Energy comes home

The growth in private energy consumption is an increasing problem in western countries. From an environmental point of view, this consumption has to be reduced. On the basis of two Norwegian case studies, this article discusses private energy consumption and possibilities for reduction, with a special focus on the home. It argues against a rational economic view of the consumer and emphasizes the significance of a more subtle understanding of private energy use. The article approaches the challenges of reducing private energy consumption by analysing the domestication of the home and discusses everyday life activities as well as the phenomenon of rebuilding and redecorating. By using the concept of domestication, the article challenges the linear understanding of technological as well as behavioural change. Private energy consumption is part of a complex network and it is necessary to understand this network in order to achieve a more permanent reduction.     

Miconazole chewing gum as a drug delivery system test of release promoting additives

The release of the antifungal drug miconazole from chewing gum formulations was evaluated in vitro and in vivo. It was proven that the addition of the anionic surfactant Panodan® 165 and polyethyleneglycol 6000 increased the release of miconazole. The anionic surfactant made the chewing gum tacky. The addition of polyethyleneglycol 6000 reduced the tacky properties of the chewing gum. 4 healthy volunteers obtained therapeutically active concentrations of miconazole in saliva when they chewed gum. The salivary concentrations of miconazole were estimated, both by a reverse phase HPLC method and a plate microbioassay.     

A comparison of two new take-away strategies and their relation to rating and ranking of extrinsic properties of dry cured ham

This paper is a study of the relationship between rating, ranking and take-away choices of dry cured ham. Extrinsic attributes related to country of origin, ageing time and price are considered and we study average population results as well as individual differences. Two tests with different sample size and different take-away strategies are explored. The results show that the ranking and rating data provide similar information in both tests. From an average point of view the stated results have also similarities with the take-away results, but with some notable differences. Relatively large individual differences in ranking of the products were observed in the two tests. Another finding in this study is that information about type of meal has a strong effect on the ranks of the products for all responses.     

Way finding during fire evacuation; an analysis of unannounced fire drills in a hotel at night

Findings in earlier studies on fire evacuation and way finding suggest that building features have influence on evacuation behaviour. For example, way finding is believed to be strongly dependent on the lay-out of the building and seems to be hardly dependent on (escape) route signs. Though some aspects are investigated, it is not discussed at great length. In particular there is little insight in how persons find their escape route, and how this process can be supported with lay-out and design measures has been hardly examined. Thus, there is need for insight in the decision-making processes which evacuees pass through. In this paper are the results presented of 83 evacuation experiments in a hotel building at night. The main focus of the study is on way finding during fire evacuation. In the evacuation experiments we investigated the possible influence of smoke and low placed exit signs on the human fire response performance. The experiments are carried out with a traditional research method, namely the registration and evaluation of unannounced fire drills. The study is conducted as part of the validation of a new research method that makes use of serious gaming. The results of the study suggest that smoke has influence on the route choice: when no smoke is perceptible the majority of the participants escape via the main exit and when smoke blocks the route towards the main exit, the majority of the participants escape via the fire exit. Furthermore, low placed exit signs appear to have a positive influence on the use of the nearest fire exit. The personal feature of prior knowledge of the surroundings (or type of surroundings) is also found to have a positive influence on the use of the nearest fire exit. Self-assessments and interviews after a fire evacuation are found to be a disputable method for research on human behaviour in fire. A real-time observation of the people's behaviour during evacuation is considered to give more reliable results.     

The reliability of self-image change scores in psychotherapy research: An application of generalizability theory.

The aim of this study was to estimate the reliability of the pre- to posttreatment change scores for 3 different self-image aspects, Attack, Love, and Control. To measure self-image, we used the Norwegian version of the introject surface of Benjamin's (1974) structural analysis of social behavior. The article introduces Generalizability (G-) theory, combined with the recent concept of tolerance for error, as a framework for estimating the reliability and precision of change scores in 1- and 2-facet designs. Data were obtained from the Norwegian Multi-Site Study of Process and Outcome in Psychotherapy, including 291 outpatients. The mean number of treatment sessions was 47. The results show that change scores may be highly reliable. Generalizability coefficients resting on the relative and absolute score interpretations, respectively, for both the Love and Attack change scores reached acceptable levels. The reliability of the Control change score was, however, poor. G-theory combined with the error-tolerance concept proved to be a helpful framework for assessing the dependability of change scores in a psychotherapy research setting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Feeding and meat quality - a future approach

The continuous demand for high standards of quality assurance in the meat production of today and tomorrow calls for development of new tools capable of meeting such demands. The present paper aims to re-think the traditional way of using feeding as a quality control tool in the production of meat and to introduce the potential of a nutrigenomic approach as a first step in the development of pro-active quality control systems which fulfil future demands from industry and consumers. A few chosen examples present how specific feeding strategies can manipulate (i) muscle protein turnover and thereby meat tenderness as well as the cost and sustainability of the production and (ii) muscle energy levels at slaughter and thereby the pH decline, water-holding capacity and the sensory characteristics of meats. The examples are discussed in relation to exploiting essential and basic understanding of physiological and physical processes, which can subsequently be included in a systems biology line of thought of importance for development of unique decision support systems in future meat production.     

Sensory profiling of textural properties of meat from dairy cows exposed to a compensatory finishing strategy

A compensatory finishing strategy was evaluated to improve the quality of meat from dairy cows. The experiment included ten pairs of Holstein Friesian dairy cows. Each pair was the progeny of the same sire, in the same parity, and approximately at the same number of days in lactation before entering the experiment. Within each pair, one cow was allocated to a compensatory finishing strategy, dried off for 4 days, and further restricted in energy intake for another 17 days followed by 6 weeks of ad libitum feeding. The strategy improved the sensory texture and flavour of both M. longissimus dorsi (LD) and M. semimembranosus (SM). This was supported by lower shear force in both muscles (P < 0.02). The effect can be ascribed to various factors; in LD an increased amount of IMF plays a significant role, whereas in SM an increased protein turnover is suggested to be the dominating factor.     

Bovine Satellite Cells Isolated after 2 and 5 Days of Tissue Storage Maintain the Proliferative and Myogenic Capacity Needed for Cultured Meat Production

Cultured meat is an emerging alternative food technology which aims to deliver a more ethical, sustainable, and healthy muscle-tissue-derived food item compared to conventional meat. As start-up companies are rapidly forming and accelerating this technology, many aspects of this multi-faceted science have still not been investigated in academia. In this study, we investigated if bovine satellite cells with the ability to proliferate and undergo myogenic differentiation could be isolated after extended tissue storage, for the purpose of increasing the practicality for cultured meat production. Proliferation of bovine satellite cells isolated on the day of arrival or after 2 and 5 days of tissue storage were analyzed by metabolic and DNA-based assays, while their myogenic characteristics were investigated using RT-qPCR and immunofluorescence. Extended tissue storage up to 5 days did not negatively affect proliferation nor the ability to undergo fusion and create myosin heavy chain-positive myotubes. The expression patterns of myogenic and muscle-specific genes were also not affected after tissue storage. In fact, the data indicated a positive trend in terms of myogenic potential after tissue storage, although it was non-significant. These results suggest that the timeframe of which viable myogenic satellite cells can be isolated and used for cultured meat production can be greatly extended by proper tissue storage.     

Feeding strategy for improving tenderness has opposite effects in two different muscles

Compensatory growth has been shown to affect rate of muscle protein turnover and may potentially improve tenderness of beef. Thus, a study of tenderness in relation to feeding regime and slaughtering at a time with maximal muscle protein degradation was performed. Friesian bull calves (5-month-old) were fed either ad libitum (n = 6) (AA) or restrictively for 3 months followed by re-alimentation for 6 weeks (n = 6) (RA) before slaughter at 10 months. At slaughter the fractional breakdown rate of muscle protein was 2.4% in RA compared with 1.6% in AA (P < 0.06). Sensory profiling revealed superior texture of M. semimembranosus from RA compared with AA, whereas M. longissimus was superior in texture from AA compared with RA, with no difference in proteolysis and shear force. In conclusion it was clear that different muscles in terms of tenderness responded very differently to the nutritional manipulation.