Seriously, how is anyone dumb enough to be fat?

[Chas]

I've read before something like a calorie is the amount of energy to increase the temperature of some unit of water by 1 degree or something.

1kg of water. How exactly that was worked out I don't know, and I'd assume it'd have to be room temperature water since it would take more energy, or less, depending on the exact starting temperature.

On a related subject, I often find people don't know the definition of Black Ice.

The calorie is the approximate amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius.

The Calorie in dietary terms is a kilocalorie. So, yes, that one is the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.
But the starting temperature makes no difference except through a phase change, ice ->water or water-> steam.