Food Batteries for Dummies

Potato clock

We are often shocked that some elementary school students have a better handle on science than their parents (and grandparents), although we shouldn't be – that's the entire premise of "Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader," after all. It bothers us, however, when one of those scientifically illiterate adults attempts to explain scientific principles and makes a mess of the task. Wanna see such a mess? Take a gander at what Meredith Jameson wrote about "What Foods Make Electricity?" for eHow.com (now at Leaf Group's niche site Sciencing.com).

The history graduate came up with a list of three general groups she says make electricity: "citrus fruit, vegetables, pickled foods." Jameson them attempted — with quite mixed results — to "explain" how and why these foods "make electricity." Or, as Meredith says in her introduction,

"Some fruits and vegetables can conduct electricity, often providing a current strong enough to act as a battery. Foods that produce electricity are usually high in acidity or potassium."

Our house chemist shuddered at the notion of "high in acidity," but what're you gonna do? Rather than boring our readers with the details, we'll just send you to a website at which a physicist explains the process (a physicist who spells "potato" like Dan Quayle, we might add). As for the rest of Jameson's post, we have a few points to correct:

• "Citrus fruits such as oranges, grapefruits, limes and lemons have high acidity levels." -- Well, no Meredith, citrus fruits contain ascorbic or citric acid, both weak acids.
• "Electrical power increases as you connect more fruits." -- Interesting: do you connect them in series or parallel? Just kidding: we know you have no friggin' idea...

"According to the website MadSci.org, one raw potato has 407 milligrams of potassium, which acts as a conduit for electrical power." -- A "conduit"? Really? Nothing about ions in solution conducting electricity, just "a conduit"? "Other vegetables that conduct electricity due to their potassium and ionic content are tomatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes and cucumbers." -- Chuckle... "potassium and ionic content": more big science-y words Jameson didn't understand. "Foods soaked in brine or otherwise pickled, such as pickles, conduct electricity due to their salt content. Salt is high in ions and conducts electricity." -- We find we can't unpack that rubbish to make sense of it, though we do note that picking in vinegar involves acetic acid...

It's quite clear that Jameson just cut and pasted some lists of foods that can be used as batteries. She failed to mention the need for metallic terminals (copper and zinc) and botched almost every scientific term she did use. Could there be a more deserving candidate for Dumbass of the Day? We think not...

copyright © 2017-2023 scmrak

SI - ELECTRICITY