Validation of a Combi Oven Cooking Method for Preparation of Chicken Breast Meat for Quality Assessment

ABSTRACT: Quality assessment results of cooked meat can be significantly affected by sample preparation with different cooking techniques. A combi oven is a relatively new cooking technique in the U.S. market. However, there was a lack of published data about its effect on quality measurements of chicken meat. Broiler breast fillets deboned at 24‐h postmortem were cooked with one of the 3 methods to the core temperature of 80 °C. Cooking methods were evaluated based on cooking operation requirements, sensory profiles, Warner–Bratzler (WB) shear and cooking loss. Our results show that the average cooking time for the combi oven was 17 min compared with 31 min for the commercial oven method and 16 min for the hot water method. The combi oven did not result in a significant difference in the WB shear force values, although the cooking loss of the combi oven samples was significantly lower than the commercial oven and hot water samples. Sensory profiles of the combi oven samples did not significantly differ from those of the commercial oven and hot water samples. These results demonstrate that combi oven cooking did not significantly affect sensory profiles and WB shear force measurements of chicken breast muscle compared to the other 2 cooking methods. The combi oven method appears to be an acceptable alternative for preparing chicken breast fillets in a quality assessment.     

Development of artificial neural network-based in-process mixed-material-caused flash monitoring (ANN-IPMFM) system in injection molding

This paper describes the development of an artificial neural network-based in-process mixed-material-caused flash monitoring system (ANN-IPMFM) in the injection molding process. This proposed system integrates two sub-systems. One is the vibration monitoring sub-system that utilizes an accelerometer sensor to collect and process vibration signals during the injection molding process. The other, a threshold prediction sub-system, predicts a control threshold based on the process parameter settings, thus allowing the system to adapt to changes in these settings. The integrated system compares the monitored vibration signals with the control threshold to predict whether or not flash will occur. The performance of the ANN-IPMFM system was determined by using varying ratios of polystyrene (PS) and low-density polyethylene (LDPE) in the injection molding process, and comparing the number of actual occurrences of flash with the number of occurrences predicted by the system. After a 180 trials, results demonstrated that the ANN-IPMFM system could predict flash with 92.7% accuracy.     

Energy security and sustainability in Northeast Asia

“Energy Security” has typically, to those involved in making energy policy, meant mostly securing access to oil and other fossil fuels. With increasingly global, diverse energy markets, however, and increasingly transnational problems resulting from energy transformation and use, old energy security rationales are less salient, and other issues, including climate change and other environmental, economic, and international considerations are becoming increasingly important. As a consequence, a more comprehensive operating definition of “Energy Security” is needed, along with a workable framework for analysis of which future energy paths or scenarios are likely to yield greater Energy Security in a broader, more comprehensive sense. Work done as a part of the Nautilus Institute's “Pacific Asia Regional Energy Security” (PARES) project developed a broader definition of Energy Security, and described an analytical framework designed to help to compare the energy security characteristics – both positive and negative – of different quantitative energy paths as developed using software tools such as the LEAP (Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning) system.     

An integrated dimensionality reduction and surrogate optimization approach for plant-wide chemical process operation

With liquefied natural gas becoming increasingly prevalent as a flexible source of energy, the design and optimization of industrial refrigeration cycles becomes even more important. In this article, we propose an integrated surrogate modeling and optimization framework to model and optimize the complex CryoMan Cascade refrigeration cycle. Dimensionality reduction techniques are used to reduce the large number of process decision variables which are subsequently supplied to an array of Gaussian processes, modeling both the process objective as well as feasibility constraints. Through iterative resampling of the rigorous model, this data-driven surrogate is continually refined and subsequently optimized. This approach was not only able to improve on the results of directly optimizing the process flow sheet but also located the set of optimal operating conditions in only 2 h as opposed to the original 3 weeks, facilitating its use in the operational optimization and enhanced process design of large-scale industrial chemical systems.     

THE THERMAL EXPANSION OF WORTS BETWEEN 60°F AND 20°C AND A GRAVITY LOST TABLE FOR USE AT 20°C

Values reported for the expansion of worts and of sugar solutions are examined and those which are concordant are used in the construction of a Gravity Lost Table for 20°C.     

Training in firearm safety counseling in family practice residency programs

We have studied the function of partial orthotopic liver transplantation in the rat by evaluating prothrombin time (PT), liver blood flow, basal and glucose-stimulated insulin secretion and glucose tolerance, and the reticuloendothelial function (RES) in hepatectomized rats subjected to partial liver transplantation. A graft corresponding to 68% of a normal liver was transplanted to totally hepatectomized rats. Comparison was made between control rats and rats subjected to 32% liver resection. PT was not significantly different in the transplanted group compared with liver-resected and control rats. Laser Doppler flowmetry showed that at 28 days after surgery, blood flow had increased in the transplanted livers. Furthermore, on the third day after transplantation, basal plasma insulin was increased and the plasma insulin response to glucose was exaggerated, suggesting reduced insulin action and impaired insulin degradation. Finally, uptake of radioactive-labeled E. coli bacteria, as a measure of RES function, was not compromised in transplanted animals. Based on these results, we conclude that reduced-size liver transplant in out-bred rats results in fast normalization of liver function after surgery although, immediately after surgery, glucose intolerance is seen.     

Shaping: The Link Between Rats and Robots

The term shaping applies to a family of procedures which were originally developed in animal learning as methods of producing new and sometimes elaborate forms of behavior. The success of operant shaping methods in animal and abnormal psychology has attracted the attention of some roboticists who view these procedures as a means of generating adaptive behavior in both simulated and real robots. This paper outlines the two principal forms of shaping and looks at some of the associative and motivational influences which determine the course and outcome of shaping methods in animals. A number of recent robotic models which incorporate operant shaping concepts are then reviewed in terms of their eff ectiveness; the conclusion from this analysis is that, while some progress has been made, none of these models represent a satisfactory application of animal shaping procedures. It is clear that an effective implementation of shaping methods in behaviorbased robotics requires both a better understanding of the nature and course of shaping in real animals and the development, by roboticists and others, of more sophisticated models which can exploit this improved understanding.     

Arsenate adsorption structures on aluminum oxide and phyllosilicate mineral surfaces in smelter-impacted soils

A clearer understanding of arsenic (As) retention and transport in forest soils impacted by copper smelter emissions may reduce risks to human health and provide insight into As behavior in the vadose zone. On Vashon-Maury Island in Puget Sound, As is predominantly associated with the fine (< 63 microm) fraction of surficial soils. X-ray diffraction of oriented samples from the < 2 microm size fraction indicate that clinochlore isthe dominant phyllosilicate. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) was employed to examine As oxidation state and local coordination environment in impacted soil samples. Arsenic is present as As(V) in tetrahedral coordination with oxygen, associated with aluminum (Al) octahedra in bidentate binuclear (bridging) structures with As-Al distances of 3.15 - 3.16 angstroms. Including multiple scattering (MS) paths derived from the arsenate tetrahedron in esperanzaite significantly improved the match between XAS fine structure (EXAFS) data and models generated from theoretical phase and amplitude functions. The data are interpreted to indicate arsenate adsorption onto poorly crystalline aluminum oxyhydroxides and/or the edges of clinochlore interlayer hydroxyl sheets with constrained geometries causing MS to be important This implies that As initially released from the smelter as particulate As(III) and As(V) oxides was oxidized, dissolved, and adsorbed onto soil minerals and colloids; no evidence for relic arsenic oxide was observed. Physical transport of arsenic oxide particles and As adsorbed on soil colloids may account for limited downward migration of As within the soil column. The oxidizing and mildly acidic pH conditions in the upper vadose zone promote stable sorption complexes; barring substantial changes in soil chemistry, As is not expected to experience significant mobilization.     

The magnetic field problem: A graph-theoretic model

A numerical model for two-dimensional magnetic field problems called the graph-theoretic field model is presented. The theoretical framework of the model places the finite difference and Finite element method in a unifying perspective and brings the solution of magnetic field problems into the well-proven realm of computer-aided design of discrete physical systems. The field distribution in a transformer core is obtained to illustrate the modeling procedure.     

An integrated semicompliant balloon ultrasound catheter for quantitative feedback and image guidance during stent deployment

An integrated balloon ultrasound catheter prototype was designed to image from inside the balloon for real-time guidance during stent deployment. It was fabricated using a semicompliant balloon material (polyethylene) and a 20 MHz, 64-element circumferential ultrasound array. A commercial stent, nominally 4.4 mm in diameter and 12 mm in length, was used for a phantom study and placed along the length of the integrated balloon ultrasound catheter. A rubber phantom was created with an elastic modulus of 175 kPa with a 4.36 mm diameter lumen. Real-time balloon pressure measurements were recorded using a digital pressure sensor, and real-time radio-frequency (RF) data were captured as the balloon was inflated. The slope of the area-pressure ratio (APR) was compared to a reference measure of the balloon and stent expanded in water to determine a measure for optimal stent deployment. The results clearly indicate stent deployment at 11.1 atm using this metric. The APR slope could serve as quantitative feedback parameter for guiding stent deployment to reduce arterial injury and subsequent restenosis. After the stent deployment experiment, RF data were captured as the balloon catheter was moved along the length of the stent in pullback mode to confirm successful stent deployment. Ultimately, an integrated balloon ultrasound catheter could serve as a single catheter intervention device by providing real-time intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging and quantitative feedback during stent deployment.