Things You Never Knew...

[eileen] How fast does hair grow? says:
eh blog leh
i don't want to sleep alone says:
okay fine
[eileen] How fast does hair grow? says:
faster pasta
i don't want to sleep alone says:
pasta?
[eileen] How fast does hair grow? says:
i give you inspiration
chicken...dog..icecream..and soccer

Okay, the supposed inspiration didn't really work. But I guess I could write about pasta. Being a rather atas consumer, I naturally am familiar with the different types of pasta. I know what linguine, ravioli, penne, what have you look like. I have wondered for the longest time, though. Why are there so many different types?

Wikipedia, the source of all my knowledge, is singularly unhelpful in this respect. "The basic ingredients are often the same, the shape and characteristics of surface makes various kind of pasta well suited for different kind of dressing." Which a random waiter at a swanky restaurant told me once, I think. Or at least I must have heard it before. But it doesn't hold water with me. How come flat pasta (e.g. linguine) holds cream sauce better, while regular spaghetti is better for bolognese? And then, angel-hair pasta - mini-me spaghetti - is usually used for alio olio.

Why? And, okay, assuming wikipedia is true (which is generally the case, so okay) Who can tell me how it works? And, which pasta is best for which kinds of dressing, and why?

Pasta lunch on me if you can explain the whole thing to my satisfaction.