Not sure if this is in the same vein. But: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/how-catnip-plant-repels-insects-mosquitoes-chemical-receptor
On 12/2/21 11:13 AM, Steve Smith wrote: > Gil= > > I don't have a good answer to this one, but experience it myself all the time. > > SNL writers sure put a fine point on it though: > > https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/bad-decision-family/2868100 > > In the spirit of thread-twining... I wonder if this "instinct" (habit?) > isn't rooted in some kind of group-survival by helping (some of) us escape > the local minima of "one bad experience"... smearing the distinction (maybe?) > amongst possible worlds? A semantic/cognitive/perceptual mechanism for > annealing in CS speak? > > Also, it might be noted that natural pesticides include things like garlic > and capsacin, suggesting that we are drawn to them *because* they are even > harsher on our possible parasites than they are on ourselves? > > Somewhere I once read something about the positive correlation between > health-promoting phytonutrients and the commonly associated > bitter/sour/astringent tastes they come with. This source barely references > it... https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11101467/ and this one addresses the > bitter/toxic correlation: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7878094/ > > My own PseudoCalvinist upbringing instructed me "it has to taste bad to be > good (for you)" contradicting (or explaining) Poppinses idea about "a > spoonful of sugar". > > It is also the case that "adult tastes" are almost all "acquired". Few of us > really liked our first shot of tequila or even sip of beer or wine, and > definitely not the first puff of tobacco (or any other herb) smoke... > > I think I'll go s(n)ort through the stuff in the back of my fridge now! > > and another one for the causality impaired: > > https://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/do-you-know-what-i-hate/n9296 > > - Steve > > > On 12/2/21 11:17 AM, Gillian Densmore wrote: >> While making lunch. I got curious about what might have gone through the >> first people to not just eat, but keep eating peppery things. I'm sort of >> picturing a conversation between to dudes where one decides "that thing that >> just set my mouth on fire? yeah! let me have more!". >> >> What on earth might have possessed humans to keep eating spicey foods? I >> also wonder the samething about coffee. A hard green fruit seed that you >> have to flambe to make edible or drinkable. -- "Better to be slapped with the truth than kissed with a lie." ☤>$ uǝlƃ .-- .- -. - / .- -.-. - .. --- -. ..--.. / -.-. --- -. .--- ..- --. .- - . FRIAM Applied Complexity Group listserv Zoom Fridays 9:30a-12p Mtn UTC-6 bit.ly/virtualfriam un/subscribe http://redfish.com/mailman/listinfo/friam_redfish.com FRIAM-COMIC http://friam-comic.blogspot.com/ archives: 5/2017 thru present https://redfish.com/pipermail/friam_redfish.com/ 1/2003 thru 6/2021 http://friam.383.s1.nabble.com/
