KEEP YOUR SPIT TO YOURSELF

Still on the topic of scientists versus junk food, intrepid young undergraduates have finally tackled the science behind Seinfeld’s classic “double dipping” scene, in which Timmy argues that dipping a chip more than once is “like putting your whole mouth right in the dip!” Turns out Timmy was right. Experiments showed that “double dipping” transfers an average of 50 to 100 bacteria from one mouth to another with every bite. “Before you have some dip at a party,” warned Professor Dawson, who assigned the project to his students, “look around and ask yourself, would I be willing to kiss everyone here? Because you don’t know who might be double dipping, and those who do are sharing their saliva with you.” (NY Times)