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Jewish World Review June 28, 2005 / 21 Sivan, 5765 What do dogs dream about?; what's cappuccino without the foam? By Jeff Elder
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Q: Is my dog really dreaming about chasing rabbits when her paws
twitch while sleeping, or does she secretly yearn to be a ballroom
dancer? —David Bennett
A: She might indeed yearn to twirl and dip across a polished
ballroom floor, David. Is her name, perhaps, Ginger?
More on finding out everyone's pet names in a minute.
Dogs do dream, experts say.
Just like us, they go through a light sleep and then move into
heavier rapid-eye-movement sleep. During REM the eyes dart
frantically, electric activity in the brain increases, and we dream.
During this time dogs might whimper and kick, but vets say it's best
to let dreaming dogs lie. They need their deep sleep, just like us.
Besides, "this might be the dream where he finally catches whatever
he is chasing," says Richard Timmins of the University of California
at Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.
Benjamin Hart, also of UC Davis U.C.-Davis, guesses that dogs dream
about more than just chasing rabbits, but doubts we'll ever fully
understand their nocturnal theater.
The vets at the Canadian Web site pets.ca guess that dogs are like
us: They dream about the things that make up their daily lives. Like
playing, chasing, other dogs (but not just alluring poodles) and
food. According to the site, research shows small dogs dream more
than big dogs, and puppies dream more than adult dogs.
Do you wonder if dog dreams get a little quirky, like human dreams?
Maybe when Ginger is really whining, she's having that awful dream.
You know the one:
You're there in the neighborhood. And all the other dogs are looking
at you.
And you haven't got any fur.
Q: What's a cappuccino without the foam? — Anonymous
A: Unnamed one, you pose a profound query about omitting a key step
in this coffee-bar process. One might ask it this way:
What is the ground of one hand capping?
A cappuccino is equal parts espresso, steamed milk, and foam. So if
you leave off the foam, you are left with some espresso, yes. But
half of your drink is still steamed milk. (Which is basically foam
that hasn't been fluffed up.)
A cafe latte uses much more steamed milk than foam. (For those who
don't like to play mustache games with clouds of foam.) This is a
larger, milkier drink, which sometimes includes a flavoring syrup.
So a barista, or coffee bar tender, might call a cappuccino with no
foam a "short, wet latte," experts told me. Short refers to less
milk than usual, and wet refers to no foam, resulting in an equal
ratio of espresso to steamed milk.
Here's something you might not know: Espresso has LESS caffeine than
regular coffee. When coffee bars first began to pop up — like a
turtleneck on a cafe poser — everyone joked about what rocket fuel
espresso was.
But the darker the bean, the better the bean, and the faster the
process all contribute to one thing: less caffeine in the brew. That
quick process is what espresso — Italian for "fast" — is all about.
NOW FOR A QUICK QUIZ ON COFFEE
1. What baseball great perkily hawked Mr. Coffee machines on TV?
2. What did Teddy Roosevelt famously say about coffee from
Nashville's Maxwell House Hotel?
3. Virginia Christine appeared in 150 movies including "Guess Who's
Coming to Dinner," but she'll always be known to coffee-drinking TV
viewers as whom?
4. In April the gourmet coffee industry's biggest annual meeting
will be held in what city?
ANSWERS:
1. Joe DiMaggio
2. "Good to the last drop."
3. Mrs. Olson, the Folgers Coffee lady
4. Charlotte
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Jeff Elder is a columnist for The Charlotte Observer. Comment or try to stump him by clicking here. If you send him a great question, he'll send you a Glad You Asked T-shirt. © 2005, The Charlotte Observer Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services. |
Arnold Ahlert | |||||||||||
