Q 01/05

After finding umami in kelp broth in 1908, chemist Kikunae Ikeda turned his discovery into which product?

A) Maggi

B) Marmite

C) MSG

D) Bovril

Answer · why

C) MSG

MSG, monosodium glutamate, went on sale within a year under the brand name Ajinomoto. Ikeda had traced the savory taste of seaweed stock to glutamate ...

Q 02/05

The root of the tongue is anchored to which U-shaped bone, the only one that touches no other bone?

A) Stapes

B) Hyoid

C) Clavicle

D) Patella

Answer · why

B) Hyoid

Hyoid: the bone hangs in the front of the neck, held in place only by muscles and ligaments, and gives the tongue and the floor of the mouth something...

Q 03/05

What is the average lifespan of a single taste bud?

A) About 10 hours

B) About 10 days

C) About 10 months

D) About 10 years

Answer · why

B) About 10 days

About 10 days: taste cells are replaced constantly throughout life, which is why taste buds injured by a burn or a bite usually repair themselves.

Q 04/05

A cat's tongue feels like sandpaper because its tiny backward-facing spines are stiffened by which protein?

A) Collagen

B) Elastin

C) Keratin

D) Myosin

Answer · why

C) Keratin

Keratin, the protein of claws and hair, turns a cat's filiform papillae into a built-in hairbrush. Humans have filiform papillae too, the only kind on...

Q 05/05

Which fluffy dog breed from China is known for its unusual blue-black tongue?

A) Pekingese

B) Shih Tzu

C) Pug

D) Chow Chow

Answer · why

D) Chow Chow

Chow Chow show dogs are disqualified for a pink tongue. A dark spot on another dog's tongue is often taken as proof of Chow ancestry, but tongue pigme...