There is a lot more to candy than meets the taste buds, and the Louisville Science Center’s new exhibit, "Candy Unwrapped," gives confection lovers the opportunity to discover the science behind sweets. The exhibit, which opened Sept. 30, was put together by the Ontario Science Centre (the world’s first interactive science museum) and features a maze of 16 hands-on stations that reveal the biology, chemistry and psychology of candy eating.
Here are some items to check out:
• "Pucker Up" dares visitors to taste a super-sour candy in front of a big-screen camera and learn how their reactions can be of evolutionary benefit.
• Chocoholics can step into the boudoir with "Romancing the Bean" and take a quiz to test if chocolate really is an aphrodisiac, gaining insight into the chemical properties that give cacao its amorous reputation.
• The "Jellybean Challenge" lets visitors experience various methods of tasting, including those that are messages directly from the tongue to brain and flavors formed by a combination of signals from the tongue and the nose.
• And for anyone hoping to exercise away the sweet guilt, "Energy Burn" offers stationary bikes that chart how long it takes to burn off a single sugar cube.
The Louisville Science Center (727 W. Main St.) will host "Candy Unwrapped" through December. For more information call 561-6100 or visit www.louisvillescience.org.
