A n d r e w s G u m W o r l d

Arithmetic, originally uploaded by kunja.

We’re always fond of research that shows chewing gum makes you, well, smarter.

Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Times reported on a research project funded by Wrigley at the Baylor College of Medicine. Those who took part in the study either chewed sugar-free gum during math class, during math homework, during math tests, or they didn’t chew gum at all.

After 14 weeks, the students took a math test and had their math grades assessed. As the Times reported:

Those who chewed gum had a 3% increase in standardized math test scores and had final math grades that were significantly better than the other students. Teachers observed that those who chewed gum seemed to require fewer breaks, sustain attention longer and remain quieter.

While the research didn’t fully explain what the relationship was between gum chewing and math improvement, the lead researcher on the study, Dr. Craig Johnston, said that “there is research demonstrating an increase in blood flow in the brain during chewing.”

The study was presented at the Annual Meeting of Experimental Biology 2009 in New Orleans this past April.

 
Urban Messages, originally uploaded by FaceMePLS.

IMAGE: Enfield Independent.

Ben Wilson, a British artist who turns discarded gum into artwork (we’ve featured him before in AndrewsGumWorld) recently lost his jacket in Enfield, Middlesex and the local newspaper, the Independent published a plea last week for its return:

Ben Wilson, 45, of Muswell Hill, was devastated to discover he had walked off without his fluorescent jacket when touching up unsightly underfoot deposits at the base of the fountain in the market square.

“That jacket has been keeping the rain and snow off me for the past four and a half years and has people’s tags and signatures on” he said.

Anyone who finds the jacket is encouraged to contact the reporter of the article, Hannah Crown.

Chewing Gum Art in Venice, originally uploaded by litmanlive.

IMAGE: Sail-World.com.

Three Texas fishermen were rescued this past weekend after being lost at sea for a week. The three boaters were found 180 miles from land after a Coast Guard search that covered nearly 86,000 square miles. They were discovered while still with their capsized catamaran, Affordable Fantasy.

An ABC News report on the rescue detailed how the men stayed alive until they were found (emphasis ours):

The Coast Guard officials said they survived because they stuck with the boat. The men also rationed bubble gum and crackers and used a hose to suck fresh water out of the internal “washdown” tank. Fishermen often keep such a tank to wash fish slime off their boat when they are out in the salt water.

CUANDO A MI MISMA PREGUNTO, originally uploaded by VERY NINION.

Chewing Gum Posters, originally uploaded by Phil McGrady.

IMAGE: Media.

Clemenger BBDO, an ad agency in Australia, has helped Wrigley plunge into the world of social media by creating The 5 Feed, a website designed to help the gum company “connect with young people who increasingly demand digital involvement and greater creativity; ‘an audience that is seeking, sharing and remixing culture.’”

In a piece earlier this summer in Media, it described the agency’s creation of The 5 Feed site, “a social platform that invites the public to download and remix works from commissioned Australian designers, artists and musicians.”

 You can explore that site, and do your own remixing of culture, here.

ps Wrigley 5 gum flavo(u)r translation guide from the Land Down Under:

Pulse (Australia) = Lush (North America)

Electro = Rain

Cobalt = Cobalt