Mr. Science person, today we're going to test liquids for acididity. Your first job is to stick this juicy slice of lemon in your mouth. Then, wash your mouth out with soap. Well, in the past scientists have used taste as one way to distinguish acids from bases.
Citric acid is what makes lemons tart and sour.
There's some pretty interesting chemistry involved with acids and bases, too. Tuesday Some neutralization reactions are just delicious. As Tina Seelig writes in The Epicurean Laboratory, cooks are really doing acid-base chemistry when they bake. Let's say you're whipping up a batch of pancakes for breakfast. When you mix an acidic ingredient like buttermilk with a basic ingredient like baking soda, a neutralization occurs, producing carbon dioxide, gas, and water.