How ironic.
We recently wrote about Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists training honey bees to detect explosives. It works this way: they harness bees and place them in little scientific containers. When the bees detect the scent of explosives, they stick out their tongues. It's in anticipation of a treat, ala the Pavlov dog method.
Today in the news: The mysterious bottled liquid tucked inside a passenger's luggage that led to the closure of a Bakersfield airport has been identified as--you guessed it--HONEY!
News reports indicated that the suspicious liquid triggered a shutdown of the Meadows Field Airport. Hazardous material crews and a bomb squad raced to the scene.
And only to find: HONEY!
Of course, we can't be too careful these days.
Still, it makes you wonder what would have happened if bomb-sniffing honey bees were on duty at the airport (they're NOT!) and detected the smell of--HONEY!
Honey can indeed look like a suspicious substance. That's why, when I travel on airlines, I never pack honey. Honey stays home or travels via the U.S. Postal Service.
Otherwise, I could wind up in a really sticky situation.
Interesting--and a little ironic, too--that this week members of the American Honey Producers' Association are gathering in Sacramento for their 41st annual conference.
Let's hope that when they prepare to return home, they don't pack that bee byproduct--HONEY!
Attached Images:
Honey Bee