Cuisine with hot chili peppers can be tasty, but sometimes painful to consume because of the burning sensations caused by the capsaicin molecule. The authors wanted to find the palate reliever that decreases the burning sensation of capsaicin the most by testing water, soft drink, olive oil, milk, and ice-cream as possible candidates. The authors hypothesized that olive oil would be the best palate reliever as it is non-polar like the capsaicin molecule. The authors surveyed 12 panelists with low, medium, and high spice tolerances and found that across all levels of spice tolerance, milk and ice-cream were the best palate relievers and soft drink the worst.
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Spelling Bee: A Study on the Motivation and Learning Strategies Among Elementary and Junior-High Student Competitors
This article investigates the study methodologies, learning strategies, and motives of spelling bee participants. The authors identify several important educational implications of this work.
Read More...Characterization of a UPEC DegS Mutant in vitro and in vivo
DegS is an integral inner membrane protein in E. coli that helps break down misfolded proteins. When it is mutated, there is a large increase in the production of outer membrane vesicles (OMVs), which are thought to play a role in pathogenesis. This study used mutant strains of uropathogenic E. coli (UPEC) to characterize the role of DegS and OMVs on UPEC virulence.
Read More...Identification of a Free Radical Scavenger as an Additive for Lung Transplant Preservation Solution to Inhibit Coagulative Necrosis and Extend Organ Preservation
During transfer of organs from a donor to a patient, the organs deteriorate in part due to damage by free radicals. Application of antioxidant solutions could extend organ preservation times. The authors found that vitamin E and butylated hydroxytoluene seemed to be most effective in arresting cell damage of a bovine lung.
Read More...Does Music Directly Affect a Person’s Heart Rate?
People react to music by moving and dancing. This study examined if different types of music were correlated with higher heart rates and if this was at all affected by music preferences.
Read More...Diamagnetic Solutions Show a Significant Reduction in Flow Rate When Exposed to a Magnetic Field Greater Than or Equal to 0.7 Tesla
There are complex interactions between water and outside forces such as magnetic fields. This study aims to examine the effects of magnetic forces on the flow rate of water. The alteration of flow rate by magnets could have exciting applications in many fields.
Read More...Focusing Sound Waves Using a Two-Dimensional Non-Linear System
Sound waves can be amazingly powerful, especially when they work together. Here the authors create an “acoustic lens” that focuses sound waves on a single location. This makes the sound waves very powerful, capable of causing damage at a precise point. In the future, acoustic lenses like this could potentially be used to treat cancer by killing small tumors without surgery.
Read More...The Effect of Font Type on a School’s Ink Cost
Your choice of font can impact more than style. Here the authors demonstrate that font choice can affect the amount of ink a given print-out requires. The authors estimate that a switch to Garamond font, size 12, by all teachers in his school district would save almost $21,000 annually.
Read More...Sex differences in sleep disorders of Parkinson’s disease patients associated with a genetic risk variant
The authors use known Parkinson's disease-associated genetic variants to compare the prevalence of sleep dysfunction between males and females diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
Read More...Researching the research enthusiasts: examining their motivation and the impact of a successful role model
High school and university students have various motivations for participating in research, ranging from strengthening their applications for university to building skills for a research career. Jubair and Islam survey Bangladeshi high school and university students to uncover their motivations and inspirations for participating in research.
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