Lactic Acid Concentration and Microbial Spoilage in Anaerobically and Aerobically Stored Ground Beef

Lactic acid concentration of coarsely ground beef, packaged in low oxygen permeability casings, is inversely related to sensory acceptability of the meat following regrinding and aerobic storage for six additional days. Samples, reground and stored aerobically after periods of anaerobic storage, were assayed for total aerobic bacterial counts, percentage of gram-positive microflora, and pH. Lactic acid concentration ranged from 130 to 1055 mg per 100g ground beef and increased with anaerobic storage. During 6 days of aerobic storage, both increases and decreases in concentration were noted and related to changes in microbial flora. A positive correlation was found between the proportion of gram-positive bacteria (lactic acid bacteria) and lactic acid and pH.     

Phase Equilibria in the System CaF2-AlF3-Na3AlF6 and Part of the System CaF2-AlF3-Na3AlF6-Al2O3

The complete phase-equilibrium diagram of the system CaF₂-AlF₃-Na₃AlF₆ and the subsolidus portion of the system CaF₂-AlF₃-Na₃AlF₆-Al₂O₃ were established from microscopic, powder X-ray diffraction, quench, and DTA data obtained from samples encapsulated in sealed tubes and either reacted in the solid state or melted and recrystallized. The system Na₃AlF₆-CaF₂ contains a simple eutectic with no compound formation or solid solution. The system CaF₂-AlF₃-Na₃AlF₆ contains two ternary compounds, NaCaAlF₆ and NaCaAl₂F₉, which melt incongruently at 735° and 712°C, respectively; NaCaAlF₆ exists in three polymorphic forms with transitions at 610° and 722°C and NaCaAl₂F₉ is body-centered cubic with a₀= 10.765 Å. The three binary and two ternary compounds divide the system into eight compatibility triangles. Along the NaCaAlF₆-Na₃AlF₆ join, 7 mol% NaCaAlF₆ is soluble in α-cryolite at 525° and 42% in β-cryolite at 731°C. The quaternary system Na₃AlF₆-AlF₃-CaF₂-Al₂O₃ contains eight compatibility tetrahedra.     

A probabilistic alternative to fuzzy logic controllers

Fuzzy logic controllers have been used increasingly in industrial applications. We introduce the probabilistic controller as an alternative to fuzzy logic controllers. The probabilistic controller is a 'universal' controller with a structure closely analogous to a popular type of fuzzy logic controller, but it is not based on fuzzy logic.     

Ascospore Heat Resistance and Control Measures for Talaromyces flaws Isolated From Fruit Juice Concentrate

Talarotnyces flavus were isolated from fruit juice concentrates in two unrelated spoilage incidences of packaged reconstituted fruit juice. The population of survivors in heated fruit concentrate was 0.6 colony forming units (CFU) per gram. The ellipsoidal ascospores diameters were 4.5 ± 6 μm. Potassium sorbate and sodium benzoate prevented outgrowth of T. flavus, the concentration required was lower when the pH of the growth medium was 3.5 instead of 5.4. Conidia were sensitive to 70% ethanol, but ascospores were resistant. Ascospores required heat activation before maximum outgrowth occurred, the time for activation was less with higher activation temperature. Thermal death rate curves were nonlogarithmic but approached logarithmic death rate at higher temperatures. A calculated thermal destruction rate, using the exponential formula, for 1 log₁₀ was 2–7 min at 90°C depending upon the strain; and the approximate z-value was 10.3°C.     

Buttermilk Properties in Emulsions with Soybean Oil as Affected by Fat Globule Membrane-Derived Proteins

The potential utilization of buttermilk from an industrial source was studied in this research, focusing primarily on its composition and use as ingredient in oil-in-water emulsions. Buttermilk contained not only large amounts of caseins and whey proteins, but also material derived from the natural milk fat globule membrane (MFGM). Emulsions made with soybean oil (10% w/w) and buttermilk were stable with a low concentration (about 1% w/w) of buttermilk solids. MFGM-proteins and skim milk proteins did not seem to compete for adsorption at the emulsion interface. The protein adsorbed at the interface was present in an aggregated form and gave a maximum surface coverage of about 8 mg/m².     

Meter as Mechanism: A Neural Network Model that Learns Metrical Patterns

One kind of prosodic structure that apparently underlies both music and some examples of speech production is meter. Yet detailed measurements of the timing of both music and speech show that the nested periodicities that define metrical structure can be quite noisy in time. What kind of system could produce or perceive such variable metrical timing patterns? And what would it take to be able to store and reproduce particular metrical patterns from long-term memory? We have developed a network of coupled oscillators that both produces and perceives patterns of pulses that conform to particular meters. In addition, beginning with an initial state with no biases, it can learn to prefer the particular meter that it has been previously exposed to.