Monkeying Around

This is a tamarind: The fruit pulp is edible and popular. The hard green pulp of a young fruit is considered by many to be too sour and acidic, but is often used as a component of savory dishes, as a pickling agent or as a means of making certain poisonous yams in Ghana safe [...]

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This is a tamarind:

The fruit pulp is edible and popular. The hard green pulp of a young fruit is considered by many to be too sour and acidic, but is often used as a component of savory dishes, as a pickling agent or as a means of making certain poisonous yams in Ghana safe for human consumption.

The ripened fruit is considered the more palatable as it becomes sweeter and less sour (acidic) as it matures. It is used in desserts as a jam, blended into juices or sweetened drinks, sorbets, ice-creams and all manner of snack. It is also consumed as a natural laxative. (via wikipedia)


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This is a cotton-top tamarin:

Cool? One is a fruit, one is a monkey.

These are Reese's peanut butter cups:

These delicious chocolate treats contain peanut butter.

These are rhesus monkeys (source):

This is what I imagine a Reese's monkey to look like:

Cool? One is a candy, one is a monkey.

The next paper I grade or blog post I read that references "cotton-top tamarinds" or "reese's macaques" gets a giant FAIL.

(Want to buy this on a shirt?)

Jason G. Goldman is a science journalist based in Los Angeles. He has written about animal behavior, wildlife biology, conservation, and ecology for Scientific American, Los Angeles magazine, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the BBC, Conservation magazine, and elsewhere. He contributes to Scientific American's "60-Second Science" podcast, and is co-editor of Science Blogging: The Essential Guide (Yale University Press). He enjoys sharing his wildlife knowledge on television and on the radio, and often speaks to the public about wildlife and science communication.

More by Jason G. Goldman

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