There are several commercial classifications of corn. Field corn (also called dent corn or cow corn) is fed to animals. Flour corn is mostly starchy center with a soft hull that allows it to be easily ground into flour. Sweet corn is the kind we eat at the dinner table. Flint corn is usually called Indian corn; its colorful kernels make it highly attractive, and it is used for decoration because it is tough and tasteless. Pod corn is also only used for decoration because each of its kernels has its own separate husk.

Popcorn, also a collection of varieties of Zea mays, is the only corn that pops; it is not dried kernels of sweet corn. There are several popular varieties of popcorn out of thousands of hybrids. White hull-less and yellow hull-less are the varieties sold most commonly and packaged in microwave bags. Rice popcorn is a variety with kernels that are pointed at both ends, and pearl popcorn produces round, compact kernels. Tiny red ears that are shaped like strawberries produce red kernels and are called strawberry popcorn. Black popcorn has black grains but pops as white kernels, and rainbow or calico corn has white, yellow, red, and blue kernels. Popcorn is also classified by the characteristics of its popped kernels, with the largest kernels called "Dynamite" and "Snow Puff."

Popcorn is....tasty?