
Modern Peanut's Wild Cousin, Thought Extinct, Found in Andes - diodorus
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/modern-peanut-s-wild-cousin-thought-extinct-found-in-andes/
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JacobAldridge
Related, something I learned last week when I hosted a beer-tasting baby
shower for a mate.

The difference between an Ale and a Lager comes from the different yeast used
in each type (the Lager yeast _Saccharomyces pastorianus_ will ferment at
lower temperatures - so if you were also once taught that 'temperature' was
the difference between the two, you were mostly correct).

But while Ales have a long history over thousands of years, Lagers only
appeared in human history in the 1500s. Why was this?

Turns out the Lager yeast, like the peanut, is a cross. In Lager's case, its
genomes are a cross between the Ale yeast _S. cerevisiae_ and a South American
yeast _S. eubayanus_. Exploration of the Americas somehow tracked _S.
eubayanus_ back to Europe (most notably, Pilzn Czech Republic) where it
interbred and was 'discovered'.

I don't actually like peanuts, but I do prefer a Lager over an Ale.

[1] More info [http://www.popsci.com.au/science/beersci-what-is-the-
differe...](http://www.popsci.com.au/science/beersci-what-is-the-difference-
between-a-lager-and-an-ale,378928)

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nuxi
I prefer Ales, but there's another "variety" I'm very fond of - Belgian Lambic
beers[0]. They're brewed using wild yeasts instead of the brewer's, and have a
really special (sour) taste. Try the unblended ones if you get the chance,
otherwise a Gueuze or a Kriek will do (avoid the fruit ones though).

[0]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lambic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lambic)

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beardicus
Hopefully it's not too pedantic to mention: the sourness of Lambics has
nothing to do with the wild yeasts, but rather lactobacillus bacteria. Either
way, it's really cool how some unique brewing processes shaped the style
(mainly, cooling the wort in large shallow coolships, giving plenty of time
and surface area for yeasts and bacteria to inoculate from the environment).

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wittekm
The article says that the modern peanut has 20 chromosomes, whereas its
ancestors each had 10. At least in animal hybridization, the hybrid chromosome
amount lies between that of the two parents. So what's up with that? Wikipedia
mentions "doubling."

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GFK_of_xmaspast
At a guess, peanut is probably tetraploid, with four copies of each gene
instead of two. (Polyploidy is common in plants)

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cgriswald
> (Polyploidy is common in plants)

Especially crops.

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mvanvoorden
Wow, this kind of writing appears even in scientific journals:

"Stampfer’s work found that people who ate peanuts and nuts regularly were
less likely to die from any cause"

So nuts prevent death?

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hexscrews
Perhaps Death has a nut allergy?

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nsxwolf
Is it tasty? I want to eat this peanut.

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xufi
It would be also intersting to see if its saltier than a regular peanut.
THough granted I guess it depends where the peanut/peanut clone was grown.

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im_down_w_otp
This absolutely requires a cartoon featuring Mr. Peanut, in all his top-hat
and monocle glory leading an expedition into the Andes and discovering his
long lost cousin who left home forever ago as an act of defiance as an
adolescent.

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ArkyBeagle
That would require a musical number, with at least a ... division of Cub
Scouts singing "Found A Peanut."

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exabrial
K... The only thing I want to know is do they taste good? Haha no where is
that mentioned in the article!!

