Sinking ice and hovering foams
Tofu pâté, sinking ice, and all-egg noodles replaced the usual fare in Annenberg Hall on Monday, at the second incarnation of Harvard’s most delicious science fair. The annual Science & Cooking Fair shows off students’ final projects from the undergraduate General Education course “Science & Cooking: From Haute Cuisine to the Science of Soft Matter.” This year, 63 teams presented a great variety of culinary creations. Chris Lehman ’13, a social studies concentrator, and James Danner ’12, history and literature, attempted to re-create the texture, flavor, and acidity of a fresh raspberry in a spherified liquid form. Their classmate, Paul VanKoughnett ’12, a mathematics concentrator, optimized the bubbliness of angel food cake. Most of the students who take the course do not intend to concentrate in science or engineering. The “Science & Cooking” course brings world-famous, innovative chefs to Harvard to give guest lectures on specific aspects of scientific theory and culinary practice....