Applications of the cyclone stickiness test for characterization of stickiness in food powders

The cyclone stickiness test (CST) technique was applied to measure the stickiness temperature and relative humidity of whey, honey, and apple juice powders. A moisture sorption isotherm study was conducted to analyze the surface moisture content of whey powder. The glass transition temperatures of the sample powder were analyzed using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The stickiness results of these products were found within 20 degrees C above their surface glass transition temperatures, which is well within the normal temperature range for glass transition in general. The results obtained by the CST technique were found consistent with DSC values.

Applications of Thermal Mechanical Compression Tests in food powder analysis

A new Thermal Mechanical Compression Test (TMCT) was applied for glass-rubber transition and melting analyses of food powders and crystals. The TMCT technique measures the phase change of a material based on mechanical changes during the transition. Whey, honey, and apple juice powders were analyzed for their glass-rubber transition temperatures. Sucrose and glucose monohydrate crystals were analyzed for their melting temperatures. The results were compared to the values obtained by conventional DSC and TMA techniques. The new TMCT technique provided the results that were very close to the conventional techniques. This technique can be an alternative to analyze glass-rubber transition of food, pharmaceutical, and chemical dry products.

Dominance hierarchies and health: Constructing personal zones of spiritual power and healing in modern medicine

Ethological studies of animals in groups and sociobiology indicate that hierarchies of dominance amongst some species ensure the survival of the group. When transferred to human groups, dominance hierarchies suggest a crucial role played by recasting the scope of such hierarchies of dominant and subordinate members to included hyper-dominant beings. A recognition of such beings as even more dominant than the socially dominant members of a hierarchy facilitates the empowerment of the socially subordinate members. Religious belief and practice works to establish such hyper-dominant beings (gods, goddesses, and so forth) as superior members of human groups. Doing so is a means of ensuring the survival of the species and, thus, enhancing healing and human health. The doctor-patient relationship is examined from such a point of view, with an emphasis on whether the hierarchy created by the relationship allows consideration of alternative and complementary forms of medical treatment.