Chickpeas, a neglected crop, may soon get a high-tech makeover

PLINY THE ELDER, a Roman administrator with a sideline in philosophy, appreciated the complexities of the chickpea. In his master work, “Naturalis Historia”, he wrote of it: “This plant presents considerable differences in reference to size, colour, form and taste.” One type, he reported, came in the shape of a ram’s head. Another, the Venus pea, was white, round and smooth. A third had small, angular seeds.