Facts at Their Boiling Points
Sunday
A liquid boils when it reaches a pressure equal to that exerted it by its surroundings, particularly the atmosphere itself. At this point the liquid is “pushing back” against the atmosphere at matching pressure, and so can turn to vapor. For this reason, liquids boil at a lower temperature at higher altitudes, since there is less atmosphere pushing down on them.
Monday
You’ve probably noticed that most of the bubbles in a boiling pot come from certain points. These are tiny bumps, scratches, or imperfections where the bubbles can most easily form, and this is called “nucleate boiling” and these points “nucleation points.”
Tuesday
Chefs know about cooking at temperatures below boiling. To simmer is to cook food at between 185 and 200 degrees Fahrenheit, with just tiny bubbles forming on the pan bottom. Poached food is cooked between 160 and 180 degrees Fahrenheit, and both simmering and poaching have their variations within each category.
Wednesday
“Boilerplate language” is routine, formulaic, standardized text often found in legal documents. This term comes from the early days of the printing industry, when smaller newspapers relied on news syndicates for feature stories, often delivered on pre-cast metal plates ready for immediate use in printing. Since these standardized plates resembled those used by boilermakers, this standardized language run in many papers came to be known as “boilerplate.”
Thursday
People often say that a situation “boils down to…” before stating its summary or main focus. This idiom has a very literal origin, describing what is left when excess water is boiled off of a liquid, leaving only the undiluted essence of the substance.
Friday
Cooking your food by boiling it isn’t fun for all. Lobsters are traditionally boiled alive before eaten by humans, a controversial practice which has now been banned in several European countries as more studies of crustacean nervous systems suggest they perceive pain.
Saturday
Few common germs can survive boiling, so boiling potentially contaminated objects, such as medical instruments, foodservice equipment, baby bottles and breastfeeding equipment, and anything else which may have dangerous germs on it is a longstanding and effective way to disinfect.