THE FARM, AND OUR FOOD SUPPLIES 141 



2. Choosing what you consider the best ear, find the cir- 

 cumference at one third its length from the base. Calcu- 

 late the ratio of this circumference to the length of the ear. 

 Break the ear at about its middle and determine the ratio 

 (a) of the diameter of the cob to the diameter of the ear; 



FIG. 64. Specimen ears of different varieties of corn. 



(b) of the area of the broken end of the cob to the broken end 

 of the ear. 1 



3. Get a good ear of cured (old) corn and find the ratio of 

 the weight of the cob to the weight of the ear before it was 

 shelled. 



4. Somewhat at length, and very specifically, state the 

 characteristics of the best ears of corn. 



1 The areas of circles are to each other as the squares of their diameters. 



