Sunday, September 24, 2006
Bananas
I was thinking about one of my favourite subjects, bananas. I go crazy for banana bread and banana-based smoothies - don't get me started.
The thing about bananas that fascinates me is the origin of them. They are yet another of those great examples (along with Christopher Columbus's voyage of discovery) of humans doing profoundly stupid things which, through sheer dumb fluke luck, turn out great.
The natural banana is inedible because it's totally full of seeds. About 10,000 years ago, primitive humans used basic cross-breeding techniques to engineer an edible, seedless banana.
Why? What would motivate them to do that? It must have taken generations. Why would they have wasted their time fiddling with an inedible fruit when there were plenty of edible ones to grow? How did generations of prehistoric farmers convince their tribes that this was a worthwhile use of their time?
It boggles the mind.
posted by Mentok @ 4:12 p.m.,
7 Comments:
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At 10:47 p.m.,
FiL said...
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Yum! It'll be a banana smoothie for my breakfast tomorrow, I'll have you know. Plus Dearest Wife makes killer banana bread. Not that I'm trying to make you drool, or anything...
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At 4:44 p.m.,
Canadian Sentinel said...
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Bananas are funny.
Bill Clinton going bananas on Fox News is hilarious!
That guy provides plenty of material for bloggers, including myself.
Check out the stuff I did on him if you haven't already... -
At 9:21 p.m.,
mkecurler said...
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omg! Yuo would totally love my carmelized bananas brulee!
That photo was taken in April 2006, it was cold then . They are forcasting snow Thursday night here! -
At 12:09 a.m.,
Bathroom Hippo said...
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Hey I like this Canadian Sentinel guy. Clinton, once again, made a fool of himself on national television. -
At 10:44 p.m.,
Rachel said...
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Bananas are tasty and they are a good source of potassium
How did a post on bananas suddenly morph into a Bill Clinton bash fest?
I don't know...but can I have some caramelized bananas brulee? Yummy. :) -
At 12:57 a.m.,
Bathroom Hippo said...
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Hey Mentok!
Voice Mentok dangit!
P.S> Bill Clinton sucks! -
At 11:10 a.m.,
NL-ExPatriate said...
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LOL
Can't wait to see the comments on the origins of Nuts or Cuban cigars.
Ever smoke banana Peels?
