Rice Report

So the rice experiment has come to and end.  The investigation that was modeled after a 30-day, scientific study on the power of words has achieved definitive status in my house in less than two weeks.

The rice study purports that words have the power to alter the physical structure of tangible objects.  In the study, the researcher speaks either positive, thankful words or negative, destructive verbiage to jars of common rice. Amateur and pro scientists alike reported that the "happy" rice would remain fresh, but the abused rice would mold.  A quick scan of YouTube offerings also reveals some less-than-definitive results. As a writer, I was interested to find out first hand if words had powers beyond the unseen, emotional effects of which we're already aware.

On Tuesday, I showed you a picture of a suspicious black speck on the verbally mistreated rice.  This morning, it looked pretty much the same:

But the praised rice?  It looked like this:

Ewww…worse than the "bad" rice, right? I noticed a little speck of green on Friday, so I said some extra-positive stuff to it, just in case.  But no dice.  It was obvious the gig was up.  I threw the contents of both jars out this morning.

This is what I love about science. Some very intriguing material was presented to me, and, though skeptical, I wanted to see what would happen here, with me, and my words.  I didn't have to rely on what I read, or heard, or the reliability of my source material: I could see for myself right here.

Personally, I am a bit relieved by my results. Regardless of our profession, we all broker in words on a daily bases, and I, for one, don't need a jar of rice to tell me the potential for good or evil every time I open my mouth.  I think, for me, it would be just too much to know that if I need to scream into a pillow or vent to a stuffed bear that I could be disintegrating my bedding or destroying my faux friends.   

But don't take my word for it--if you're curious, try the experiment for yourself.  There's a contingent of YouTube filmmakers that beg to differ with my results.  Although chances are they're afraid to express their opinions with any conviction lest something mold or disintegrate. As for me,  I think I'm OK with abandoning this line of inquiry right here.