Napoleon’s Buttons Worksheet



Napoleon’s Buttons Worksheet

(Chapter 1: Peppers, Nutmeg, and Cloves)

Describe the following from Ch. 1, and draw the structure if it is a molecule.

Piper nigrum -

piperine –

capsaicin –

zingerone –

Myristica fragrans –

Eugenia aromatica –

Eugenol -

Isoeugenol –

Myristicin -

Elemicin -

Answer the following questions:

1) Describe the different production methods of black, white, and green pepper.

2) Explain what pepper was originally used for by the Greeks, and why and when it began importance as a spice.

3) How did the popularity of pepper initiate the “Age of Discovery”?

4) What causes the sensation from pepper that we call “hotness” in pepper, chili peppers, and ginger? Include a description of the chemical structures that are similar.

5) What is thought to be the reason that humans like to eat ‘hot’ foods?

6) How might the lure of spices have been considered responsible for the beginning of capitalism?

7) What benefits do these molecules provide to plants?

8) Describe what each of the following spices provides medicinally to humans.

a) cloves

b) nutmeg

9) a) Why was nutmeg also called the “spice of madness”?

b)What compounds give it these properties?

c) Explain the possible connection between Myristicin and Ecstasy. Be specific.

d) Why is sassafras no longer used for root beer?

Extra Credit: On the map below, draw in the following spice routes/destinations:

• Arab spice route through Damascus and the Red Sea

• European trade with the east via Baghdad.

• Portuguese route discovered by Vasco de Gama

• Spain’s Columbus attempt ending in Haiti

• Magellan’s attempt for Spain to go west to get to the Moluccas

• The island of Run in the Banda Islands

• Zanzibar

• Grenada in the Caribbean – “Nutmeg Isle”

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