Botanists Say There's No Such Thing As Vegetables, And We're Shook

There’s an exhausting amount of talk over which foods are fruits and which are vegetables. AvocadoFruit. Zucchini? Fruit. Kale? Vegetable … or is it?

According to botanists, there is no such thing as a vegetable

Wolfgang Stuppy, a research leader in comparative plant and fungal biology at the U.K.’s world-renowned Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew & Wakehurst Place, told the BBC, “The term vegetable doesn’t exist in botanical terminology.”

But fruit? Yep, that’s recognized by botanists. Confused? Let us break it down for you. 

What is a fruit?

If you ask a cook, a fruit is an edible part of plant that is usually sweet and sometimes sour. Lemons, apples, strawberries ― these are all considered fruits by almost everyone. 

But if you ask a botanist, a fruit is defined as “an organ that contains seeds, protecting them as they develop and often aiding in their dispersal.” Biologically speaking, the fruit is a part of the plant that is vital for its survival. Its very purpose is to help the plant spread its seed, and its sweetness attracts animals who eat it the fruit (and seed) and excrete it out in another location.

That’s why tomatoes are technically fruit, even though we treat them like vegetables in our kitchens. And it’s why what we refer to as grains and nuts are botanically classified as fruits, too. 

While there is some variation in what a botanist calls a fruit and what a cook calls a fruit, it gets even more confusing when it comes to vegetables. 

What is a vegetable?

A vegetable is a little tricker to define. In the broadest sense, according to the dictionary, the term vegetable is used to define anything living that isn’t animal or mineral ― think the vegetable kingdom (which is another term for plant kingdom).

If you ask a cook, a vegetable is also a term used to define the parts of the plant that we eat― the plant matter on our plates such as salad, braised greens, carrots or potatoes.

But if you ask a botanist, they’ll tell you there’s no such thing as a vegetable. “The term vegetable has no meaning in botany,” Amy Litt, director of plant genomics and Cullman curator at The New York Botanical Garden explained to LiveScience.

Why? Because from a biological standpoint, what we call vegetables are really just parts of plants. So botanists just call them by their parts. Asparagus is the stalk of a plant. Broccoli is the flower of a plant. Kale is the leaves of a plant. Onions are the tuber of a plant. Carrots are the root of a plant. Tomatoes are the fruit of a plant. 

Knowing this, can we still call certain foods vegetables?

Yes, because vegetables have a place in the kitchen. The usage of this word came into our language a few hundred years ago to refer to plant material that we eat that is not sweet like fruit, and it’s not going out of style any time soon. 

Also, we are not botanists.

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Indigenous Advocates Call On UN To Make Cultural Appropriation Illegal

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Indigenous advocates from around the world have reportedly recommended to a specialized United Nations committee to make cultural appropriation of indigenous peoples illegal as an international standard.

The specialized committee, which is a part of the U.N.’s World Intellectual Property Organization, discussed the issue when members met in Geneva, Switzerland, this week, the Canadian Broadcasting Company reported Tuesday. They were discussing the committee’s progress, its future work and the renewal of the committee’s mandate.

Delegates from 189 countries that sit on the committee have been working since 2001 on creating text-based negotiations that protect the traditional knowledge, cultural expressions and genetic resources as intellectual property of indigenous peoples and to prevent misappropriation of these properties.

In a presentation to the committee on Monday, James Anaya, dean of law at the University of Colorado, said the negotiations that the committee had created should “obligate” participating states to introduce criminal and civil enforcement procedures to confront “the non-consensual taking and illegitimate possession, sale and export of traditional cultural expressions,” the CBC reported.

The committee commissioned Anaya in 2014 to provide a technical review of its drafted negotiations as an indigenous expert and “within the framework of indigenous human rights.”

During Monday’s session, Anaya cited Urban Outfitters’ so-called “Navajo” line as an example of a major retailer using “false marketing” of an indigenous community ― the Navajo Nation ― for financial gain, CBC reported.

The Navajo Nation sued Urban Outfitters in 2012 for marketing a line of Navajo-themed products ― which included panties and a flask ― without first asking permission from the Native American tribe, which registered the Navajo name in 1942, according to The Guardian. Urban Outfitters reached a settlement with the tribe for an undisclosed amount in November.

The U.N.’s specialized committee, known officially as the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (or IGC), is a forum for WIPO member states to discuss intellectual property issues and negotiate an international treaty that would protect unique cultures and traditions.

This week’s committee session began in Geneva on Monday and was due to continue until Friday. The World Intellectual Property Organization will meet with the committee in October to review the committee’s progress.

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YouTube Star Austin Jones Faces Child Pornography Charges

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Austin Jones, a 24-year-old singer whose YouTube videos often attract millions of views, appeared in a Chicago court Tuesday facing child pornography charges, the Associated Press reported.

Jones is accused of telling two 14-year-old girls on social media to make explicit videos of themselves and pass them on to him, according to a federal complaint cited by the wire service.

In an exchange with one of the 14-year-olds, Jones allegedly instructed her to prove that she’s his “biggest fan” and asked her to remove her underwear, the Chicago Tribune reported. He requested that they dance in a sexually suggestive manner and provide images of themselves in “graphic sexual acts,” the Tribune noted, citing the complaint.

Jones, arrested Monday at O’Hare International Airport, is expected to enter a plea at a later court appearance.

He was charged with two felony counts of production of child pornography, meaning he could face at least a 15-year sentence for each count if convicted, the Tribune reported.

Jones’ covers of pop star hits and original songs have built him a sizeable teen following, according to reports. He recently performed some European tour dates, his Twitter account indicated.

He faced claims of impropriety with female fans in 2015 when he asked them to send videos of them twerking, People reported. He apologized in a YouTube video, explaining that there were no nude videos and no physical contact.

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The Morning After: Wednesday, June 14th 2017

Welcome to the middle of the week. It was Nintendo’s turn to dominate E3, the world’s biggest gaming show. Super Mario Odyssey is coming to the Switch this October, Intel is making VR better and the Atari 2600 is back. Kind of.

Destiny 2 For The Xbox One X Will Run At 30fps

One of the things that Microsoft is pretty proud about regarding the recently announced Xbox One X is its performance, where Microsoft boasted how the console would allow for “true” 4K gaming and where games could run in 4K resolution and at a buttery-smooth 60fps. However it seems that not everyone will necessarily take advantage of that.

One of those games is none other than Bungie’s Destiny 2 in which it was revealed that the game would be playable on the Xbox One X, but instead of hitting 60fps, it will run at 30fps instead. This is according to an interview during YouTube Live’s E3 2017 Show where Geoff Keighley spoke to the folks at Bungie about the game.

It is unclear as to why Destiny 2 won’t be running at 60fps on the Xbox One X, but some of the comments on the video have speculated that the reason is because of their partnership with Sony. Destiny 2 for the PS4 Pro will also run at 4K at 30fps, and some are saying that Destiny 2’s exclusive content deal with Sony could be the reason why, and that having it run at 60fps on the Xbox One X would make Sony look bad.

Of course this is just speculation, but either way it seems that’s the way it’s going to be. Then again 30fps is still pretty good and it should still look awesome at the end of the day. Destiny 2 is currently set for a release on the 6th of September, 2017 for console, while the PC version is set for the 24th of October, 2017 where there will not be any limitations on its performance.

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Nintendo Announces New ‘Kirby’ Game For The Switch

While Mario is probably one of Nintendo’s most easily-recognized characters and franchises, there are still quite a few characters that gamers might be familiar with, one of which is none other than Kirby. For fans of Kirby, you’ll be pleased to learn that Nintendo has not forgotten about it and have since announced a new Kirby game for the Nintendo Switch.

In the game trailer above, it sees Kirby return in a new side-scrolling game and for the most part, Kirby will retain its abilities where it can suck in enemies into its mouth to assume their abilities. However there is a noticeable change in which in this particular version of Kirby, gamers can also attempt to befriend enemies who will then join them as allies in their battles.

Unfortunately not much is known about Kirby for the Nintendo Switch right now, such as multiplayer features, but given that Nintendo has been pushing the Switch’s multiplayer (online and local) features, we wouldn’t be surprised if there were some form of co-op, or at least multiplayer modes.

Also if you were hoping to get your hands on the game anytime soon, you will be disappointed to learn that Kirby for the Switch will only be released in 2018.

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Rocket League Announced For The Nintendo Switch

When you look at games designed for the PS4/Xbox One, they tend to be more “serious” in nature, while Nintendo games on the other hand are more lighthearted and are designed for quick gaming sessions. Rocket League seemed like it was a good fit but yet it never found its way onto a Nintendo console, at least until now.

Announced at E3 2017, it seems that the developers behind Rocket League will be bringing the game onto Nintendo’s latest gaming platform. According to the developers, “You asked, and we listened! As we just revealed during the Nintendo Spotlight: E3 2017 Direct video, Rocket League is indeed coming to Nintendo Switch later this year! Rocket League on Nintendo Switch will have all of the same content, features, and updates that we’ve released on other platforms in addition to exclusive Battle-Cars and Customization Items, like Mario and Luigi hat Toppers!”

The game is also expected to fully support the Switch’s features and different play modes, so whether you want to play it docked, in handheld mode, or tabletop mode, or online, or local multiplayer, those options will all be available to you. There is even support for cross-platform play, so Switch gamers will be able to play with those on the Xbox One or Steam.

Rocket League for the Nintendo Switch is currently set for a release in holiday of 2017, but no specific dates were mentioned, but we should find out soon enough. In the meantime you can check out the announcement trailer above.

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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Expansion Pass Announced

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was released alongside the Nintendo Switch a couple of months ago, although it seems that it didn’t take players long before they finished the entire game. Given that the game is an open world concept, unlike older Zelda titles, it is surprising that many gamers have already blazed through the game’s content.

However not to worry because if you’re itching for more content, Nintendo is more than pleased to oblige as they have announced an Expansion Pass for the game. Basically this is Nintendo’s version of a Season Pass which will grant players access to DLC packs that are currently planned for a release.

According to Nintendo, “If you own The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the Expansion Pass grants access to three new treasure chests, DLC Pack 1, “Master Trials,” and DLC Pack 2, “The Champions’ Ballad,” as they are released. DLC Pack 1 “Master Trials” includes: Trial of the Sword, Master Mode, Hero’s Path, Travel Medallion, Korok Mask and eight new armors.”

The first DLC pack is expected to be released on the 30th of June and gamers who are interested in the Expansion Pass can buy it for $19.99. This is applicable for both the Wii U and the Switch, and more details can be found on the Zelda website.

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Sony Explains Why They’re Not Allowing For Cross-Platform Minecraft

As you might heard, some rather big news came out of E3 in the form of Minecraft where Microsoft announced that they would be making the game cross-platform compatible. This means that gamers across multiple platforms would be able to play the game together, whether they be on mobile, the Nintendo Switch, or the Xbox One.

Missing from that list was Sony who had apparently refused to support the feature, a decision that we’re sure many are wondering about. For those who are curious, Sony has since offered up an explanation in an interview with Eurogamer. According to Sony’s PlayStation global sales and marketing head Jim Ryan, it seems that this boils down to “responsibility”.

Ryan was quoted as saying, “We’ve got to be mindful of our responsibility to our install base. Minecraft – the demographic playing that, you know as well as I do, it’s all ages but it’s also very young. We have a contract with the people who go online with us, that we look after them and they are within the PlayStation curated universe. Exposing what in many cases are children to external influences we have no ability to manage or look after, it’s something we have to think about very carefully.”

When it was pointed out that even Nintendo had allowed for this, why shouldn’t Sony, Ryan replied with, “Yeah, that’s true. Everybody has to take their own decisions. We’ll do that. Like I say, we have no philosophical stance against cross-play at all.” Either way it seems that Sony’s decision is pretty firm at the moment, so we guess PS4 gamers don’t really have a choice but to be left out for now.

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Sony Toio is a mashup of tiny cube robots and game consoles

Sony might not be a name you’d immediately associate with robotic toys, but it does, or rather did, have a few under its name, from the dog-like Aibo to the the “dancing” Rolly to, more recently, the KOOV robotics kit. It isn’t done yet, however, and a Toio product may be just over the horizon. Aimed at very young learners, … Continue reading