Pringles

Raining in earnest at the moment so once again the reader will be subjected to another insight into the makeup of this Titan of cryptozoological research.

The following is truly a matter near and dear to my heart and has been a mainstay in my life since their development began in 1956. The subject I’m referring to is Pringles, second only to Sasquatch/Bigfoot in importance. As I mentioned, the development of the Pringle began in 1956 and continued through to the mid-60s at which time an acceptable formula was achieved. By 1967, Pringles were market-ready.

This amazing achievement can be attributed to Fred Baur a chemist brought on by Proctor and Gamble to address consumer complaints about chip resilience and longevity. His work resulted in the hyperbolic paraboloid shape of the individual Pringle as well as the now world-famous cylindrical container. Why the 1967 Nobel Prize in Chemistry ended up in other hands defies all reason. Baur spent two years developing the formula and shape from fried dough and employed supercomputers to ensure that each chip was aerodynamic enough to fit within the aluminum-coated cylinder without breaking.

Organic Chemist, Fred Bauer

However, Baur struggled to refine the taste to Proctor and Gambles liking so Alexander Liepa was brought in to tackle this issue. Liepa succeeded in formulating a flavor that was pleasing enough to take the product to market. Sadly, Baur was removed from the Pringle project before the patent was issued and therefore received no official credit for his efforts.

As Pringles are essentially fried dough prepared from dehydrated, cooked potatoes and water. Other chip manufacturers who utilized dried potatoes objected to Proctor and Gambles use of the word “Potato chip” on Pringle’s packaging therefore they have been simply referred to as crisps instead of chips.

 I challenge the reader to find a finer example of the marriage of science, nature, and ingenuity in the history of humankind. The tube alone is a marvel of engineering as the durability of said container means that I can safely pack several of them in my rucksack without worrying about a loss of flavor (they are hermetically sealed) nor the integrity of the individual chips. These cylinders have the potential to be employed in a staggering number of ways. For instance, while in the bush I have used them to carry water, as a trap for small game, transporting fire bundles from camp to camp, and even as an in-shelter urinal during the small hours of a winter’s night. The delicate and uniform saddle shape of each Pringle recalls other historic achievements like Panama Canal or the Moon landing that occurred only two years after Pringles became available on the open market. The crisp structure is delicate but strong and fits perfectly in the mouth. I stand by the original flavor as the pinnacle of chip/crisp flavor and while I occasionally indulge in Sour Cream and Onion or BBQ, the original formula stands head and shoulders above the rest

 Once Baur shed his mortal coil, some of his ashes were placed in a Pringles can and then buried at his request. I plan to make a similar arrangement with my own cremains but with the caveat that the Pringle can containing my ashes is shot into orbit to forever circle the planet that our species and Sasquatch call home.