Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Science/2019 March 10

= March 10 =

Nitrate in pomegranates
Does pomegranate juice contain sodium nitrate?i did a Google search but I found contradictory information. — Preceding unsigned comment added by John33223 (talk • contribs) 05:23, 10 March 2019 (UTC)
 * All plants contain some sodium nitrate, since nitrogen from soil is turned into sodium nitrate which is necessary for plant growth. I'm not finding sources suggesting that pomegranates (or its juice) is unusually high in sodium nitrate. Vegetables with high levels of sodium nitrate include spinach, radishes, lettuce, celery, carrots, cabbage, and beets.  Of course, sodium nitrate is often added to foods as a preservative, and could be included in commercially prepared pomegranate juice. —107.15.157.44 (talk) 07:11, 10 March 2019 (UTC)

May I please suggest one tries a "Desert Island" Pomegranate Juice and Mailbu. Trust me. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.131.40.58 (talk) 11:07, 12 March 2019 (UTC)

Woman's foot in Myanmar
What is the reason for the different color shades? Is this a medical problem? A result of prolonged work in the field? Perhaps a cosmetic preference? Etan J. Tal(talk) 12:30, 10 March 2019 (UTC)


 * With the distinctive yellow color and your local origin description it likely counts as Thanaka.--Kharon (talk) 00:37, 11 March 2019 (UTC)


 * Except that the pictures in our article look nothing like the situation with this person's foot. Thanaka is a paste, while this foot appears to be quite clean. It's a difference of pigmentation. There are many reasons why pigmentation may be lost - see our articles at depigmentation and especially vitiligo, which includes a list of other causes as well. The soles of the foot, like the palms of the hand, often have less pigment than the rest of the skin, though I agree this case seems a bit more extreme. Matt Deres (talk) 14:19, 13 March 2019 (UTC)


 * My guess (and this is what it is - a guess) is that the woman has been outdoors in the sun wearing a shoe which has left the now-darker parts of the foot exposed to the sun, whilst covering the bottom half - essentially this is just sun-tan? Eliyohub (talk) 08:48, 17 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Great minds think alike:
 * - 2A00:23A8:4015:F500:B00F:ADB1:F5E3:DE88 13:13, 10 March 2019
 * I cannot imagine the shape of shoe (or sock) which forms this specific contour line around the toes... Etan J. Tal(talk) 07:28, 18 March 2019 (UTC)


 * Since you are the author of that photo, can you tell us more about the background? Where did you meet this woman and what was she doing?  Did you speak with her?  Was that a surreptitious photo of her foot, or did you ask her to pose for you?  Was her left foot similarly colored? -- ToE 12:07, 8 April 2019 (UTC)