Flower-Based Ice Cream

Derived from lupine seeds, Lupinesse is a cholesterol-free, non-dairy, flower-based ice cream that is good for you and good for our soil. 

The ice cream, created and released by the Fraunhofer Labs in Germany, contains no dairy, gluten, or animal fats. The high-protein seed from which it is derived not only helps to create a creamy consistency, but also has cholesterol-regulating effects. And just in case that isn't enough to get you to put in a request at your local grocer, the plant itself - known in Europe as the "soybean of the north" - has nitrogen-binding roots so growing it can improve soil quality! 

I encourage all our vegan, lactose Intolerant and/or ice cream-loving readers to read more here.

Best News I've Heard All Week

Some fantastic scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, West London, have graciously spent the last three years working with more than 200 governments to cut 600,000 duplicate names from the Global Plant List. The Telegraph reports:

"Alan Paton, assistant keeper of the herbarium at Kew, said the information will be vital for any organisation or researcher looking at "economically important" plants, such as those for food and nutrition or medicine. He said: "On average, one plant might have between two and three names, which doesn't sound a great deal, but if you're trying to find information on a plant, you might not find all [of it] because you're only looking at one name. "That's even more critical for economically useful plants: because they are more used, they tend to have more names."

The full results will not be published until the end of the year, but so far the researchers have found 301,000 accepted species, 480,000 alternative names, and have 240,000 left to assess."

"These are a few of my favorite things..."

Frogs and dinosaurs!!! A reconstruction of the dino-eating, beach ball sized armored devil toad (Beelzebufo ampinga) based on the fossils unearthed in Madagascar by paleontologist David Krause, is on display in the lobby of Stony Brook University Medical Center on Long Island in hopes to raise public awareness of science and draw attention to Dr. Krause’s non-profit - The Madagascar Ankizy Fund - that finances health clinics and schools in rural Madagascar.

Perhaps this isn't the kind of frog I'd like to find, bring home and snuggle for days on end but nonetheless - they were freakin' cool creatures.

The NY Times reports:

“This was undoubtedly the heaviest frog ever, we estimate about 10 pounds,” said David Krause... “It probably ate any available prey — lizards and snakes and mammals. It was large enough to maybe even eat hatchling dinosaurs.”

(Photo by Ozier Muhammad/The New York Times)

PopSci's Green Guide

Looking for 99 ways to save energy and money this summer? Check out the all-digital Green Home Guide available for free and easy browsing on the Popular Science website. You will need to provide a name and email address but that's it.

Browse through it. Save money. Kill some time at the office. Reduce your footprint on this great planet. Everybody wins.