AFP
Dude?
Researchers at the Polytechnic University of Valencia and the University of Oxford recruited 57 volunteers and asked them to taste hot chocolate served in plastic cups with four different colours — white, cream, red and orange with white on the inside.
The chocolate was the same in all the samples, but the volunteers found that the flavour was better when the drink was served in the orange or cream-coloured cups.
“The colour of the container where food and drink are served can enhance some attributes like taste and aroma,” Betina Piqueras-Fiszman of the Polytechnic University of Valencia said in a press release.
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A mild form of Synesthesia in action?
DangerHighVoltage on January 3, 2013 at 10:44 PM
Yummy…
Fallon on January 3, 2013 at 10:49 PM
Steak tastes better when it’s black. Yeah, I know, just order a hamburger, SouthernGent.
SouthernGent on January 3, 2013 at 11:01 PM
Every time I hear a lefty speak, my gag reflex kicks in, does that count?
OldEnglish on January 4, 2013 at 12:15 AM
Europeans are weird.
Logus on January 4, 2013 at 12:35 AM
That’s your sample size? A little over a dozen people per color?
Of course – as is nearly always the case in these “New (and Somehow Significant) Scientific Correlation Observed” stories – there’s no mention of the size of the correlation. But just about any result from such a small sample could be explained by random variation.
If this is the kind of “science” that Oxford is not only performing but also feeling the need to “publish” in the AFP these days, then that plug very desperately needs to be pulled.
logis on January 4, 2013 at 1:46 AM
But does it smell more chocolate-ty?
platypus on January 4, 2013 at 2:31 AM
So…
does that mean our government is changing its envelopes to be orange?
I mean, it isn’t chocolate they send us, but it is dark and has a smell…
ProfShadow on January 4, 2013 at 7:51 AM
BREAKING: All Friday news dumps to be accompanied with a .JPG attachment of an orange cup.
Chuckie on January 4, 2013 at 8:21 AM
This study is published in the Journal of Sensory Studies. Settled science as Al Gore would say.
57 participants and considered scientifically valid and worthy of being published.
Keep this as an example next time someone talks about the purity of science and the peer review process.
LincolntheHun on January 4, 2013 at 8:45 AM
BREAKING: All Obama Administration Friday night document dumps to be accompanied with a .jpg attachment of an orange cup.
Chuckie on January 4, 2013 at 9:24 AM
Oh, dag nabbit! So NOW my first post shows up.
Chuckie on January 4, 2013 at 9:25 AM
Obviously, there’s no mention of p-value. I want to see the raw data. Why can’t reporters learn the simple basics about statistics so that they can push back a little on these studies???
blink on January 4, 2013 at 10:02 AM
This sounds like a high school science fair project. Heck it sounds similar to my high school science fair project. I used a popular, color-based, pop psychology experiment to show that background colors affected mood. And, now I discover I could have gotten paid for that? Sheesh.
GWB on January 4, 2013 at 10:04 AM
Should come as no surprise. It’s been known for years. The colors red, orange and yellow are natural cues to eat. These are the colors of ripe fruit and raw meat. check out every fast food restaurant. They are all completely decked out in these colors.
Red Creek on January 4, 2013 at 10:33 AM
As prevalent as media idiocy obviously is, I think there’s even more to it than that. They very assiduously leave those details out of these stories.
You have to remember the first rule of journalism: information doesn’t sell. Accuracy is irrelevant; all that matters is that the story must be made interesting, whether the facts are or not.
logis on January 4, 2013 at 2:25 PM