Is there such a thing as a blue raspberry? And why are raspberries hairy?

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Like a horse-looking creature with a super long neck? Seems impractical. Until you learn that these creatures, also called giraffes, use that neck to eat leaves from tall trees. Or a flower that looks like a wasp, which is weird. Until you learn that this helps the flower trick real wasps into visiting it and pollinating it. Which brings us to raspberries. Ever notice they have little hairs on them? Are they growing fur because they're cold? Do they forget to shave? Turns out this is another case of something odd being something awesome when you understand it. Stick around. We've got the scoop on this very delightful berry. Times are changing. If you're a millennial like me, the world you grew up in no longer exists. Because in the world we grew up in, we were told everything online should be free. We all knew it really wasn't free. People had to work hard to make funny videos, cool music, and smart podcasts. But we got it all for free back then. Now we know better. If you want these things, you need to support them. One way to do that is to join SmartyPass. You help fund this show and all the other things in the Brains on Universe. Plus, we make it worth your while. You get invited to virtual hangs with me, Mark, and Sandin. You get bonus episodes, discounts on shirts. You can even get a birthday message from me. So show the world that you support what you love. Join SmartyPass at smartypass.org. Thanks. You're listening to Brains On, part of the Brains On universe. I'm Molly Bloom, and my co-host today is Zoe Samara from Houston, Texas. Hi. Hi, Molly. So, Zoe Samara, you wrote to us with a very good question, pun intended. What was that question? The question was, if a blue raspberry isn't a real fruit, how did it become a flavor? Such a great question. So what got you thinking about it? My friend actually inspired this question. She had a fruit roll-up, and it was blue raspberry flavor, and I was like, wait, it's not a real fruit. How is it a flavor? That's so smart. So do you like blue raspberry flavor? Oh, I love blue raspberry flavor. It's an adventure in your mouth. It explodes. Absolutely. And how about real raspberries? Do you like those too? I love real raspberries. They're very tangy but kind of sweet, so I think that's a good mix. So what is your favorite way to eat them? I have two, so one of them, it's like I stick them on my fingers and I pretend they're like a family. The second one, I have this thing. It's called like Cool Whip and it's like a whipped cream, but it's in like a tub. And so like I stick them in the tub and I eat them and it's like a really creamy and sweet goodness. That sounds so good. Both of those ways of eating raspberries are wonderful. So is there a fruit flavor that you like better as a candy than you do as a fruit? I really like strawberry. So I got to say like a strawberry candy. I think it's very sweet. Yeah, it is a really good flavor. So please describe your perfect smoothie that starts with raspberries. It would be raspberries and then strawberries and then little bits of mango. Oof, so delicious. Would you have any kind of dairy product in it like yogurt or ice maybe? I think maybe ice. Okay, delicious. Are there any fruits that you don't really like? I'm not a big fan of kiwi I don't like the seeds I don't think it's normal Yeah, kiwis always like kind of hurt my tongue a little bit I don't know if you have that feeling too but they're kind of like I don't think I have that feeling I think I get an unpleasant crunch because there's lots of seeds Yes, am I just realizing that I'm allergic to kiwi during this conversation? You're allergic to kiwi? Maybe So if you could have a personal mini farm with any fruit or vegetables ever, so you would always have a supply handy. What would it be? Okay, for fruit, it would have to be raspberries and then strawberries and then mango and peach. I really love mangoes and peaches. I think they're sweet. And for vegetables, I really like Brussels sprouts. I don't think anybody else in the world does. I love Brussels sprouts! Yay! I finally have a friend! And then carrots and broccoli. Oh, you have excellent taste in fruits and vegetables. I love those vegetables. Can't wait to come visit your farm. Thank you. Well, I don't know about you, but I am so ready to talk about raspberries. Are you kidding? I was born ready. Okay, I was born a baby, so I was like, wah, wah. But now I'm older and I'm so ready. I got my berry bracelets on. I'm sporting my raspberry beret. You know, the kind you get at a secondhand store. Totally. I also brought my snack pack backpack. Full of raspberry flavored snacks, of course. Ah, fellow snackhead. Much respect. And check it out. I made a shirt that says, Raspberries are red, but the candy is blue. I'm curious about this. How about you? Whoa, you are ready. Well, let's start by getting to know these little red rascals. Here's a fun fact. Raspberries are closely related to roses. Yep. In fact, if you are lucky enough to see a raspberry bush in the wild, it's pretty thorny, kind of like a rose bush. Wow, raspberries have been growing for thousands of years. But researchers think they were first farmed by Romans around the year 300. From there, Romans helped spread them across Europe, and eventually this type of plant was brought to America. They're also super healthy. These little berry bites are packed with fiber, vitamin C, and other super good-for-you things. That why for centuries people in Europe used them as medicine to treat all kinds of things Do ye suffer from diarrhea cramps vomiting swollen tonsils a weakened heart The answer to all of it is the bush of raspberries. Consume it and be it well. Today, we're not so sure how well it treats all of those things. But we do know it's a powerful plant. It's still used in herbal teas to help cramps. It's considered a superfood. And the fruit is being studied for its high level of antioxidants. Those are nutrients that help protect our cells and keep us healthy. Now that we've covered some of the berry basics, it's time to tackle this question. Hi, my name is Amelia Saurus. I'm from Renton, Washington. And my question is, why do raspberries have hairs? My favorite way to eat raspberries is putting them on the tips of my fingers. and I started noticing when I was eating raspberries and I wanted to look close to them and I saw they had hairs and I wanted to tell brains on. We are so glad you told us. I love putting them on my fingers too. It's like they're wearing a tiny berry hat. An actual raspberry beret. Yes, so what is up with the hairs on raspberries? I can help with that. Whoa, who are you and where did you come from? Hi, hi, hi. I'm Bart, a berry barber. A what? You know, a barber, but for berries. I used to say I was a bear-ber, but people thought I shaved bears, which is so silly. Imagine that. Someone shaving bears. How ridiculous. No, no, no. I shave berries and other fruit. In fact, here's my next client. Hey, Bart. Hey, hey, hey, Peach. Give me the usual. Shave the peach fuzz. You got it. Did you know there was a fruit barbershop in the studio? Honestly, I have no idea how it got there, but stranger things have happened. Trust me. So, while I shave this peach, let me tell you about raspberries. Get this. Raspberries are berries, but they are not true berries. Right. Berry is a botanical word. That means it's a plant science word. And in plant science, the definition is different from how we non-plant scientists use it every day. Yes, yes, yes. And a true berry is one that's just one little piece of fruit with multiple seeds. Raspberries, on the other hand, are technically a clump of a lot of little fruits. I didn't know that. And I'm a peach. Fascinating. Also, can you shave my back while you're at it? Of course, Peach How are raspberries a clump of fruits? Well, you know how when you look close A raspberry is made up of lots of little red balls? Those are called droops And each one is a tiny fruit So, a single raspberry is actually a collection Of tiny droop fruits It's the same with blackberries Also, not a true berry Whoa, so what is a true berry? A blueberry is. It's just one plump little fruit. And, weirdly enough, a banana is a true berry. So is a pumpkin, botanically speaking. But back to the raspberries. If you look really closely at them, you'll see they have two kinds of hairs. Longish, thin yellow strands that look kind of like mini stems. And much smaller. There's like a white fuzz on the berry. Oh yeah, there's one yellow hair sticking out of each little red ball. Those droops you mentioned. But also, the whole thing has a short, soft, white fuzz too. Correct, correct, correct. Those longer strands are called styles. They're part of the plant's reproductive system. They helped the flower get pollinated and become a fruit. What you are seeing is a leftover from that process. so those styles are stylish and style-portant. So what about the soft white baby fuzz? Ah-ha-ha! I'll tell you in a second. But first, how's it looking, Peachy? You shaved me so well. I look like a nectarine. Just how I like it. So if you'll excuse me while I rinse and towel off Mr. Peaches here, then I'll finish telling you about raspberries. Well, that's a good excuse for us to take a break, too, and give a listen to the... You ready for the mystery sound? Yes. Here it is. Okay, first of all, I got to say that was very aggressive. I like to point that out. Mm-hmm. Second of all, I feel like it was like knocking on a door or maybe banging something on a table. So why do you think someone would be banging on a table aggressively? Maybe like, I don't know, to like trick us. Like it could be like something. But at the end, I heard like, I guess something called down. I don't know. But I feel like it's closer to aggressively knocking on a door because you can just hear the banging. Yeah. I also have no idea what this is. Can we hear it again? Hmm. It gets louder. I'm getting a mix of drums and aggressively knocking on a door. Yeah, I was feeling drums that time too because it almost sounds hollow. It's like rhythmic a little bit. Yeah, it's rhythmic and like a little hollow sounding. So, yeah, I like drums. Okay, aggressively, sporadically playing drums. Yeah. Okay. We will hear it again, get another chance to guess, and hear the answer after the credits. Keep listening. We have a book club. Want to join? Everyone in Smarty Pass is automatically a member. This time we're reading a book called The Unlikely Tale of Chase and Finnegan by Jasmine Warga. Read the book, then join us for a chat with the author. We'll ask her your questions and talk about the book together. Plus, you can nominate books for the next book club pick. To be part of it, join SmartyPass. Go to smartypass.org to sign up. Happy reading, everyone. Today episode is sponsored by Dell Dell PCs with Intel inside are built for the moments you plan and the ones you don Therefore, those all-night study sessions, the moment you're working from a cafe and realize every outlet's taken, the times you're deep in your flow and can't be interrupted by an auto-update, that's why Dell builds tech that adapts to you. Built with long-lasting battery so you're not scrambling for an outlet, and built-in intelligence that makes updates around your schedule not in the middle of it. Find technology built for the way you work at dell.com slash dellpcs. Built for you. Hey, I'm Molly. I'm Zoe Samara, and we're talking about raspberries. raspberries. Hey, hey, hey, it's me, Bart the Berry Barber. Barbarian? Nah, I style fruits, snip snip strawberries, buzz buzz blackberries, you know, a common normal job. We learned that raspberries aren't true berries, but they are truly delicious and truly healthy. They have two kinds of hairs, longer strands called styles, and a soft white fuzz. Yes, yes, yes. And that fuzz is called trichomes. They're kind of hard to see, but it's the same fuzz you see on peaches and kiwis. Very cool. I wondered about peach fuzz. So tell us about trichomes. Well, when your hair is messy, trichomes. Ha! I'm joking. Yeah! Tricomes are important for fruits. Think of that white fuzz like a mini suit of armor. It gives us special chemicals that keep away bugs and even fungi. Plus, trichomes make a waxy substance that helps keep water in the fruit, so your peaches and berries stay juicy. Whoa, thanks, trichomes. Thank you, trichomes, indeed. Not only do they help fruit out, they keep me in business. Ah, my next client. Hello, Miss Kiwi. Hey, Bart, just a trichome trim, please. You got it. Well, thank you, Bart, the berry barber. That was super helpful. Yeah, I learned a lot. Thanks. Yay, glad I could help. Okay, see you later. Now let's clip, Clip, clip this geeky kiwi. So raspberries have two kinds of hairs, strands called styles and a fuzz called trichomes. But sometimes you might notice a different kind of fuzz growing on your raspberries, mold. Yeah, trichomes are usually kind of translucent or see-through. But if you notice a more solid-looking fuzz growing on your berries, toss them. Yeah, it's probably mold. It grows easily on damaged berries. But if you see a few moldy guys in your berry carton and the rest look fine, it should be okay to just throw those moldy ones away and eat the clean ones. And to avoid mold, don't stack too many berries on top of each other and eat them pretty quickly after getting them. Say less, I'm already doing it. These berries are boss. Coming up, what's the deal with the blue raspberry flavor? Is there actually a blue raspberry? We will find out. But first, mailbag. This is the part of the show where we check out the cool stuff you all sent us, and we've got something extra cool today. Ivy from San Jose, California, sent us a link to a podcast she started herself. It's called This Is Pretend What I'm About to Tell You, and it's a story podcast about talking animals, flying houses, time travel, all the good stuff. Here's a clip from the first episode about two kids named Luke and Mars at a playground. While Luke is on the slide, Mars swings, goes over the pole. He goes so high that he accidentally jumps off. He lands in a different world. He looks around and he sees this tiny village in front of him. He says, where is Luke? Where is my friends? He looks around and he's not in the park. Cliffhanger. I love it. To find out what happens, check out Ivy's podcast. This is Pretend What I'm About to Tell You. We asked Ivy to tell us more about it. Hi, my name is Ivy, and the reason why I started my podcast was because I like storytelling and making worlds with my imagination. Also, I like sharing them with others, just like Brains On. Thanks for sending this to us, Ivy. If you have something you want to share, get in touch. Go to BrainsOn.org slash contact. See you in the mailbag. You can get ad-free versions of Brains On and all our shows by joining SmartyPass. Plus, you'll help make sure shows like these stick around. Just go to BrainsOn.org slash SmartyPass to join. Thank you. I'm Molly with Zoe Samara. We're back and about to find out why blue raspberry flavor is a thing. Yeah, all the raspberries I've eaten are red, but I've definitely had blue raspberry flavored slushies before. So why the blue hue? Raspberries do come in different colors. Along with red, there are golden ones, pinkish ones, even purple ones. And it turns out there is technically a blue raspberry, or at least a kind of blue raspberry. It's called a white bark raspberry. When it first starts growing, it's white. But when the raspberry gets ripe, it becomes a dark, purpley blue. But blue raspberry flavored things are usually a bright electric blue. They don't look anything like the white bark raspberry. They usually taste different than a white bark raspberry, too. For the story of the blue raspberry flavor, we have to time travel back to the 1970s. It was a time of bell-bottoms, psychedelic music, phones attached to the wall with cords, and no internet. Just like now, back then, people loved popsicles. If it was hot out, you grabbed one of these cool treats. And they had all the classic flavors like cherry strawberry watermelon and raspberry But hold up Picture those pops Cherry strawberry watermelon raspberry They all red Yeah. And back then, they were all pretty much colored the same way, with a food dye called Red Dye Number Two. Not a very appetizing name. True. And it turns out there were some not very appetizing reports about it, too. In 1976, the United States Food and Drug Administration published a paper that found red dye number two was linked to increased cases of cancer. Oh no! Red dye number two? So the government banned it to keep people safe. But this left food companies with a problem. How are you going to make things bright red? Lucky for them, they found another red dye to use instead. But it didn't solve the first problem of all the ice pop flavors looking the same. Imagine hoping to slurp up a raspberry pop and you instead get a tongue full of cherry? No thank you. So since people were switching up food dyes, why not try something different? Something wild? Why not try blue? There weren't many flavors that used a blue dye, mostly because there aren't many blue foods. So someone came up with the idea of coloring raspberry flavored popsicles with the blue food dye. And it was a hit. Blue raspberry as we know it was born. Something about the raspberry flavor and that cool blue color just worked. People didn't care if it was unnatural. They still wanted it. Hey, Pops, you got any more of those electric blue tasty treats in that far-out freezer, man? Make that too. I want to beat the hot summer blues by licking some icy cool blues. Here you go. You kids and your more than one color having pops. In my day, everything was red, and we loved it. Heesh. So thanks to those pioneering pop makers, Blue Raspberry caught on as a fake-but-will-take-it color-and-flavor combo. Today, you can find Blue Raspberry pops, gummies, gum, and more. The color may be wrong, but the end result is oh so right. Speaking of, you got any Blue Raspberry treats in that snack pack backpack of yours? Do I ever. You want chews, suckers, sours? I got it all. Your commitment to snacking is really impressive. Raspberries are not true berries, but rather a collection of a lot of tiny fruits. Those little fruits are called droops. Each droop has a strand of hair-like material called a style. And the raspberry itself is covered with fuzzy tricholbs. These help protect the fruit. Blue raspberry flavor isn't based on real raspberries. Instead, it's a color and flavor combination dreamed up by ice pop makers. And today, it's a combo you see in lots of sweet treats. That's it for this episode of Brains On. This episode was produced by me, Molly Bloom, Mark Sanchez, and Shannon Totten. It was sound designed by Mark Sanchez, who also wrote our theme music. We had voice acting help from Kathy Marescu, Andy Doucette, Vicky Lentour, and Coco. Special thanks to Shannon Harrison, Reba Taville, Faye Simmons, and Alea. And Ken Tavorski at Code of the North for all of his website help. Okay, Zoe Samara, let's hear that mystery sound one more time. Any new thoughts? I'm still going with aggressive drumming. It's rhythmic, but very loud, so... Yes. Maybe the person's like listening to music on their headphones while they drum, you know? Oh, yeah. That makes sense. I don't know. I don't know. This is a tough one. I truly don't know. I like your drumming idea. I'm going with it. Should we hear the answer? Yes. All right. Here's the answer. Hi, I'm Toby, and I'm from St. Paul, Minnesota. And that was the sound of me tapping a balloon. I'm sorry, what? What balloon was that? tapping a balloon. We got to hear it again. Hold on. Hold on. Oh, like a filled up balloon. You know, like the rubbery. I mean, I guess I can kind of hear, but I don't think I hear. Was that a balloon covered in metal? It's an unusual way to tap a balloon. It's a metal balloon. Nope, it's a metal balloon. Oh, one of those shiny ones. It's an alien balloon. I don't believe that's a balloon. I'll never believe it. But you know what? Here's why I'm giving us partial credit. Balloons are hollow. Drums also hollow, right? True, because they have nothing inside of them. Yeah, so I'm giving us partial credit for sure. Thank you. I agree with that. Now it's time for the brain's honor roll. These are the incredible kids who keep this show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and high fives. River from Santa Fe, New Mexico. Jacob and Grace from Brooklyn, New York. Rosie from Buding, China. Valentina from Minneapolis. James from Charleston, South Carolina. Helena from New York City. Ada from London, England. Thaddeus and Persephone from Millersville, Pennsylvania. Sylvia and Fiona from Bar Harbor, Maine. Orest from Berlin, Germany. Edith and Maddie from Walnut Creek, California. Will from Flagstaff, Arizona. Karina from Maryville, Missouri. Nathaniel from Topeka, Kansas. Billy from Barry St. Edmunds United Kingdom Skylar from Roswell Georgia Cole from Toronto Clara from Jackson Heights New York Felix from South Bend Indiana Cordelia from Ottawa Connell from Red Deer Alberta Kaysen from Vancouver Island Tran Vu Taomai from Hanoi and Vietnam Lee and Leonid from Portland Oregon Jason from Regina Alira from Lotsburg Virginia Judah and Grant from Skokie Illinois Lottie from Los Angeles Arlo from Chattanooga Tennessee August from Jamel California Cormac from Dublin Ireland Dahlia from Beverly Hills Michigan Aoife from Toronto Addie from Houston, Texas Kim and Jung from Sykesville, Maryland Silas from Ann Arbor, Michigan Dassey, Caleb and Jordan from Boston Elodie from Leesburg, Virginia Cecilia from Spring, Texas Mackenzie from Johnson City, Tennessee Mills from Bluffdale, Utah Emilia and Harper from Waukee, Iowa Althea and Eleanor from Decorah, Iowa Easton from Victoria, Australia Leo, Huey and Everett from Cleaves, Ohio Pippa from Renton, Washington Apple from Austin, Texas Iharo from Monterey Park, California Dara from Vancouver Iris and Tali from Needham, Massachusetts Daphne and Alistair from Montclair, New Jersey Beth from Canada, Brooklyn from Fort Wayne, Indiana, Finley and Winston from Houston, Texas, Sala and Enoch from Pine Lake, Georgia, Rodrigo from San Antonio, Texas, Carolyn, Emma, and Frederick from Bothell, Washington, Lana from Fort Riley, Kansas, and Xander from Bluffdale, Utah. We'll be back next week with an episode about baseball. Thanks for listening.