the cinema snack that gives you the snap, crackle and pop (link)
06.22.09 - the guardian - by ben child

ah, the cinema. for generations of horny teens & the like, it's represented an ideal place to simultaneously take in a flick & get in some serious make out time, often over a shared soda & tub of popcorn. the entire time, none of us realized the secret powers that lied within that tub of popcorn.

as the guardian's ben child explains, men's health (a bastion of scientific discovery only rivaled by maxim) has revealed an amazing discovery--popcorn also works as a sexual aid, improving blood flow & increasing sperm count.  it turns out that all along, popcorn has contained an amino acid called "arginine," which is apparently also a growth hormone.  looks like with the aid of popcorn, your wobbly bits won't be the only thing experiencing growth!

child's article also offers up some exciting teen-level information on popcorn--"popcorn was first discovered by native americans thousands of years ago, but became popular in the US as a moviegoing snack during the great depression." at this point, he really should've just tossed in the sentence "the native americans' word for corn is 'maize'" and called it a day, but he goes on to tie the history of popcorn to the current economic climate, all through the wonder of this men's health article. "it's somewhat fitting then," he writes, "that its status as a sexual supplement should be discovered during a new phase of financial travails."

...& he doesn't stop there.  oh no.  he has knowledge to share & a word count to hit.  did you know that "there are, in fact, a couple of other uses for popcorn: as a christmas decoration with string threaded through the middle?"  it's true.  another fun fact--"it has also been touted as a biodegradable alternative to polystyrene packing material."  all i can say is "thank you, ben...very good book report on native americans & popcorn. well researched."