CAN YOU SOLVE IT? ughton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Image Credits: (t) Visual China Group Genty
This giant cake set a new record for the world's largest glutinous rice cake. It was made
from over 1300 pounds of a special type of rice and required the work of dozens of cooks
to complete. When finished, it measured almost 4 meters (12.5 feet) in diameter! Rice
cakes like this one are often made with a special type of rice that has been steamed,
mashed, and then toasted. The cakes not only provide energy and nutrients, but they also
represent reunion and good luck.
Food such as a rice cake contains matter and energy your body can use. When you eat, a
series of chemical reactions helps break down the food and release the energy stored in its
molecules. Because different food items have different amounts of energy and nutrients,
knowing the content of your food can help you make wise choices. If you wanted to know
how many calories were in a food, you might look at the label on the package. But how
could you find out the amount of energy in a record-breaking food like this?
PREDICT How might you measure the amount of energy in the world's largest rice cake?