2007-04-27 23:52:13 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Botany
I would assume that 1000s of years ago people learned that certain kinds of plants would be good to eat and others make you sick. Then this knowledge was passed down from one person to the next. Maybe even before there was human writing, adults were passing knowledge down to others.
Also since people discovered that certain types of plants and mushrooms could make you very sick they figured out if they did not know whether it was safe. they would first eat a very small piece and if that was OK then maybe the next day a bigger piece.
You can not tell that a food is safe to eat because you see a bird or animal eating it.
Thank you for not posting a homework question.
2007-04-28 11:10:16 · answer #1 · answered by michael971 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I just have to share some mushroom trivia. The Amanita muscaria, the red mushroom with white polka dots has a well documented history as an hallucinogen. The problem is, it also contains chemicals that make you as sick as a dog and wreck the "trip". Mongolian chieftains and warlords found a solution. They would feed the mushrooms to slaves, prisoners and peasants and then drink there urine, using them as human filters. Anybody wanna get high !
2007-04-28 03:11:42 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yeah but you could ask the same of anything! Guess someone had to be the first to try it - they were prob just starving. We do eat lots of poisonous plants, in fact it's toxins that give most of our food flavour - we've just evolved stomachs that can deal with them. I certainly wouldn't be trying any wild mushrooms though, and I'm a botanist! Not worth the risk!!!
2007-05-01 05:58:21 · answer #3 · answered by Cathy :) 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's a good question, but you can extend that question to apply to all foodstuffs really. For example, nobody knew if potatoes were safe to eat until the very 1st person tried them, and if he or she hadn't thought of cooking them before eating them, they would have been pretty unappetising. Apparently there are quite a number of fungi that are edible, and of those that are poisonous there are only a couple of types that are lethal. Most would merely make you unwell.
2007-04-28 00:01:20 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
The same brave or 'stupid' person who realised which vegetables could be eaten!
2007-04-29 18:27:40 · answer #5 · answered by Hobby 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I love mushrooms but I am very carefull about which ones i eat.This bravery thing applies to a lot of foods,when you think about it.I mean who on earth would want to eat live octopus but they do.YUCK.
2007-04-28 00:01:58 · answer #6 · answered by Julie 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Probably the same person who picked up an oyster and thought "That looks edible!"
2007-04-28 02:17:56 · answer #7 · answered by Labsci 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Someone who was hungry, yet smart not to be the first one to try it! ;)
2007-04-28 00:04:11 · answer #8 · answered by Pabs 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋