Sweet science

Ever had the urge to take a nice crunchy bite of Drosophila or lick icing off a brain? You will after a visit to linkurl:Not So Humble Pie,;http://notsohumblepie.blogspot.com/ a blog run by scientist-turned-baker, Ms. Humble. A blogger who refers to herself as "a typical nerdy biological anthropologist turned stay at home mom," Ms. Humble -- who chooses to remain anonymous -- began the blog in October 2009. Since then, the popular blog has regularly featured science-themed baked goods, from zebrafish cookies to cilium cake. One of Ms. Humble's first science-y treats was a set of quirky linkurl:gingerbread scientists,;http://notsohumblepie.blogspot.com/2009/11/gingerbread-scientists-amuse-me.html "cookies that poke a little fun at my husband's [microbiology] job," she wrote on her blog. In January this year, Ms. Humble began a linkurl:"Science Cookie Roundup,";http://notsohumblepie.blogspot.com/2010/01/science-cookie-round-up-1.html a collection of images and stories of her baked goods as well as submissions from readers. Here we present a few of the best from Ms. Humble's round-ups, including petri dish cookies and karyotype cupcakes, complete with commentary from the bakers themselves. Milk, anyone?

Petri Dish: "This was my first science cookie. My husband is a microbiologist and we thought Petri dish cookies would be perfect to share with his coworkers. My husband briefly explained streaking for isolation on a plate and I looked at some pictures and decided to imitate a TSA plate with E. coli growth. I've been told my streaking technique with royal icing leaves something to be desired." -Ms. Humble

Brain Cupcakes: "A medical school student in Slovenia requested something neuroscience-related. Microbiologists loved the Petri dish cookies, so I imagined neuroscientists would get a kick out of cupcakes with little brains on top." -Ms. HumblePeriodic Table: "Chemistry is an important component of many sciences, and the shape and colors of each element on the periodic table lends itself well to cookies. That is, until you realize how many elements there are. Some chemists naturally lamented the absence of some elements, such as the lanthanides and actinides, but I only had so much dough." -Ms. Humble

Drosophila melanogaster: "This little fly has contributed so much to our understanding of genetics, I had to make a cookie. For aesthetic reasons I went with the Wild Type flies, though I am sure scientists would have loved to see a few of the common phenotypes seen in the lab." -Ms. Humble

Glassware: "Glassware is a critical component of much laboratory work and the fluids contained within always look so refreshing and delicious. To satisfy the secret cravings of microbiologists for Rappaport-Vassliadis and Tryptic Soy broth, I whipped up these cookies, along with some atoms, for my husband's lab." -Ms. Humble

Darwin Day Cake: "Darwin Day, held on the birthday of the peerless scientist, Charles Darwin, is a celebration of science and reason. To mark the day, I chose the iconic "March of Progress" scientific illustration that represents 25 million years of human evolution." -submission to the Science Cookie Roundup from Diana

Neuron Cookies: "My cookies were inspired by the brilliance of the nervous system and the kindness of the people in the Townsville Hospital's neurosurgery area (the recipients of these cookies). The designs were mostly modelled after various search results in Google Images. Which, I know, is not the most academic of sources, but you'll have to forgive me - I'm only 16." - Submission from Chelsea

Mouse Cake: "The cake was made for a party welcoming incoming Cancer Biology Ph.D. students to Stanford. Since many students in the Cancer Biology Program work with mice and models of human cancer, I made a mouse... with cancer. My classmates, many who regularly perform mouse work, did inform me that I was missing an identifying marker on the mouse. So for the sake of authenticity, we tagged the left ear of the mouse with a piece of foil just before sacrificing (and eating) it." - Submission from Jackie

Karyotype Cupcakes: "One weekend when our lab manager decided to host a BBQ, I wanted to come up with science-themed cupcakes to take along. I was trying to decide how to depict either DNA or RNA when I thought of doing a human karyotype on cupcakes...I scanned the internet for pictures of karyotypes. I liked the image I found for a spectral karyotype -- a technique that allows chromosomes to be visualized using various flourophores...In the end the cupcakes were a hit at our lab party. They were colorful, much admired, and ephemeral -- a normal karyotype has a longer half-life!" - Submission from Kristina Herbert

Anatomy Cake: "My inspiration for the cake was my experiences with FASTS, the pre-med program at the University of Texas School of Medicine at San Antonio...Last summer when I started the program, I took an anatomy class and was very privileged that the lessons were supplemented with weekly labs. I feel like exploring a prosected cadaver helped me remember what I learned in class that week, which was useful when making this cake; however I still referenced the 5th edition of Human Anatomy by Marieb, Mallatt, and Wilhelm for some of the detailing." - Submission from Carmela Ver

**__Related stories:__** *linkurl:Nobel nosh;http://www.the-scientist.com/news/display/55083/
[10th October 2008]*linkurl:Food, with a side of science;http://www.the-scientist.com/article/display/53169/
[27th April 2007]*linkurl:From chemist to chef;http://www.the-scientist.com/article/home/36661/
[1st December 2006]