Cacio e pepe likely originated from Italian shepherds in the 18th or 19th century. Credit: Ekaterina Fedotova / 500px via Getty ImagesShareThe classic Italian dish known as cacio e pepe only requires three primary ingredients, but achieving its celebrated, creamy consistency is notoriously difficult. Researchers at Germanys Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems even go so far as to describe the dish as possessing problematic aspects requiring extra care in their Soft Condensed Matter preprint study. But thanks to recent analysis using a physics concept called phase separation, the team believes they have achieved a scientifically optimized recipe for cacio e pepe. And its one anyone can use in their own kitchen.Cacio e pepe (cheese and pepper) originated in the Lazio region of central Italy during the 18th or 19th century. The meal likely came from shepherds living in the area, whose long distance travels required them to pack ingredients that were both shelf stable and calorically dense. Cacio e pepe in its most basic form needs just three componentspecorino cheese, black pepper, and spaghetti pastabut the complications arrive in its preparation. After boiling the pasta, a hungry cook must then mix just the right amount of grated pecorino into some of the leftover pasta water. The resultant cream sauce can then be poured over the noodles, garnished with the ground pepper, and enjoyed.[ Related: Scientists figured out the optimal cup of coffee. ]But theres a catch: if the water is too hot, or if the correct ratio of cheese-to-starch isnt achieved, then the cacio e pepe sauce turns into a thin liquid filled with congealed globs of curds. Physicists led by Italian-born Ivan Di Terlizzi designated this undesirable outcome the Mozzeralla Phase that results from extreme protein aggregation upon heating. Given how varied cheese-to-starch ratio can be, this means many-a-ruined cacio e pepe over the years have found their way into trashcans instead of onto plates.Di Terlizzi and his colleagues wanted to end this centuries-old culinary frustration. The team experimented with hundreds of recipe iterations using different amounts of ingredients. After blending varying proportions of cheese, starch, and water, they then heated each version in a pan using a warm water bath method known as a sous vide cooker. After each mixture reached a designated temperature between 122-203 degrees Fahrenheit, the researchers next photographed a sample placed on a Petri dish. They then arranged these pictures into whats known as a phase diagrama way to help chart a subjects potential states depending on changes in various conditions. In the case of cacio e pepe, these included factors such as temperature and starch level.[ Related: How to fix common cooking mistakes. ]Di Terlizzi identified a clear relation between the sauces protein level and its temperature when its overall starch level remained constantone that formed a U-shaped curve when graphed. Both extremely low and high levels of the pecorino-derived protein avoided the Mozzarella Phase at a higher minimum temperature. According to researchers, this means that cacio e pepes starch concentration is the key factor influencing sauce stability. More specifically, a creamy sauce requires a starch level of 2-3 percent.But, for practical purposes, there was a problemone that may help explain why making cacio e pepe can be so frustrating: pasta water usually only retains a starch level of about one percent after cooking. Luckily, the physicists found a simple solution. To remedy the issue researchers used a tried-and-true shortcut: cornstarch.And so, without further ado, here is the Di Terlizzi teams scientifically optimized recipe for a consistently flawless execution of cacio e pepe:For two servings:Pasta (240 g)Pecorino cheese (160 g)Cornstarch (4 g)Water (40 mL)Whole black peppercorns, to tasteToast peppercorns in a pan until fragrant, then grind them. Mix cornstarch into water while heating until it forms a gel. After the gel cools, combine with pecorino and desired amount of ground black pepper in a blender. Boil pasta, then reserve some of the starchy water before draining it. Mix pasta into the source, adding the pasta water as needed until desired consistency is reached.But nothing is ever perfect in the culinary world. Although confident of their scientifically optimized cacio e pepe, the physicists note in their study that future investigations could explore the relationship between starch and sauce viscosity, as well as the potential role of peppercorns as aggregation nuclei. Until then, buon appetito.

The planets birds make a lot of different sounds communicating a wide variety of messages. The petite Black-capped chickadee emits a high noise that tells predators to scram. Hungry Pileated Woodpecker chicks will often make a buzzy sound when they are waiting for food. Numerous different species use special songs to find mates and warblers are known to just sing for fun.While ornithologists, citizen scientists, and birders alike are familiar with this large repertoire, some of the environmental conditions that contribute to these sounds are less understood. To help, a team from the University of Wisconsin-Madison recently used over 100,000 audio recordings from around the world to study some of the factors that influence bird sounds. They found some patterns of how habitat, latitude, beak size, body size, and the landscapes can influence birds to create certain noises and at what frequencies. The findings are detailed in a study recently published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.Local to globalPreviously, hypotheses regarding the role that beak shape, geography, body size, relationships, and habitat play in bird sounds have been tested at smaller scales. In this new study, the team sought to test these hypotheses and see if they hold up at a global scale. The team analyzed audio recordings of bird sounds that were taken by participants around the world and submitted to an online nature sound repository called xeno-canto. The recordings represented about 77 percent of known bird species.Habitat and latitudeThe team found that habitat appears to influence the frequency of the sound the bird makes in some unexpected ways. In ecosystems where there is a lot of rushing water, there is a near constant level of white noise that occurs at a lower frequency. Here, the team found that birds tend to create sounds at a higher frequency so that the water does not drown out their sounds.Additionally, bird species that live at the same latitudes make similar sounds. According to the team, observing this pattern at a larger and global scale is a crucial piece of the puzzle of how bird sounds evolved.[ Related: Scientists simulate calls of future finches. ]Matters of sizeBoth beak shape and body mass are also important. In general, smaller birds generate higher frequency sounds, with larger birds creating lower frequency sounds. This new analysis proved that this hypothesis is correct, but it also added some additional data about the nature of the relationship between sound, beak shape, and body mass.Globally, smaller bird species tend to have a wider range of frequencies. They use these sounds as a protection mechanism and smaller and more vulnerable birds can benefit from having such a range of sounds. The higher frequencies can help them communicate with fellow birds of the same species. The lower frequencies can act like a bit of camouflage, potentially tricking predators into thinking that the birds are larger and more formidable than they actually are.Surrounded by noiseThe study also added to a better understanding of the planets soundscapes. These make up all of the sounds that can be heard in a particular area of land or sea. Soundscapes are often used in conservation studies, but we still dont know much about what environmental forces govern them.[ Related: Why are there so many birds? ]In the tropics and all over the world, larger birds tend to be hunted for meat, study co-author and UW-Madison doctoral student H.S. Sathya Chandra Sagar said in a statement. Larger birds [tend] to call at a low frequency, and if we dont find any sound in the lower frequency, we could [conclude] there may be more hunting in this landscape.Sagar hopes that this study can be used as a platform for future studies to monitor the health of an ecosystem through soundscapes. He plans to use 24-hour soundscape recordings to understand if some birds will modify both the timing and frequencies of their songs to communicate with their peers in a landscape crowded with noise.The post Why do birds make so many different sounds? 100,000 audio recordings offer clues. appeared first on Popular Science.

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