Why Rice Krispies Go Snap, Crackle, Pop!

I saw this on Yahoo today and couldn't resist posting. Edited to remove some boring content and stupid people quotes:

“It’s not rocket science.” However, over the years Labuza and other cereal scientists have come up with some pretty good suggestions to explain where the noises come from.

Shattered glass

A Rice Krispie behaves like a piece of glass. If you hit it hard, it’ll break into a puzzle of a million pieces that, if you had the patience, you could put back together again. The high temperature at which the cereal’s cooked creates extremely strong bonds that hold the rice’s starch molecules together. The strong bonds make the rice act like glass. During the cooking process, each piece of rice expands and a network of air-filled caves and tunnels form inside.

Under pressure

When you pour milk into your breakfast bowl, the cereal absorbs the milk. As milk flows into the crispy kernel, the liquid puts pressure on the air inside and pushes it around. The air shoves against each pocket’s walls until they shatter, forcing out a snap, or a crackle, or, as you, know, sometimes a pop. You can also see tiny air bubbles escaping to the surface. The race is now on. Because once the rice is wet enough, all the air pockets have burst, the sounds stop, and you're left in peace and quiet to eat soggy cereal.