Yams and sweet potatoes are often confused but are actually different plants. The name "yam" was given to sweet potatoes in North America by enslaved Africans who called them by their word for yam, "nyami". True yams are only found in tropical regions and can grow much larger than sweet potatoes. While stores often label sweet potatoes as yams, true African yams would be found in African, Caribbean, or Asian markets. Yams have a brown bark-like peel while sweet potatoes have a smoother skin.

1. Yams vs. Sweet Potatoes Yams and sweet potatoes are unrelated and cannot always be used interchangably, despite the fact that sweet potatoes have been called yams for centuries in North America. This began when enslaved Africans applied their West African word nyami to the North American sweet potato that resembled their African yam. Nyami (or nyana ) became yam in English, igname in French and ñame in Spanish.

3. There are many varieties of yams, and many varieties of sweet potatoes, and certain types of yams may be quite similar to certain types of sweet potatoes. Some of the yams commonly cultivated in Africa are usually very large, sometimes measuring several feet in length and over a hundred pounds in weight. Whether yams like those in Africa can be obtained outside the tropics is a matter of some debate, since so many stores sell sweet potatoes labeled as "yams".

5. Genuine African-style yams would most likely be found in African, Carribean, Latino, or Asian markets, or large grocery stores that sell imported items like cassava (or yuca) tubers. Yams have a brown peel that looks like the bark of a tree. The edible, inside portion ranges from light tan or pale yellow to red or purple. When large yams are sold in grocery stores they are usually cut into pieces weighting a few pounds each and wrapped in plastic.

7. The Swelling: Lymphatic Filariasis ?

10. In 2006 the World Health Organisation estimated that over 1.3 billion people are at risk of lymphatic filariasis (LF), a devastating parasitic infection spread by mosquitoes. LF - caused by thread-like parasitic worms that damage the human lymphatic system - is usually contracted in childhood, often before age five. One of the world's most disabling and disfiguring diseases, LF afflicts the poorest.

12. The disease is estimated to infect over 120 million people, with more than 40 million incapacitated or disfigured with swelling of the limbs and breasts (lymphoedema) and genitals (hydrocele), or swollen limbs with dramatically thickened, hard, rough and fissured skin (elephantiasis). LF prevents afflicted individuals from experiencing a normal working and social life, furthering the cycle of poverty.

14. Locusts!!!!

15. Locust is the name given to the swarming phase of short-horned grasshoppers of the family Acrididae. The origins and apparent extinction of certain species of locust—some of which reach 6 inches (15 cm) in length—are unclear. These are species that can breed rapidly under suitable conditions and subsequently become gregarious and migratory. They form bands as nymphs and swarms as adults - both of which can travel great distances, rapidly stripping fields and greatly damaging crops.

16. According to the Bible, a swarm of locusts comprised the eighth plague in the story of the plagues of Egypt. In the Book of Revelation, locusts with scorpion tails and human faces are to torment unbelievers for five months when the fifth trumpet sounds. One Old Testament book, Joel, is written in the context of a recent locust plague.

17. Eating Locusts! In Nigeria's far north-eastern Borno State, locusts are sold to the public after frying in vegetable oil and eaten as snacks. They are commonly referred to as "desert shrimps".

18. Locust Stew Locusts and grasshoppers are prepared for cooking by removing the wings, the small legs, and the distal portion of the hind legs. Then pull off the head, withdrawing any attached viscera. Boil prepared Rocky Mountain locusts in salted water. Add assorted cut-up vegetables, butter, salt, and vinegar to the broth and cook until the vegetables are tender. Serve as a thick soup or over boiled rice as a main dish.

19. Chipotle-Mescal Salsa with Roasted Locusts