Inventing a longer-lasting popsicle By Emily Matchar, Smithsonian.com on 09.10.18 Word Count 796 Level MAX

Can a popsicle be made to last longer before it turns into a melty mess? A British design firm says yes. Photo by: iStock/Getty Images

There's less than a month to go until the official start of fall, and it's hot. Hot, hot, hot. As a heat wave rolls eastward from Chicago, 17 states are under heat advisories. The expected high today in Washington, D.C., is 94 degrees. In New York it's 95. Dallas is slated to hit 97.

Sounds like time for a popsicle. But you better eat it indoors, lest you wind up with more of it melted down your sleeve than in your mouth.

Or you could try this: the world's first non-melting "ice lolly" (British for "popsicle"), invented by the United Kingdom food-focused design firm Bompas & Parr.

"This has taken over a year to perfect and has involved speaking to a whole host of experts from physicists to chemists," says Sam Bompas, the firm's co-founder. "While the physicists' suggestions were mostly theoretical, some of the chemists' were far from food safe! Balancing your ingredients is even more crucial than in a regular recipe so you can hit the bliss point of flavor, savor and texture."

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. The key to the popsicles' heat tolerance is strands of fruit fibers embedded within the pop. The fibers lower the pops' thermal conductivity, making them melt more slowly than ordinary frozen treats. Bompas & Parr say the prototype pops last "hours longer" than regular popsicles under the same temperature.

The popsicles were inspired by , a frozen composite material made from sawdust and wood pulp dispersed in ice. The substance, created by 20th-century British inventor , is much stronger than regular ice and melts much more slowly. Pyke envisioned pykrete as a perfect material for building gigantic floating aircraft carriers during World War II. It would save on steel, he said, which was already in high demand due to the war, and could be made more cheaply as well. was on board, and the building of a secret model pykrete commenced on a lake in Alberta, , with the code name Project Habakkuk. The project went beyond budget and was eventually shut down. Demoralized and depressed, Pyke committed in 1948.

Pykrete lived on, though mostly as a curiosity, occasionally popping up in futurism expos or on shows like "MythBusters" (they used it to build a boat; it fell apart in less than half an hour).

Pykrete is far from the only fascinating story in the history of frozen treats. The history of is a tale of creativity and innovation. Some the most interesting parts are tied to wartime. During World War II, some fighter pilots fought boredom and low morale by pouring ice cream ingredients into their planes' ammo carriers and ascending to high altitudes to freeze the mixture. As the substance was initially too icy, they rigged small propellers to the ammo buckets to churn the ice cream as it flew. The name of the project? Operation Freeze. Then, in 1945, the U.S. Navy spent $1 million turning a concrete barge into a "floating ." The sweet ship sailed around the Pacific supplying sailors with their favorite treat. Later, during the Korean War, the Pentagon made an official statement insisting soldiers got ice cream at least three times a week.

Bompas & Parr is unveiling their non-melting popsicles at "SCOOP: A Wonderful Ice Cream World," an exhibit of the British Museum of Food, itself a creation of the firm. The exhibit showcases the science and history of ice cream and other frozen desserts. Visitors can walk through a scent "cloud," stand in a subzero chamber, view a vast collection of ice cream paraphernalia, and learn about the bloody 1980s Ice Cream Wars, when rival gangs sold drugs and other contraband from ice cream vans. They'll also have the chance to taste historically inspired flavors like cucumber and candied fruit, as well as experience ice creams of the future, with fizzy and glow-in-the-dark versions. A special feature will look at the life of Agnes Marshall, the 19th-century British "Queen of Ices," who patented an improved ice cream machine in 1885 and suggested using liquid nitrogen for ice cream more than a century before the technique was de rigueur in molecular gastronomy restaurants.

This is just the latest food science creation from Bompas & Parr, known for their whimsical, highly Instagrammable food spectacles, from gelatin molds of architectural wonders to flavored fireworks.

Though the non-melting pops can be made in any flavor, Bompas & Parr will be demoing an apple variety at the exhibit. If the prototypes are a success with visitors, the firm hopes to manufacture them for distribution in supermarkets.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. The popsicles taste more or less like ordinary pops, Bompas says, though, due to the fiber content, "you could describe them as a tad more chewy."

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. Quiz

1 Read the following statement.

Developing a popsicle that wouldn't melt quickly took significant research and trial and error.

Which sentence from the article BEST supports the statement above?

(A) Or you could try this: the world's first non-melting "ice lolly" (British for "popsicle"), invented by the United Kingdom food-focused design firm Bompas & Parr.

(B) "This has taken over a year to perfect and has involved speaking to a whole host of experts fom physicists to chemists," says Sam Bompas, the firm's co-founder.

(C) The key to the popsicles' heat tolerance is strands of fruit fibers embedded within the pop.

(D) The popsicles were inspired by pykrete, a frozen composite material made from sawdust and wood pulp dispersed in ice.

2 Read the following selection from the article.

Then, in 1945, the U.S. Navy spent $1 million turning a concrete barge into a "floating ice cream parlor." The sweet ship sailed around the Pacific supplying sailors with their favorite treat. Later, during the Korean War, the Pentagon made an official statement insisting soldiers got ice cream at least three times a week.

Which idea is BEST supported by this selection?

(A) The U.S Navy spent more money on ice cream during World War II than during the Korean War.

(B) The U.S. Navy developed new technology to produce large amounts of ice cream for troops.

(C) The U.S. Navy believed that ice cream would have a positive effect on the troops' morale.

(D) The U.S. Navy encouraged the development of longer-lasting and non-melting popsicles.

3 Read the sentences from the article.

The fibers lower the pops' thermal conductivity, making them melt more slowly than ordinary frozen treats. The substance, created by 20th-century British inventor Geoffrey Pyke, is much stronger than regular ice and melts much more slowly.

Which option BEST describes how these sentences help develop a central idea of the article?

(A) They compare a popsicle made out of pykrete with the new popsicle.

(B) They highlight the ability of the fruit fibers to lower conductivity.

(C) They elaborate on the science behind the creation of the new popsicle.

(D) They persuade the reader to try the new popsicle.

4 How effective is the first paragraph at engaging the reader in the idea of a non-melting popsicle?

(A) Not effective; it doesn't explain the colorful history of ice cream and other frozen treats.

(B) Not effective; it doesn't mention the reason why people would want to have a non-melting popsicle.

(C) Effective; it reminds the reader that there is less than a month of summer to go.

(D) Effective; it emphasizes that current weather conditions cause popsicles to melt.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com.