Why does grilled food turn black?” But in order to build suspense, I’m going to refrain from answering that this early ...A taste for cooked meat
It’s not very often you come across new science related to the history of cooking meat, possibly because it’s such a widespread human activity--especially in the summer--that everyone takes it for granted.Also, we’ve been doing it a very long time. As I wrote in a column four years ago:“Evidence...suggests our hominid ancestors were using fire in a South African cave called Swartkrans 1.5 million years ago.“Researchers...analyzed burnt bones found in the cave 20 years ago...They found that among the more than 250 bones (probably antelope) were some so thoroughly burned they must have been put in a wood campfire...Other bones were only slightly heated, which seems to indicate that the meat on them had ...High-tech cooking
If you are my age or older, you still think of microwave ovens as pretty fancy high-tech gadgets.But microwave ovens (like me) have been around for decades. There are many more high-tech gadgets landing in kitchens all the time, and if most of them are currently found in expensive restaurants, that doesn’t mean they won’t soon be landing in a kitchen nearer to home.Many of these gadgets have been invented by one man, Philip Preston, president of PolyScience. PolyScience manufactures laboratory equipment, but last year five percent of its total sales came from sales to restaurants rather than police labs and factories.Preston is profiled in the July, 2008, issue of ...High-tech cooking
If you are my age or older, you still think of microwave ovens as pretty fancy high-tech gadgets.But microwave ovens (like me) have been around for decades. There are many more high-tech gadgets landing in kitchens all the time, and if most of them are currently found in expensive restaurants, that doesn’t mean they won’t soon be landing in a kitchen nearer to home.Many of these gadgets have been invented by one man, Philip Preston, president of PolyScience. PolyScience manufactures laboratory equipment, but last year five percent of its total sales came from sales to restaurants rather than police labs and factories.Preston is profiled in the July, 2008, issue of ...Molecular gastronomy
The terms “soft condensed matter physics, biochemistry, and molecular biology” are not usually associated by the average person with “bread, cheese fondue, and the mystery of milky sambuca,’ but as Rachel Ehrenberg recently pointed out in Science News, they should be.That’s because (and if you watch the Food Network, this won’t come as a surprise) the methods and knowledge of science are being increasingly enlisted to improve what comes out of chef’s kitchens.“Molecular gastronomy” is a relatively new branch of science. But as one of its founding fathers, chef Hervé This of the French National Institute for Agricultural Research in Paris, points out in the Science News article, chemist Antoine Lavoisier experimented with the ...Mrs. Beeton’s Ad of the Day
All the advantages of a gas cooker with none of the disadvantages, this oil cooker promises it "Cooks the Food without Cooking the Cook," and who could argue with that?I find it interesting how many of these old ads try to connect something that would seem to be merely a matter of simple preference--cooking with gas or oil--and try to convince you that had a connection to your health. Although, come to think of it, that's not exactly an unknown approach to advertising products today, is it?Interestingly enough, there is an Anglo-American Oil Co. Ltd. today, but it ...Mrs. Beeton’s Ad of the Day
A public service announcement by the British Commercial Gas Association, telling you in no uncertain terms it is unfair to blame the cook if she is forced to cook on anything other than a gas stove.If she does have a gas stove, of course, you may say what you like about her, since she obviously can't cook her way out of a paper bag.Is this where the phrase "now we're cooking with gas" comes from?(By the way, search for the British Commerical Gas Association these days and the majority of Google hits are about the films ...Cooking by numbers
Are you cooking-challenged? Then Philips's new invention may be for you (if it ever becomes a real product). From New Scientist's invention blog:The secret is to measure the amount of water released while the food cooks, whether it is baking, frying or being cooked in a microwave. Apparently, this accurately reveals the food's dryness and crispness without the need to taste it.An oven or fryer would contain a precise scale, capable of recording the total weight of anything placed inside it. As it cooks a meal it measures the weight difference, revealing how much water has been released in the form of steam. To make the measurement more accurate, the released water could also ...The spice(s) of life
There are certain spices that just naturally come to mind as we approach the holiday season. Cinnamon, for instance. Cloves. Ginger. And, of course, hot peppers. (Hot peppers? Well, when I was growing up, Christmas dinner sometimes featured my mother’s famous enchilada casserole, which could be made mild, medium--or hot.) And unlike many of the things we may eat this holiday season, these and other spices may actually be beneficial to our health. Just about every spice in the cupboard has been attributed with some kind of medical miracle power over the centuries. Some of those properties are undeniable--cloves, for instance, contain a substance called eugenol which is an effective local anesthetic, and thus oil ...French fries
It’s Exhibition week in Regina, and while some may sing the praises of the midway, the craft shows or the agricultural displays, let’s face it: it’s really all about food. And not just any old food. No, the quintessential fair foods are deep-fried, from elephant ears and miniature doughnuts to the famous, fabulous French fry. The Belgians claim to have invented the French fry, but no one knows for sure. We do know that something very similar to the French fry was being served as early as the 1700s. What really put them on the map in North America, however, was the First World War. American servicemen stationed in France discovered them, loved them--and dubbed them ...
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Magebane
“Spectacular” – Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Evil wizards, multi-level conspiracies, hidden kingdoms…Lee Arthur Chane…has done a marvelous job…Magebane is a very entertaining book and well worth the time.” – A.M. Donovan, Night Owl Reviews
I happily recommend Magebane and I’ll certainly give Chane’s next novel a try based on this one.” —Bill Capossere, Fantasy Literature
“…an original and delightful tale of epic fantasy and magic, steampunk science, adventure, tragedy, and love…” – Errant Dreams Reviews
Eight centuries ago, the world changed. A devastating war swept the lands, and the MageLords, who had long ruled by virtue of their spell powers, were driven to a distant place, separated from those they had ruled by a magical Barrier. With magic banished from the rest of the world, the MageLords became mere legend and people turned to science to improve their lives. But if one man has his way, all that is about to change….
Written as Lee Arthur Chane (the middle names of my older brothers, Jimmy Lee and Dwight Arthur, and myself, Edward Chane Willett).
Marseguro
Winner of the 2009 Prix Aurora Award for Best Long-Form Work in English
Water world Marseguro is home to the Selkies, a water-dwelling race created from human DNA. When an unmodified human seeks revenge on a Selkie by activating a distress beacon taken from the remains of the original colony ship, a strikeforce is sent from Earth to eradicate the genetic abomination. Yet Marseguro will not prove as easy to conquer as the Earth force anticipates…
Terra Insegura
Finalist for the 2010 Prix Aurora Award for Best Novel in English
Marseguro, a water world far from Earth, is home to a colony of humans and the Selkies, a water-dwelling race created from modified human DNA. For seventy years the colony has lived in peace. Then Earth discovers Marseguro, and a strike force is sent to eradicate this “abomination.” But Marseguro has created a genetically tailored plague to use against Earth’s Holy Warriors. With the enemy defeated, the people of Marseguro feel they are safe. But Chris Keating, the traitor who signaled Marseguro’s location to the Holy Warriors, has fled to Earth, unknowingly carrying the deadly plague within him. The people of Marseguro feel they must send a ship to Earth with a life-saving vaccine. Only time will tell what awaits them when they reach their destination.
Lost in Translation
Kathryn was a human empath whose world and life had been destroyed when the alien S’sinn slaughtered her parents before her very eyes. Jarrikk was a young S’sinn, an unproven warrior who’d seen his flight mates slaughtered by the humans who’d sought to colonize his world.
As humans and S’sinn found themselves on the brink of war, these two Translators had to work together to find a common ground and avert catastrophe. But whether their Translators’ oath and training could overcome the enemies leagued against them was very much in doubt…
Archives
Song of the Sword
My new YA fantasy novel from Lobster Press
Before the Lady called her, Ariane’s life was a mess. Two years ago, her mother disappeared. She bounced around different foster homes until her aunt finally took her in. The meanest clique at her new high school has decided to make Ariane their prime target. And to top it all off, she is having frightening premonitions, and they are becoming more intense. The moment water touches her skin, she sees visions of a lake, a lady, and a sword. When a staircase opens up in the middle of Wascana Lake and the water begins singing to her, she has no choice but to answer the call….
Historic Walks of Regina and Moose Jaw
Ten walks to points of historic and architectural interest in the cities of Regina and Moose Jaw (eight walks for Regina, two for Moose Jaw).
Johnny Cash: The Man in Black
When country music legend Johnny Cash took the stage at Folsom State Prison in 1968, he solidified the public’s perception of him as a rebel who followed his own path. Born in Arkansas during the Great Depression, Cash endured poverty, the death of his older brother, and a difficult relationship with his father. He turned to gospel and country music to express the pain, and after many years of struggling, his songs of hardship and hope would finally reach the ears of those waiting for an artist who represented them, ordinary people fighting to survive.
Andy Warhol: Everyone Will Be Famous for 15 Minutes
“Paintings are too hard. Machines have less problems…” In the 1960s, Andy Warhol became the most famous creator of a new style of art called pop art, which transformed mass-produced items of popular culture into fine works of art. From Campbell’s Soup cans to photographs of Marilyn Monroe, Warhol’s willingness to use anything and everything from the mass media in his work expanded the range of subject matter available to artists. His avant-garde films, artistic usage of American icons, and unconventional social life made him a controversial figure, both greatly admired and deeply reviled. A trendsetter rather than a trend-follower, a dispassionate observer of both the seamy and celebrity sides of life, Warhol was a true American rebel.
Disease-Hunting Scientist
The true stories of six real disease hunters. Epidemiologists travel the world trying to keep us safe from deadly diseases—from high-tech labs in Canada to remote villages in Africa. Learn how these “disease detectives” are coming up with new ways to fight disease, and find out if you have what it takes to become an epidemiologist, too!
The Bounty Mutiny
The Bounty was a British ship visiting Tahiti in 1789 when some of the crew overthrew the captain, William Bligh, and set him adrift in a tiny boat with sailors loyal to him. The mutiny resulted in a number of trials–both of the men who mutinied and of Bligh for losing command of his ship. These fascinating events have been the source for numerous Hollywood movies, most recently The Bounty. The Bounty Mutiny: From the Court Case to the Movie explores the famous case and the movies it inspired.
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