"Shellack and Stress"

 

Weird Facts:

 

Did you know that they make Shellac out of sea shells and alcohol? And did you know that female seashells are more likely to be born in times of stress than male seashells? And, you might ask, how can you tell a male seashell from a female seashell? Well, there is a foolproof method. If you grind up the seashell and add it to alcohol and it makes a good shellac, then it's a female seashell, although it might be a little stressed. If it makes a watery shellac, then it's a male seashell, although it might be a little relaxed.

 

Sea? Shell?

 

She sells sea shells by the seashore.
The shells she sells are surely seashells.
So if she sells shells on the seashore,
I'm sure she sells seashore shells.

 

Three times, fast.

 

Now the true story of Shellac, with total disregard to Bobby's Urban Myth:

 

In its most well known form, shellac mixes with an alcohol base to make varnish. Yet shellac, a sticky, yellowish resin, goes through many bizarre stages of evolution as it makes its way from inside a parasitic insect to covering your oak rocking chair. Harvesting the resin off of insects, predominantly in South Asia, remains the only method of cultivating this useful and adaptable substance.

The history of an old gramophone album or Oriental rug dye begins with a tiny insect, Laccifera lacca. Hundreds of these critters hatch out of eggs and scatter over a juicy plant or tree. Immediately, they attach their mouth to a leaf or stem to suck food and water from the host plant for the rest of their lives.

As these "scale" bugs develop from pupa to adults, they gradually excrete a sticky or waxy liquid that encases them in a cocoon. Since they'd be easy targets for predators, these scales detach from their skin and harden to protect them from pecking birds or hungry spiders. In India and Thailand, cultivators allow thousands of these insects to establish themselves on trees like the kusum, palas, and raintree.

This unusual "crop" is maintained for a season, until the time when males leave their scales and females lay new eggs. To harvest the crop, all the bits of stems and bodies and shells of insects are washed off branches to form crude lac. After much washing, filtering, and processing, this becomes seed lac and then refined shellac.

Raw shellac gets its yellow or orange tint from a dye inside the female insect's ovaries. Some woodworkers prefer an amber varnish, while other products bleach the shellac to make a clear sealant. In the past, shellac was used in tanning leather, forming records (before vinyl displaced it), and polishing wood floors. As far back as the 3rd century, people used shellac to dye fabric. Starting in the 16th century, they developed a way to paint it onto wood as a sealer.

Today, shellac covers time-release pills for oral medication, makes yellow and orange food coloring, and seals letters with wax. Since it's non-toxic and edible, other synthetic substances haven't replaced shellac. Even carpenters still value its ability to protect wood from damaging ultraviolet rays. Though it has a strong odor, varnish made from shellac dries quickly and isn't hazardous once cured. It can be used around pets and babies, finishing doors and toy chests, without fear of toxicity.

 

As to Female/male birth rates in times of stress:

 

The misrepresentation of 'more females are born during times of stress' is actually more accurately scientifically stated as 'male fetuses are more likely to be miscarried in stressful times than female fetuses', so it's a little bit of the Chicken and Egg thing there. It is also true that in times of stress, the males born are generally stronger.

 

The study also supports the theory that males are the weaker sex.

 

God knows we've been proving that an awful lot, lately.