The Perfect Bloody Mary

Here at Food/Science, we love us some brunch cocktails. Luckily, some folks with Ph.D.'s spent time and effort to determine, scientifically, the best way to make one such libation: that brunch classic, the Bloody Mary. At a recent meeting of the American Chemical Society, scientists presented research showing that, basically, it boils down to using fresh, quality ingredients and cheap vodka. Hooray for thriftiness, and science!

Personally, I like mine garnished to the hilt, with pickles and olives a must.

Check out the full story here, (via The Kitchn).

Also, as a bonus, why not pair your scientifically-proven Bloody Mary with a Mobius Bagel? So much geekery, in one brunch!

(also via The Kitchn)

Farm Subsidies and Obesity

At Good, Robert Paarlberg argues against the popular belief that federal farm subsidies contribute to obesity in America. Paarlberg says that most farm subsidies actually increase the price of foods, and that the argument that unsubsidized healthy foods have increased in price relative to unhealthy, processed foods is untrue. Therefore, food subsidies can't be blamed for American's poor diets and resulting health woes. It's a well-written, well-researched piece - definitely food for thought (ahem) about the causes of unhealthy diets in America and what should be done about them.