Army Crew Team Case Analysis Essay

Colonel Stas Preczewski, better known as Coach P., was the coach of the Army Crew Team for the United States Military Academy at West Point. He was responsible for managing two teams of rowers for the 2000 meter race. They were the Varsity and Junior Varsity (JV) teams and consisted of eight rowers per crew. The 2000 meter races are considered to be very rigorous and could also be compared to playing two basketball games. Because rowing can be so exhausting, the sport requires a lot of endurance and strength to be successful. It is also important to focus on the psychological aspects of this sport. According to a survey that was done by the U.S. Olympic Committee, coaches with at least four years’ experience felt that psychological aspects should be focused on as part of coaching a successful and winning crew. Teamwork was considered essential for all of the rowers. If a rower only thought about his technique, it could potentially slow the entire boat down because the team wou ld no longer be synchronized. All crew members must also have trust in one another. The Army Crew Team of 2001-2002 had gone through extensive training year-round to prepare for the National Championships that are held in spring. In winter they spend time building strength by lifting weights and perfecting technique by practicing on the Ergometer, or ‘erg,’ which is a measuring tool for rowers to determine individual technique and endurance. In the spring they went on a retreat to Atlanta where ultimately Coach P. would determine the members who would fulfill the Varsity and JV teams. Coach P. determined the teams by using a system referred to as ‘seat racing,’ the same method that is used in selecting rowers for the Olympics. He determined the members of the Varsity team by taking the top eight scores for individual strength, with the exception of two men. One was more self-absorbed and was only concerned with his own success, and the other did not have a strong technique. After he chose the teams, they raced each other and the Varsity team won, which confirmed his evaluation. Immediately when they got back to training on the Hudson River, the Varsity team was unhappy because they did not beat the JV team by a greater margin at the retreat, and Coach P. thought that they were just striving for excellence. However, throughout the spring, the JV team was consistently beating the Varsity team. Coach P. was concerned with this and did more testing, which revealed that the Varsity team was stronger and  had more endurance then the JV team. He could not figure out why this was the case. He, along with his assistant, determined that there were many more team disrupters on the Varsity team, and there were no team disrupters on the JV team. They then brought in members from the Center for Enhanced Performance, who could help with building team and individual performance. The JV team took well to this and employed the techniques for building new attitudes and confidence, but the Varsity did not seem to do this and felt that any positive display towards one another was too ‘touchy feely.’ The JV team continued to beat the Varsity team. After each race the Varsity team would heavily critique one another on an individual level. The JV team only focused on displaying inspirational sayings such as â€Å"we will succeed together, we will fail together.† The Varsity team and Coach P. were looking for answers. Problem The Varsity team was not winning races because they did not know how to work well with each other and work as a team. This is something that the JV team was able to do very effectively. It has been proven through many findings in research that people perform better if they exhibit teamwork (Chieh-Wen, Yi-Fan & MingChia, 2010). When a team works together, it enhances the quality of the work and instills trust and satisfaction in the team members (Chieh-Wen, Yi-Fan & MingChia, 2010). It was very apparent that the Varsity team was not happy with the outcomes of any of their races, including the first race they had against the JV team. Throughout the season the Varsity team was not working well together, which translated into poor performance. Trust is also very important for effective teamwork. Welch and Welch (2011) state in the article â€Å"How to Build a Winning Team† that when a winning team â€Å"is infused with trust, people play to their better angles. They share ideas freely (p. 2).† Clearly the Varsity team had opinions about each other, however, they were not encouraged to state their problems directly to each other, they were to direct the questions to Coach P. Each of the members of the Varsity team were selected because of their strength and endurance, so most of them thought that they were the best, and it almost seems as if they did not trust that any of the other teammates were as good. This could also be explained when Coach P. examined both the JV and Varsity  teams strengths and weaknesses and determined that the Varsity team consisted of many team disrupters, or people that either talk too much or criticize others during practice. The article called â€Å"Nurturing Interpersonal Trust in Knowledge-Sharing Networks† (2003) also talks about two dimensions of trust. One dimension is benevolence, or the idea that people feel that they are being cared about and have an interest in their well-being and the other is competence, which is that the person has relevant expertise and can be depended on to know information (Abrams, Cross, Lesser, and Levin). These are two important aspects to teamwork that are clearly an issue impacting the Varsity team. The Varsity team also felt that at one point in the season Coach P. was trying to create a rivalry between the two teams which is why they had to row against each other in practice so often. A member of the Varsity team felt that it was unnerving that they had to compete against the JV team, almost like making them off of their game. They had no clear direction as to where the team was going, no proper leadership to direct them. â€Å"In groups that had high levels of collaborative behavior, the team leaders clearly made a significant difference (Gratton, Erickson p. 106, 2007).† It is important to have leadership and direction. The Varsity team did not have any members who did this nor did they feel that their coach was always supportive. The problem lies with the lack of teamwork within the Varsity team. They did not have proper leadership or trust to be able to be a winning team. The Varsity team continues to be beaten by the JV team due to the lack of teamwork. Being in synch is what rowing is all about, and they are not able to do this. The dictionary defines teamwork as â€Å"cooperative or coordinated effort on the part of a group of persons acting together as a team or in the interest of a common cause.† Solutions Coach P. must determine what to do with the Varsity team and he is faced with three options. The first option would be to switch the Varsity and JV boats. Second, he could switch individual members from each boat. Finally, he could keep everything as is, and try to increase the Varsity boat’s  performance so that they start to win. Each option will be evaluated based on several criteria. The ultimate goal of Coach P. and all of the team members is to develop a winning team. Each option must be evaluated on whether the chosen team will maximize its performance and win races. Also is there enough time to make the changes necessary to win? Timing is important because there were only four days until the National Championships. Can there be a positive relationship between team members with each option? The important aspect to focus on is whether or not the relationships can maintain or be mended. Having positive relationships are directly related to the importance of teamwork and whether or not positive teamwork will happen at all. The first option to be evaluated is the possibility of switching the Varsity and JV boats. The team members on the JV team were assigned to that boat because their performance, individually, was not as good as the members who were initially chosen for the Varsity team. With the exception of two members on the JV team, they consisted of members who were not nearly as strong, had less endurance and were also technically not as good as the Varsity team. It would be fairly easy to make this adjustment so timing would not be an issue since and could be easily done within four days. Will the relationship between both of the boats change if the boats were switched? There is a possibility that the JV teams relationship would change because they initially thought that they had nothing to lose being on the JV team. If they were to be named the new Varsity team, personalities could change because of the increased stress level since they no longer will have the ‘nothing to lose’ feeling. Even one of the members from the JV team were not chosen for the Varsity team initially because of his focus was on individual performance, and he was also critical of others, and these reactions could be reignited if the switch was made. Coach P. could switch individual team members between boats. Based on documented results, Coach P. specifically chose the Varsity boat due to their strength and endurance. Since there were a few members that were also very strong on the JV team, the switch could still keep the performance at a high level. The rower that struggled with technique could maybe improve on  performance if he were with other members that were just as strong. Being in synch is something that is extremely important in rowing, and if a team is not able to do this, they will not be successful. Timing could be an issue with this option since they only have four days to learn how to work with one another. Trust could be a problem as well since they have not worked with each other on a consistent basis. Because of the short amount of time that they have to work with one another, it can also have a negative effect on the relationship of the team. Psychological factors are important to the success of any rowing team and they could be compromised, especially the original members of the Varsity team. They will feel even more beat down. Coach P. has already tested this option and the JV team members had a difficult time getting along with the Varsity members. Finally, Coach P. could not make any adjustment between the JV and Varsity teams and try to focus on getting the Varsity team to work with one another. The members of the Varsity team were evaluated at the Atlanta retreat by Coach P. and he determined that they were the strongest, had the most endurance, and had the best technique. This is the reason that they were chosen for the Varsity team in the first place, so the performance potential is definitely present in each of the Varsity team members. Timing is something that could be an issue because it might be questioned as to how can the Varsity team learn to work with each other in four days if they were unable to work well as a team up until then? Four days is a very short time frame to develop trust in one another. This is also important in determining whether or not the relationship could be mended. Coach P. has already tried to work on building a more positive relationship that would enhance performance when he brought in a person from the Center for Enhanced Performance to specifically work on building their confidence in one another. When Coach P. initially selected the teams, he did not see that there were ‘team disrupters’ even though he did see that in members that he did not select for the Varsity team and purposely put them on the JV team. This shows that there may be potential in mending the relationships, if Coach P.’s initial analyses were correct. Recommendations and Plan of Action Coach P. should keep the Varsity team as-is and try to build on the  teamwork. The main reason is because in his initial analysis at the Atlanta retreat he had determined that they are in fact the strongest, have the most endurance and technically are the best rowers out of the sixteen men. If he were to switch the boats, it is almost like settling for second best since he knows that they are not the best performers. The relationships are also something that could be of issue in the other two options. It is unknown that the relationship will maintain if the JV team boat were switched, and it was clear that if individual team members were switched that they did not work well with each other through the initial tests that done by Coach P. Coach P. needs to realize that he needs to stand in front of his team to help influence them to perform better and find ways so that they can work well together. â€Å"Research findings demonstrate that perceived team support significantly influenc es teamwork behavior and trust (Cheih-Wen, Yi-Fang &Ming-Cha, 2010).† Since they do not have trust in their coach at all times, based on discussions that they had when they were pinning their failures on their coach, how can they develop trust in one another? Coach P. has put a lot of pressure on them to be a winning team. Along with that pressure, comes more criticism. Coach P. asked that each of the team members only go to him when they have negative things to say about another team member and the Varsity team would email him on a consistent basis. Open and honest communication is extremely important when building trust with one another and if Coach P. is only asking his team to come to him with negative comments, this is not endorsing an open and honest line of communication (Byrne 1999). It does not seem that the Varsity team was able to build any personal connections. Learning what one another has in common on a personal level rather than just a competitive level could help with building that trust (Abrams, Cross, Lesser & Levin 2003). If Coach P. would help with facilitating more personal relationships, they may learn to work well together, even possibly quickly. The process of teamwork â€Å"requires spending time together as a team and making that time enjoyable. By coaching, training together, establishing common goals†¦and having fun together† teams can accomplish a lot together (Byrne, 1999). They need to find something that is fun to do rather than just concentrate on the seriousness of competition. Personal connections  can help develop a care for one another and also more approachable when there are more serious issues that are needed to be discussed (Abrams, Cross, Lesser and Levin, 2003). If the Varsity team is able to laugh together, they will be able to communicate on a more positive level and develop teamwork. In the future, Coach P. should focus developing personal connections with his team earlier on. They will develop trust and positive teamwork that will translate onto the water where they can be more in synch. Conclusion The Varsity Army Crew team did not know how to work well together as a team albeit they were great performers individually. They were not able to beat the JV team, who exhibited a great amount of teamwork even though they were not as strong performers individually. The varsity team was too critical of one another and had no personal connection. After evaluating several options as to what Coach P. should do days before the National Championships, it was determined that he should try to work things out with the Varsity team so that they could work together more cohesively. If they are able to work together as a team, their outstanding strength, endurance and technique should translate to success as a winning team.

A Property of the Clan Essay

I have chosen to explore the theme of Peer Pressure from the text â€Å"A property of the clan† and the film â€Å"Thirteen†. In â€Å"A property of the clan† peer pressure plays a major part in the unfortunate events that unravelled within the play. This is most evident in the scene, when no one knew what had actually happened that night of the party, except those who had committed the act, and Jared. Page 28, Jared confesses to Ricko that he had witnessed the raping of Tracy that night at Black Rock.But Jared had not said anything to anyone as those who committed the felony, were in fact his friends. Jared tells Ricko â€Å"It's a madhouse. Davo and them running round saying don't be a dobber, and then the posters on telegraph poles. Shame Black Rock Shame. † This cleary portrays peer pressure as he feels as though he needs to refrain from telling the truth, to not be labelled a snitch. And he is put under more pressure considering the fact that they are his friends, and he believes that he cannot go against them, even if it is the right thing to do.After Jared tells Ricko what he had saw, Ricko gets defensive and tells Jared to keep his mouth shut. â€Å"Forget you even saw it. Nobody knows you were there. It's just the way things happen. †. Jared respons with â€Å"All right! † This represents peer pressure as Jared is put on the spot and being hassled not to tell anyone what he had seen. Jared's response with â€Å"All right! † shows him giving into peer pressure and is listening to what they are telling him to do. Powerlessness is shown in this scene by the main character Jared, as he is the vitim in the situation.This is shown mainly with the use of language techniques. For instance, page 31, â€Å"Not a word. Not a name. Not a single fucking name. Get it? † says Ricko. The use of slang and cursive lauguage by Ricko portrays aggressiveness toward Jared, putting Jared in a powerless state as he liste ns and just goes with it, not saying one word. Also, this use of launguage portrays Ricko's assertivness and puts Jared in a state where he cannot do anything about it, and that he has to listen to him. He is powerless in the situation.My poster promotes peer pressure through visual techniques such as juxaposition. This is evident as in the background, the people are positioned close together as a group, to show isolation and power over the main image of the girl. Also the use of colour is simple but eye-catching as it creates the focal point (girl) due to the contrast in colour (black and white). This layout portrays how in the play, Jared is left to decide for himself, whether he should do the right thing, or stick by his peers. Peer pressure also plays a huge role in the film â€Å"Thirteen†.Tracy (7th grader) becomes friends with the most popular girl in school, Evie, and is introduced to drugs, alcohol and sex. But Peer pressure was first and most evident when Tracy firs t hung out with Evie at a popular clothing store. Tracy shockingly witnesses Evie and her friend stealing clothing and accessories but steps outside the store as she knew it was wrong, and was laughed at and looked down by them. She had a moment to herself and thought about what had just happened. Ironically, a woman then sat next to her, and put her purse down. Tracy had a thought to herself.And only moments later, reunites with Evie, showing the wallet she had stolen and all the money that was inside. Evie's attitude toward Tracy was flipped and was then happily welcomed by her. This shows a form of peer power as Tracy is felt unwelcomed and as if she weren't fitting in, leading her to feel pressured into stealing aswell. Both power and powerlessness is shown by the main character Tracy in this scene. Powerlessness is shown through the technique juxtaposition, as Evie and her friend are always positioned close together, where as Tracy is always by herself ; portraying power over T racy.But at the end of this scene, when Tracy decided to steal the purse, she was welcomed by Evie and the use of up-beat music showed power as they walked happily together; ending the scene. Again, my poster promotes the theme of peer pressure through visual techniques such as colour. The colour of the people in the background are coloured in a shade of black, to contrast with the main image of the person in the foreground, to represent isolation and power over her. Also, the gestures made by the main image, (e. g. er stance and facials) show the feel of uneasiness in the situation, as she is under pressure by her peers. This contrasting image reflects how in the film, Tracy felt powerless and also uneasy about the situation she was in, but eventually gave in due to her peers. To conclude, peer pressure is clearly present in both the related texts â€Å"A Porperty of the Clan† and the film† thirteen†. Peer pressure is an inevitable part of life, which everyone wi ll evetually encounter; And these both these texts show the consequences of such.

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Eating Disorders Research paper Essay Example for Free

Eating Disorders Research paper Essay Eating disorders are considered critical attitudes, emotions, and eating behaviors. Minimized food intake, overeating, and the perceptions of body image, weight, and shape are some examples. There can be contributing factors and influences that develop the idea of an eating disorder. There are three types of eating disorders, binge eating disorder, anorexia nervosa, and bulimia nervosa. The two most common forms are anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. According to the National Eating Disorder Association, â€Å"25% of girls 12-18 years old were reported to be engaged in problematic food and weight behavior† And in men and boys, according to the website nimh. nih.gov, â€Å"one in four preadolescent cases of Anorexia occurs in boys, and binge-eating disorder affects females and males about equally†. While the causes aren’t concise, some contributions can be cultural, personal characteristics, stress events or life changes, family, peers, and media. Individuals of low self-esteem or feeling useless can be a big contribution. For most adolescents they tend to compare themselves to others and they can develop an eating disorder because of this aspect. For example if their friends have an eating disorder they may develop one because they want to fit it. Some adolescents can develop an eating disorder from a stressful event such as; teasing, transition from middle school to high school, or a more traumatic event like rape. Families can even contribute to a teen developing an eating disorder. If parents are fighting a lot or may be considering divorce, this can be stressful and some adolescents handle it by not eating or induce vomiting as a means to obtain control over their parents in the household or gain back the attention. If the adolescent seems to feel like their life is spiraling out of control, they may feel like an eating disorder is a way to gain that control back. Also family studies show that anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorders do run in families. The heritability of anorexia nervosa is around 60%, and of bulimia nervosa can be 28 and 80%. For binge eating disorder currently it is 41%. According to some studies conducted across  countries eating disorders can be influenced by genetic factors. Another large contribution to eating disorders is our societal views. According to the National Eating Disorder Association, we develop these ideas, beliefs, and attitudes about what is acceptable according to our culture. To put this into perspective if our culture says your beautiful when you skinny, then some people believe that if they’re not skinny, they aren’t beautiful. Essentially since girls are generally valued for their appearance, they are likely the ones to internalize this idea into their thought process. The media also plays a role in the cultural and societal acceptance. A couple of examples that are very common are models and movie stars. Most often models are in every magazine, on every billboard, and in most commercials. Even T.V. shows like America’s Next Top Model gives children at a young age what the idea of â€Å"beautiful† is. Most movie stars aren’t overweight, which generally can contribute to both males and females being self-conscious about what the ideal appearance should be. There are three kinds of aspects that deal with the development of an eating disorder; behavioral, mental, and physical. The National Eating Disorder Association explains the more we focus on thoughts and feelings of our weight and how we look the more we may be missing out on life overall. When we focus on weight and body image, it can become an obsession, which can contribute to emotional and physical issues. The mental aspect of an eating disorder focuses on the opinion of yourself or your self- esteem. Self-esteem and body image both go hand in hand when it comes to one’s body. Eating disorders not only deal with the mental and behavioral aspects, but those of physical as well can contribute. Anorexia and Bulimia can lead to serious health problems such as kidney failure, heart problems, dehydration, and in excessive cases malnutrition, which can lead to death. A study by the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders reported that, â€Å"The mortal ity rate associated with Anorexia nervosa is twelve times higher than the death rate associated with all causes of death for females 15-24 years old.† Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder in which results in thinness through starvation. It has the highest mortality rate of any psychological disorder, although we know little about the causes of this disorder. Generally the standard cause of death includes both  effects of starvation and suicide. This is disorder is also known as a visible eating disorder, because most are noticeably thin, although some hide their thinness with big clothes or wearing layers. During this time this individual is not maintaining a normal or healthy weight for their age, height, or gender. Anorexia nervosa tends to have two forms first being starvation or restricting. These individuals reduce their caloric intake and increase physical activity to maintain an abnormally low weight. When your body goes into starvation mode, it can alter your body. The second form is either binge eating, purging, or can be both. When anorexia nervosa is in its early stage these behaviors were seen in over half of the individuals. During anorexia nervosa a person can come to weigh less than 85% of the ideal body weight. Anorexia tends to occur during early adolescence or 10-12 years old. People who suffer from anorexia suffer from not only physical illness, but psychiatric too. Some include cognitive impairment, body-checking, low self-esteem, self-absorption, ritualistic behaviors, extreme perfectionism, and self-consciousness. The two most common psychiatric illnesses with anorexia are depression and anxiety. Some physical symptoms that may occur or develop over time are electrolyte imbalances (sodium and potassium levels), osteoporosis (decreased bone density), lanugo hair, dry brittle hair, low body temperature, low blood pressure, slowed heart rate, growth retardation, bloating, constipation, fidgeting, and loss of tooth enamel and dentin, and dehydration. However, the official diagnosis of anorexia nervosa in females requires the absence of menstruation (amenorrhea), for at least three consecutive months. The deficiency of menstruation is a normal response to starvation and weight loss and the body will then shut down the reproductive functions. Treatment plans of Anorexia nervosa often depend on the individual’s needs which may include medical care and supervision, nutritional counseling and therapy. If they have had severe weight loss, hospitalization is essential to get them back to an appropriate weight. This individual will need assistance in developing new patterns of thought process in their eating patterns. The earlier detected the less treatment necessary. Depending on the individual and the amount of time they have had the eating disorder; treatment can take a short or long period of time. Each person varies in the recovering process of the disorder. According to the National  Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, â€Å"Only 1 in 10 men and women with eating disorders receive treatment. Only 35% of people that receive that treatment for eating disorders get treatment at a specialized facility for eating disorders.† Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder that is characterized by a binge and purge pattern. Unlike Anorexia, people who have Bulimia can be at a normal weight range, but still have that fear of weight gain and they are generally very unhappy with their body image, shape, and size. It is also an invisible eating disorder, because individuals are usually of normal weight or over-weight. It can be difficult to place a caloric intake on a binge, but most agree around 1,000 calories is the minimum; however it can be up to 20,000 calories. Bulimia, unlike Anorexia, usually occurs during late adolescence or early adulthood, about 18-22 years old. These individuals persistently follow the pattern of binging in combination with some form of compensatory behavior, which is intended to reverse the effects of the binge or prevent weight gain. Compensatory behaviors include actions such as; self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, diuretics, or other agents, fasting, and excessive exercise. The behavior of Bulimia may not be obvious because they do it in secrecy, because they feel a sense of shame and sickness of what they did. This pattern of binging and purging most likely occurs several times a week. Some data addresses a theory that individuals born after 1960 are at greater risk for the disorder, because it is more of a â€Å"modern occurrence† than anorexia. Usually more common in urban areas which suggests that environmental exposure and social learning play a role in the development of this disorder. This disorder is 9 times more common in females than males. Coincidentally, people with Bulimia also have psychiatric and physical aspects. It is estimated that 80% of individuals with bulimia have another psychiatric disorder. The psychiatric features are depression, anxiety, low self-esteem, extreme perfectionism, self-consciousness, irritability, impulsive spending, shoplifting, and may or may not have substance abuse problems, although the most common are anxiety disorders, major depression, substance use, and personality disorders. The two most common personality features those similar to those who have anorexia nervosa, perfectionism and low self-esteem. People with bulimia are likely to be more impulsive and have higher stimulus or sensation-seeking behavior. They also have a  tendency to exhibit more erratic and impulsive traits. Some physical symptoms of bulimia include; dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, kidney problems, inflamed sore throat from purging, acid reflux, swollen parotid glands, gastrointestinal complications, irregular menstruation, constipation, bloating, sensitive and decaying teeth and tooth enamel from stomach acids. Like Anorexia the treatment for Bulimia is essential for the individual’s health. For Bulimia there are a few more options such as; reducing or ending the binging or purging pattern, nutritional counseling, and cognitive behavioral therapy, prescribing medication, and accessing reasons for the illness. About 70% of people who have the disorder of Bulimia recover from it. According to the DSM the criteria is specific for anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. However, most people who have eating disorders do not meet the criteria. There is a different way of diagnosing these particular individuals which is by the Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS). According to the textbook, Abnormal Psychology the â€Å"DSM-IV lists six examples of how the symptoms of EDNOS differ from those of the other disorders. Patients may have: 1. all features of anorexia nervosa except amenorrhea. 2. all features of anorexia nervosa except drastic weight loss. 3. all criteria for bulimia nervosa except frequency of binge eating or purging or duration of 3 months. 4. regular, inappropriate compensatory behavior after eating small amounts of food. 5. chewing and spitting out food (purging disorder). 6. binge eating disorder (binging without compensatory behavior.† Binge eating disorder is characterized by regular binge eating behaviors, but without the compensatory behaviors. Binge eating disorder or BED is a recent addition to the DSM, and is not yet an official psychiatric disorder. Since it was a recent addition little is known about its morbidity and mortality. Some research indicates that a person can be ill with BED for approximately 14.4 years which may suggest that BED is not just a temporary stage. The two most common forms of psychiatric disorders are depression and anxiety like most other eating disorders. Of females 3.5% meet the criteria of BED and of males 2%. BED is also found in approximately 5 to 8% of obese individuals. Eating disorders in females and males as discussed are not generally similar. In anorexia nervosa women and girls are more common to have this disorder than men and boys, essentially the ratio being 9 to 1. Many different theories  have been presented as to why it affects women more than men. The most effici ent theory is believed to be the increased pressure on females to have the ideal appearance or the â€Å"perfection† of the female body. Even though bulimia nervosa is also approximately 9 to 1, women to men can be somewhat sex-biased. Men tend to rely on nonpurging forms of compensatory behavior after binge eating, rather use excessive exercise. It is male athletes that feel pressured to remain thin and fit and focus on their weight and body shape excessively. For binge eating disorder the sex ratio is equally balanced. The developmental factors of eating disorders can assist in determining the causes as well. In anorexia nervosa it generally uncommon during childhood, although it is occurring increasingly. Bulimia nervosa is usually seldom conveyed before puberty. In anorexia nervosa the disorder itself and the associated symptoms can lead to isolation from peers and family. It can also have negative effects on the family emotionally and financially. The parents especially undergo extreme anxiety and struggle to understand why their children are doing this to themselves and their body. All this stress and financial difficulties with the expense of treatment can weaken or ruin a family’s functioning. For bu limia girls who develop mature figures earlier than their peers may develop disappointment, which can lead to earlier experimentation to design controlled eating and weight, which could very well increase the risk of an eating disorder. Binge eating generally begins in late adolescence or early adulthood. There are many treatments for eating disorders, the treatment goals for individuals with anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder differ somewhat, although there are some aspects in common. The treatment goal of anorexia nervosa are increased caloric intake and weight gain so later treatments for psychological aspects of this disorder can be dealt with more effectively. For bulimia nervosa the focus is on the normalization of eating, elimination of binge eating and purging, and improvement of the psychological aspects of the disorder as well. For binge eating disorder individuals who are overweight the goal is to elimination of binge eating and normalization of eating. Also either weight stabilization or weight loss can be effective. In anorexia nervosa inpatient treatment can be accomplished by having a disciplined team to succeed. The first and most important step is weight restoration. Weight is generally not the only  factor to consider some other crucial factors such as medical complications, suicide attempts or plans, failure to improve with outpatient treatment, interference with school, work, or family, and pregnancy. Inpatient treatment is very difficult for the patient and the family as the patient is feared of giving up the symptoms, essentially the patient could have developed a phobia of food. It is important for the doctor to create a safe environment to make the patient feel safe and to also obtain the patients trust to make the hospitalization a success. Biological treatments include medications to assist in the cure of the disorder or assist in decreased symptoms of the disorder. Medications prescribed for anorexia nervosa have shown to be ineffective currently. In bulimia nervosa fluoxetine (Prozac) has been known to decrease the core symptoms of binge eating and purging and associated psycho logical features such as depression and anxiety. The FDA approved the treatment of fluoxetine for the treatment of bulimia nervosa, but for no other eating disorders. Although fluoxetine reduces the symptoms it is still not found to reduce or have permanent remission on long-lasting effects. A treatment that is necessary but not a sufficient intervention for all eating disorders is nutritional counseling. An additional treatment that helps individuals change their thinking patterns that contribute to their problem is cognitive-behavioral therapy or (CBT). Recovery rates with CBT wavy from 35-75% at five or more years of follow-up. For anorexia nervosa some evidence suggests that CBT may reduce relapse in adults after weight has been restored. However it’s unclear how effective CBT is with individuals who are extremely underweight. For bulimia nervosa the basis of CBT is self-monitoring. The individuals keep track of what they eat, the situation they were in, and their thoughts and feelings. CBT focuses extensively on relapse prevention for all eating disorders. It is also an effective treatment for a binge eating disorder. Binge eating disorders may first be offered a help-book or an online cognitive-behavioral program online to use at their own pace. For the family theories of anorexia nervosa a family-based intervention is directed to change the dysfunction of the family. This therapy can assist the family in being around healthier and a place to have open communication. Some modern approaches to family therapy for anorexia nervosa include conjoint family therapy, separated family therapy, parent training, and the Maudsley method,  which focuses on parental control of the initial stages of renutrion. The seven values include working with experts who know how to help you, working together as a family, to not blame your child or yourself for the problems you are having, focusing on the problem before you, not debating with your child about eating or weight-related concerns, knowing when to begin backing off, and taking care of yourself because you are the child’s best hope. In conclusion I have discussed and explained the three types of eating disorders; anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder. I explained what factors can contribute to the development of an eating disorder. I deliberated three aspects of eating disorders such as the mental, behavioral, and physical. The analyzed the three eating disorders and gave a definition for each. I gave various personalities and other psychological dysfunctions that can come along with eating disorders. I expressed the sex ratios and developmental factors of eating disorders and explained the contributing factors for each. Also in discussing the symptoms of eating disorders lastly I identified some treatments that can assist in reducing symptoms and essentially preventing relapse. Some treatments that were acknowledged are inpatient treatment, biological treatments, nutritional counseling, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and family-based interventions. Works Cited About eating disorders. (n.d.). Retrieved from National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders website: http://www.anad.org/â€Å'get-information/â€Å'about-eating-disorders/â€Å'bulimia-nervosa/ Body Image: Loving Yourself Inside and Out. (n.d.). Retrieved from The National Women’s Health Information Center website: http://www.womenshealth.gov/â€Å'bodyimage/â€Å'eatingdisorders/ Eating Disorders. (2008). Retrieved from National Eating Disorder Information Centre website: http://www.nedic.ca/ Eating Disorders: anorexia nervosa, binge eating, and bulimia nervosa. (n.d.). Retrieved from U.S. Library of Medicine, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health website: www.nlm.nih.gov/â€Å'medlineplus/â€Å'eatingdisorders.html Eating disorder statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved from

Ohmic Heating in Food Preservation

Ohmic Heating in Food Preservation Ohmic heating is also known as joule heating, electric resistance heating, direct electric heating, electro heating and electro conductive heating. It is a process in which alternating electric current is passed through food material to heat them. Heat is internally generated within the material owing to the applied electrical current. In conventional heating, heat transfer occurs from a heated surface to the product interior by the means of convection and conduction and is time consuming especially with longer conduction or convection paths that may exist in the heating process. Elecroresistive or ohmic heating is volumetric in nature and thus has the potential to reduce over processing by virtue of its inside-outside heat transfer pattern. Ohmic heating is distinguished from other electrical heating method by the presence of electrodes contacting the food by frequency or by waveform. Ohmic heating is not a new technology; it was used as a commercial process in the early twentieth century for the pasteurization of milk. However, the electro pure process was discontinued between the late 1930s and 1960s ostensibly because of the prohibitive cost of the electricity and a lack of suitable electrode material. Interest in ohmic heating was rekindled in the 1980s, when investigators were searching for viable methods to effectively sterilize liquid- large particle mixtures, a scenario for which aseptic processing alone was unsatisfactory. (Rahman, 1999) Ohmic heating is one of the newest methods of heating foods. It is often desirable to heat foods in a continuous system such as heat exchanger rather than in batches as in a kettle or after sealing in a can. Continuous systems have the advantage that they produce less heat damage in the product, are more efficient, and they can be coupled to aseptic packaging systems. Continuous heating systems for fluid foods that contain small particles have been available for many years. However, it is much more difficult to safely heat liquids containing larger particles of food. This is because it is very difficult to determine if a given particle of food has received sufficient heat to be commercially sterile. This is especially critical for low acid foods such as Beef stew which might cause fatal food poisoning if under heated. Products tend to become over processed if conventional heat exchangers are used to add sufficient heat to particulate foods. This concern has hindered the development o f aseptic packaging for foods containing particulates. Ohmic heating may over come some of these difficulties and limitations. Considerable heat is generated when an alternating electric current is passed through a conducting solution such as a salt brine. In ohmic heating a low-frequency alternating current of 50 or 60 Hz is combined with special electrodes. Products in a conducting solution (nearly all polar food liquids are conductors) are continuously passed between these electrodes. In most cases the product is passed between several sets of electrodes, each of which raise the temperature. After heating, products can be cooled in a continuous heat exchanger and then aseptically filled into presterlized containers in a manner similar to conventional aseptic packaging. Both high and low- acid products can be processed by this method. (Potter et al, 2006) An advancement in the thermal processing is ohmic heating. In principle, electricenegy is transformed into thermal energy uniformly throughout the product. Rapid heating results, and better nutritional and organoleptic qualities are possible when compared with conventional in -can sterilization. Ohmic heating employs electrodes immersed on pipe, Quass says. Product is pumped through the pipe as current flows between the electrodes. Depth of penetration is not limited. The extent of heating is determined by the electrical conductivity through the product, plus residence time in the electric field. ohmic heating is useful for foods thus burn-on or have particulates that plug up heat exchangers, continues Quass. Instead of using a scraped surface heat exchanger for stew, for example, ohmic heating can reduce the come-up time, and improve product quality. Ohmic heating is defined as a process wherein (primarily alternating) electric currents are passed through foods or other materials with the primary purpose of heating them. The heating occurs in the form of internal energy generation within the material. Ohmic heating is distinguished from other electrical heating methods either by the presence of electrodes contacting the food (as opposed to microwave and inductive heating, where electrodes are absent), frequency (unrestricted, except for the specially assigned radio or microwave frequency range), and waveform (also unrestricted, although typically sinusoidal).In inductive heating, electric coils placed near the food product generate oscillating electromagnetic fields that send electric currents through the food, again primarily to heat it. Such fields may be generated in various ways, including the use of the flowing food material as the secondary coil of a transformer. Inductive heating may be distinguished from microwave heating by the frequency (specifically assigned in the case of microwaves), and the nature of the source (the need for coils and magnets for generation of the field, in the case of inductive heating, and a magnetron for microwave heating).Information on inductive heating is extremely limited. A project was conducted in the mid-1990s at the Technical University of Munich (Rosenbauer 1997), under sponsorship from the Electric Power Research Institute. No data about microbial death kinetics under inductive heating were published. Thus, the succeeding discussion focuses on ohmic heating. A large number of potential future applications exist for ohmic heating, including its use in blanching, evaporation, dehydration, fermentation, and extraction. The present discussion, however, concerns primarily its application as a heat treatment for microbial control. In this sense, the main advantages claimed for ohmic heating are rapid and relatively uniform heating. Ohmic heating is currently being used for processing of whole fruits in Japan and the United Kingdom. One commercial facility in the United States uses ohmic heating for the processing of liquid egg. The principal advantage claimed for ohmic heating is its ability to heat materials rapidly and uniformly, including products c ontaining particulates. This is expected to reduce the total thermal abuse to the product in comparison to conventional heating, where time must be allowed for heat penetration to occur to the center of a material and particulates heat slower than the fluid phase of a food. In ohmic heating, particles can be made to heat faster than fluids by appropriately formulating the ionic contents of the fluid and particulate phase to ensure the appropriate levels of electrical conductivity. Principle of ohmic heating: Joule heating is also referred to as ohmic heating or resistive heating because of its relationship to OhmHYPERLINK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohms_lawHYPERLINK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohms_laws Law. Ohms law states that,at constant temperature in an electrical circuit, the current passing through a conductor between two points is directly proportional to the potential difference (i.e. voltage drop or voltage) across the two points, and inversely proportional to the resistance between them. The mathematical equation that describes this relationship is: I= v/R Where, I is the current in amperes, V is the potential difference between two points of interest in volts, and R is a circuit parameter, measured in ohms (which is equivalent to volts per ampere), and is called the resistance. The potential difference is also known as the voltage drop, and is sometimes denoted by U, E or emf (electromotive force) instead of V. The law was named after the physicist Georg Ohm, who, in a treatise published in 1827, described measurements of applied voltage and current passing through simple electrical circuits containing various lengths of wire. He presented a slightly more complex equation than the one above to explain his experimental results (the above equation is the modern form of Ohms law; it could not exist until the ohm itself was defined (1861, 1864)). Well before Georg Ohms work, Henry Cavendish found experimentally (January 1781) that current varies in direct proportion to applied voltage, but he did not communicate his results to other scientists at the time. The resistance of most resistive devices (resistors) is constant over a large range of values of current and voltage. When a resistor is used under these conditions, the resistor is referred to as an ohmic device because a single value for the resistance suffices to describe the resistive behavior of the device over the range. When sufficiently high voltages are applied to a resistor, forcing a high current to flow through it, the device is no longer ohmic because its resistance, when measured under such electrically stressed conditions, is different (typically greater) from the value measured under standard conditions (see temperature effects, below). Ohms law, in the form above, is an extremely useful equation in the field of electrical/electronic engineering because it describes how voltage, current and resisitance are interrelated on a macroscopic level, that is, commonly, as circuit elements in an electrical circuit. Advantages of ohmic heating: Ohmic heating exhibits several advantages with respect to conventional food processing technologies as follows. Particulate foods upto 1 in are suitable for ohmic heating; the flow of a liquid particle mixture approaches plug flow when the solids content is considerable (20-70%). Liquid particle mixtures can heat uniformly under some circumstances (for example, if liquids and particles posses similar electrical conductivities or if properties such as solids concentration, viscosity, conductivity, specific heat and flow rate are manipulated appropriately). Temperatures sufficient for ultra high temperature (UHT) processing can be rapidly achieved. There are no heat surfaces for heat transfer, resulting in a low risk of product damage from burning or over processing. Energy conversion efficiencies. Relatively low capital cost. (Biss et al 1989) Parameters of importance in ohmic heating: Product properties: The most important parameter of interest in ohmic heating is the electrical conductivity of the food and food mixture. Substantial research was conducted on this property in the early 1990s because of the importance of electrical conductivity with regard to heat transfer rate and temperature distribution. The electrical conductivity is determined using the following equation: à Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ= L / AR Where à Ã¢â‚¬Ëœ is the specific electrical conductivity (S/m), A the area of cross section of the sample (m2), L the length of the sample (m), and R the resistance of the sample (ohm). General findings of numerous electrical conductivity studies are as follows. The electrical conductivity is a function of food components; ionic components (salt), acid, and moisture mobility increase electrical conductivity, while fats, lipids, alcohol decrease it. Electrical conductivity is linearly correlated with temperature when the electrical field is sufficiently high (at least 60 V/cm). Nonlinearities (sigmoid curves) are observed with lower electrical field strength. Electrical conductivity increases as the temperature and applied voltage increases and decreases as solids content increases. Lowering the frequency of AC during ohmic heating increases the electrical conductivity. The waveform can influence the electrical conductivity; through AC is usually delivered in sine waves, sawtooth waves increased the electrical conductivity in the some cases, while square waves decreased it. Electrical conductivity as opposed to raw sample showed increased electrical conductivity as opposed to raw samples when both were subsequently subjected to ohmic heating. The electrical conductivity of solids and liquids during ohmic heating of multiphase mixtures is also critically important. In an ideal situation, liquid and solid phases posses essentially equal electrical conductivities and would thus (generally) heat at the same rate. When there are differences in the electrical conductivity between a fluid and solid particles, the particles heat more slowly then a fluid when the electrical conductivity of the solid is higher than that of the fluid. Fluid motion (convective heat transfer) is also an important consideration when there are electrical conductivity differences between fluids and particles. Other product properties that may affect temperature distribution include the density and specific heat of the food product. When solid particles and a fluid medium have similar electrical conductivities, the component with the lower heat capacity will tend to heat faster. Heat densities and specific heats are conductive to slower heating. Fluid viscosity also influences ohmic heating; higher viscosity fluids tend to result in faster ohmic heating than lower viscosity fluids. Texture Analysis: Sensory evaluation is critically important to any viable food processes. Numerous publications have cited the superior product quality that can be obtained through decreased process time, though few published studies specifically quantify sensory and texture issues. Six stew formulations sterilized using ohmic heating before and after 3 years of storage were analyzed; the color, appearance, flavor, texture, and overall food quality ratings were excellent. Indicating that ohmic heating technology has the potential to provide shelf-stable foods mechanical properties of hamburgers cooked with a combination of conventional and ohmic heating were not different from hamburgers cooked with conventional heating. Microbial Death Kinetics: In terms of microbial death kinetics, considerable attention has been paid to the following question: does electricity result in microbial death, or is microbial death caused solely by heat treatment? The challenge in modeling microbial death kinetics is precise matching of time-temperature histories between ohmic heating and conventional process. The FDA has published a comprehensive review of microbial death kinetics data regarding ohmic heating. Initial studies in this area showed mixed results, though the experimental details were judged insufficient to draw meaningful conclusions. Researches compared death kinetics of yeast cells under ohmic heating. More recent work in this area has indicated those decimal reduction times of Bacillus Subtiles spores were significantly reduced when using ohmic heating at identical temperatures. These investigators also used a two-step treatment process involving ohmic heating, followed by holding and heat treatment, which accelerated microbial death kinetics. The inactivation of yeast cells in phosphate buffer by low-amperage direct current (DC) electrical treatment and conventional heating at isothermal temperature was examined. These researchers concluded that a synergistic effect of temperature and electrolysis was observed when the temperature became lethal for yeast. Future research regarding microbial death kinetics, survivor counts subsequent to treatment, and the influence of electricity on cell death kinetics are necessary to address regulatory issues. At the present time, assuming that microbial death is only a function of temperature (heat) results in an appropriately conservative design assumption. Vitamin Degradation Kinetics: Limited information exists regarding product degradation kinetics during ohmic heating. Researchers measured vitamin C degradation in orange juice during ohmic and conventional heating under nearly identical time-temperature histories and concluded that electricity did not influence vitamin C degradation kinetics. This study was conducted at one electrical field strength (E=23.9 V/cm). Others found that the ascorbic acid degradation rate in buffer solution during ohmic heating was a function of power, temperature, NaCl concentration, and products of electrolysis. Further research in this area could include the influence of electrical field strength, end point temperature and frequency of AC on the degradation of food components during ohmic heating. The characterization of electrolysis is also critical need in this area. Mechanisms of Microbial Inactivation The principal mechanisms of microbial inactivation in ohmic heating are thermal in nature. Occasionally, one may wish to reduce the process requirement or to use ohmic heating for a mild process, such as pasteurization. It may then be advantageous to identify additional non-thermal mechanisms. Early literature is inconclusive, since temperature had not been completely eliminated as a variable. Recent literature that has eliminated thermal differences, however, indicates that a mild electroporation mechanism may occur during ohmic heating. The principal reason for the additional effect of ohmic treatment may be its low frequency (50 60 Hz), which allows cell walls to build up charges and form pores. This is in contrast to high-frequency methods such as radio or microwave frequency heating, where the electric field is essentially reversed before sufficient charge buildup occurs at the cell walls. Applications of ohmic heating in food industries: Ohmic heating can be applied to wide variety of foods, including liquids, solids and fluid-solid mixture. Ohmic heating is being used commercially to produce liquid egg products in United States. It is being used in the United Kingdom and Japan for the processing of whole fruits such as Strawberries. Additionally, ohmic heating has been successfully applied to wide variety of foods in lab including Fruits and Vegetables, juices, sauces, stew, meats, seafood, pasta and soups. Widespread commercial adoption of ohmic heating in the United states is dependent on regulatory approval by the FDA, a scenario that requires full understanding of the ohmic heating process with regard to heat transfer (temperature distribution), mass transfer (concentration distribution, which are influenced by electricity), momentum transfer ( fluid flow) and kinetic phenomena (thermal and possibly electro thermal death kinetics and nutrient degradation) Research Related To Effect Of Ohmic Heating On Food Products: 1. Ohmic heating could up juice quality: Israeli scientists say that ohmic heating of orange juice has proved to be good way of improving the flavor quality of orange juice while extending sensory shelf life. The scientists were observed that sensory shelf life of orange juice could be extended to more than 100 days, doubling expectancy compared to pasteurization methods. Ohmic heating uses electricity to rapidly and uniformly heat food and drink, resulting in less thermal damage to the product. The technology has been around since the early 1900s, but it was not until the 1980s that food processing researchers began investigating the possible benefits to the industry. The scientists compared pasteurized orange juice, which had been heated at 9oËÅ ¡c for 50 sec, with orange that was treated at 90,120 and 150ËÅ ¡c for 1.13, 0.85 and 0.68 sec in an ohmic heating system. The experiment found that for all examples retention of both pectin and vit. C was reported similar. Likewise both treatments prevented the growth of micro-organisms for 105 days, compared to fresh orange juice. However, where the ohmic heated samples proved much stronger was in the preservation of flavors and the general taste quality over a period of time. The scientists tested five representative flavor compounds- decanal, octanol, limonene, pinene and mycrene. Testing showed that levels of these compounds were significantly higher in the ohmic treated samples after storage than in the pasteurized examples. The scientists results found that only adverse reaction that the ohmic treated orange juice had that it increased browning in the juice, although this was not reported to be visible, until after 100 days. Conversely the appearance of the ohmic heated samples was said to be visibly less cloudy. The implications of the findings to the juice industry could be wide reaching as quality is a major driving force for a product that is often marketed in the premium category. If the cost of implementation proves competitive then this could become a serious contender to pasteurized methods. (Siman et al 2005) 2. Ohmic heating behavior of hydrocolloid solutions: Aqueous solutions of five hydrocolloids (Carrageenan, 1-3%; xanthan, 1-3%; pectin, 1-5%; gelatin, 2-4% and starch, 4-6%) were heated in a static ohmic heating call at a voltage gradient of 7.24V cm-1. Time and temperaturedata, recorded at selected time intervals, were used to study the effect of concentration and temperature on the ohmic heating behavior of hydrocolloid solutions. Of the test samples examined, carrageenan gave the shortest time to raise the temperature from 20 to 100ËÅ ¡c: 4200,1600 and 1100s at 1, 2 and 3% concentraton respectively. For the same temperature raise, xanthan samples required 5500, 2300 and 1400s at 1, 2 and 3% concentration levels. Pectin and gelatin samples were found to exhibit even lower, but similar heating profiles. At highest concentration (5%), pectin took 7300s to reach 100 from 20ËÅ ¡c, and at all other concentrations, the time limit of 10,000s was exceeded before it reached 100ËÅ ¡c. The temperature of starch solutions never ex ceeded 62ËÅ ¡c within the specified time limit. Heating was found to be uniform throughout samples for carrageenan, pectin (1-3%) and gelatin samples. For xanthan and starch solutions, some non-uniformity in temperature profiles was observed. The observed ohmic heating behavior of hydrocolloid solutions corresponded well with their electrical conductivity values. The homogenesity of heating was related to rheological properties of hydrocolloid solutions and values. The homogenesity of heating was related to rheological properties of hydrocolloid solutions and their behavior at high temperature. (Marcotte et al 1998) 3. Design and performance evaluation of an ohmic heating unit for liquid foods: An experimental ohmic heating unit was designed and fabricated for continuous thermal processing of liquid foods. The unit was supported by a data acquisition system for sensing the liquid temperature distribution, line voltage and current with time. A separate small ohmic heating unit was also used for batch heating tests. The data acquisition system performed well and could record temperatures, voltage and current at intervals of two seconds. The performance of the ohmic heating unit was evaluated based on batch and steady state continuous flow experiments. Tests with 0.1 M aqueous sodium chloride solution showed the ohmic heating to be fast and uniform. In batch heating tests, the electrical conductivity of the liquid could be determined easily as a function of temperature using instantaneous values of the voltage gradient and current density. In continuous flow heating experiments, other physical properties, applied voltage gradient and dimensions of unit the heating. (Jindal et al, 1993) 4. Determination of starch gelatinization temperature by ohmic  heating: A method for measuring starch gelatinization temperature (T), determined from a change in electrical conductivity (à Ã‚ ±), was developed. Suspension of native starches with different starch/ water mass ratios and pre-gelatinized starches were prepared, and ohmicallly heated with agitation to 90ËÅ ¡c using 100V by AC power at 50 Hz, and a voltage gradient of 10 V/cm. the results showed that à Ã‚ ± of native starch suspensions was linear with temperature (R2>0.999) expect for the gelatinization range, but the linear relationship was always present for the pre-gelatinized starch-water system. It was seen that the shape of dà Ã‚ ±/dT versus T curve was essentially similar to the endothermic peak on a DSC thermo gram, and the gelatinization temperature could be conveniently determined from this curve. Thus, the segment profile on this curve was called the block peak. The reason for the decrease in à Ã‚ ± of native starch suspension in the gelatinization range was probably th at the area foe motion of the charged particles was reduced by the swelling of stearch granules during gelatinization. ( Tatsumi et al 2003) 5. Ohmic heating of strawberry products: electrical conductivity measurements and ascorbic acid degradation kinetics The effect of field strength and multiple thermal treatments on electrical conductivity of strawberry products were investigated. Electrical conductivity increase with temperature for all the products and conditions tested following linear relations. Electrical conductivity was found to depend on the strawberry- based product., an increase of electrical conductivity with field strength was obvious for two strawberry pulps and strawberry filling but not for strawberry-apple sauce. Thermal treatments caused visible changes (a decrease) in electrical conductivity values of both strawberry pulps tested, but the use of a conventional or ohmic pre-treatment induces a different behavior of the pulps conductivity values. Ascorbic acid degradation followed first order kinetics for both conventional and ohmic heating treatments and the kinetic constants obtained were in the range of the values reported in the literature for other food systems. The presence of an electric field does not affect ascorbic acid degradation. (Castro et al, 2003) 6. Polyphenoloxidase deactivation kinetics during ohmic heating of grape juice The heating method affects the temperature distribution inside a food and directly modifies the time-temperature relationship for enzyme deactivation. Fresh grape juice was ohmically heated at different voltage gradient (20, 30 and 40 V/cm) from 20ËÅ ¡C to temperatures of 60, 70, 80 or 90ËÅ ¡c and the change in the activity of polyphenoloxidase enzyme (PPO) was measured. The critical deactivation temperatures were found to be 60ËÅ ¡c or lower for 40V/cm were fitted to the experimental data. The simplest kinetic model involving one step first-order deactivation was better than more complex models. The activation energy of the PPO deactivation for the temperature range of 70-90ËÅ ¡c was found to be 83.5 kJ/mol. (Baysal et al, 2006) 7. Processing and stabilization of cauliflower by ohmic heating technology: Cauliflower is a brittle product which does not resist conventional thermal treatments by heat. The feasibility of processing cauliflower by ohmic heating was investigated. Cauliflower florates were sterilized in 10 kW APV continuous ohmic heating pilot plant with various configurations of pre-treatments and processing conditions. The stability of final products was examined and textural qualities were evaluated by mechanical measurements. Ohmic heating treatments gave a product of attractive appearance, with interesting firmness properties and proportion of particles >1cm. stabilities at 25ËÅ ¡c and 37ËÅ ¡c were verified and in one case, the product was even stable at 55ËÅ ¡c. Low temperature precooking of cauliflower, high rate and sufficient electrical conductivity of florates seem to be optimal conditions. The interest of using this electrical technology to process brittle products such as ready meals containing cauliflower was high lightened. (Sandrine et al, 2006 ) The commercial development of ohmic heating processes The authors discuss the problems of heat transfer techniques in cook-chill food processing. These include destruction of flavours and nutrients, and particle damage arising from high shear often employed to improve heat transfer rates. These heat transfer problems have now been overcome with the development of ohmic heating technology. The ohmic heating effect occurs when an electric current is passed through an electrically conducting product. In practice, low frequency alternating current (50 or 60 Hz) from the public mains supply is used to eliminate the possibility of adverse electro-chemical reactions and minimise power supply complexity and cost. Electrical energy is transformed into thermal energy. The depth of penetration is virtually unlimited and the extent of heating is governed only by the spacial uniformity of electrical conductivity throughout the product and its residence time in the heater. The authors briefly discuss the design features, temperature control and marke t acceptance of ohmic heating. (Skudder et al 1992) 8. Electrical conductivity of apple and sour cherry juice concentrates during ohmic heating Ohmic heating is based on the passage of electrical current through a food product that serves as an electrical resistance. In this study, apple and sourcherry concentrates having 20-60% soluble solids were ohmically heated by applying five different voltage gradients (20-60 V/cm). The electrical conductivity relations depending on temperature, voltage gradient and concentration were obtained. It was observed that the electrical conductivities of apple and sourcherry juices were significantly affected by temperature and concentration (P < 0.05). The ohmic heating system performance coefficients (SPCs) were defined by using the energies given to the system and taken up by the juice samples. The SPCs were in the range of 0.47-0.92. The unsteady-state heat conduction equation for negligible internal resistance was solved with an ohmic heating generation term by the finite difference technique. The mathematical model results considering system performance coefficients were compared with experimental ones. The predictions of the mathematical model using obtained electrical conductivity equations were found to be very accurate.  (Coskan et al 1999) CONCLUSION: The studies discuss the problems of heat transfer techniques in cook-chill food processing. These include destruction of flavours and nutrients, and particle damage arising from high shear often employed to improve heat transfer rates. These heat transfer problems have now been overcome with the development of ohmic heating technology. The Energy efficiency is more and also the cost of preservation is also low so, it is beneficial to use the this technique.

English Literature Antigone Characters Ismene

English Literature Antigone Characters Ismene Antigone Characters Ismene Antigone Antigone by Sophocles is theatrical work that reflects upon Greek mythology and culture. Antigone has several themes and circumstantial settings that can be indirectly referred or related to in modern society. Sophocles uses various and strategically placed characters to present his play as well as his themes. The play mainly revolves around Antigone who acts alongside her elder sister, Ismene. Both are daughters of Oedipus and Jocasta. From the start, the audience is given a vague idea of both Antigone’s and Ismene’s characters. Both sisters have suffered the anguish of having lost their brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices. It is at the beginning of the play that we see Antigone’s braveness. She notifies Ismene of her intentions to bury Polyneices despite the fact that such an act is punishable by death, for Creon considers Polyneices to be a traitor and that by not having his body buried, Polyneices suffers a posthumous punishment. She makes this declaration whil e being fully aware of the penalties involved and this brings to light several other things about her character. The audience is able to see that she is confident in her actions and will justify anything that she does. Meanwhile Ismene can be viewed as being afraid and uneager to agree to an action. She confronts her sister’s statements by saying, â€Å" But think of the danger ! Think what Creon will do ! † (34, Prologue). This statement by Ismene create a vague feeling in the audience that Ismene is a pessimist. This view is further reinforced when she says, â€Å" And do what he has forbidden ! We are women / We cannot fight with men, Antigone ! † (46-47, Prologue). Hence Ismene is seen seeking a way out by giving excuses that are in a sense linked to negative stereotypes and this makes a reflection of her pessimistic nature. Antigone’s actions at the beginning of the play reflect her impulsivness and rash manner in handling situations. Rather than try to confront Creon regarding the burial of her brother she goes ahead to bury him. Her impulsive manner is also seen when she doubts Ismene’s promise that she will not divulge any information to anybody else regarding Antigone’s plans to bury her brother. She does this despite the reasonable consideration that Ismene is her only sister and family member left. Her actions at this point also reflect on her indifference in carry ing out actions that reflect on others. She does not seem to care about the fact that burying her brother may have unfavorable consequences on Ismene who would lose her sister and at the same time be in a dilemma. Ismene would have to risk telling the authorities and get her sister prosecuted so as to be a true patriot and to save her own life or keep mum and be prosecuted for aiding and abetting an offense alongside her sister whom she will eventually loose, regardless of what she decides to do . This scenario presents a strong argument that Ismene is considerate and rational as she eventually decides to keep Antigone’s plans secret and continues to do so even when Antigone attacks her. She responds by saying, â€Å" But a loyal friend indeed to those who love.† (85, Prologue). This demonstrates Ismene’s passive and unvengeful nature. Antigone bears responsibility well and can therefore be seen to be responsible. When brought before Creon, she admits her actions in burying Polyneices without much ado, she audaciously confesses, â€Å" I do. I deny nothing † (52, ODE I, Scene II). She goes ahead and justifies her action, and calmly makes it clear that she is not afraid of the punishment due to be imposed on her.. In contrast Ismene bears a sense of responsibility just like her sister. When brought before Creon, she admits her role in Antigone’s ‘crime’ without hesitation, she says, â€Å" Yes, if she will let me say so. I am guilty. † This and the ensuing exchange that follows between the sisters also brings to light other aspects of the sisters personalities. One of the aspects that is brought out by this exchange is that of loyalty. Both Ismene and Antigone are loyal to each other even in a situation where it is at the expense of death. Ismene is ready to die alongside her sister. At the same time Antigone cares too deeply for Ismene and does not want Ismene to suffer the punishment of death. The idea that loyalty exists between the two sisters is reinforced by the fact that Ismene, while in the face of death, defends her sister. When Antigone is declared as having lost her mind by Creon, she says, â€Å" Grief teaches the steadiest minds to waver, King.† (153, ODE I, Scene II). Other events that had occurred earlier in the play portray this feeling of loyalty and the sisterly love that exists between Ismene and Antigone. Both sisters place family duty above everything else. Ismene’s earlier caution at the beginning of the play can now be interpreted as an act of sisterly love and concern. Eurydice who is Creon’s wife cum queen and Antigone are emotionally impulsive. Antigone commits suicide when she is sentenced to death and confined to a vault of stone. Eurydice in turn commits suicide when she hears about the death of her son, Haemon. Hence both characters can be seen as compulsive and quick to act rather than face the harsh reality of suffering. All in all it can be said that Sophocles primarily uses the various characteristics presented by Antigone, Ismene and Eurydice to develop his play. Although of these characters are the same gender their characteristics differ greatly and this lies in with the underlying themes of the play.

America Needs Affirmitive Action :: essays research papers

  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"†¦granting modest advantages to minorities and women is more than fair, given hundreds of years of discrimination that benefited whites and men.† (Fromkin) Affirmative Action is not only justifiable, but it is necessary in today’s world. Affirmative Action can be seen throughout United States History as a leading fighter for equal opportunity. Affirmative Action can assist in creating a more equal opportunity for people regarding higher education, employment and the work force, and creating a more diverse equal community in all aspects. Affirmative Action, in contrast to many people’s beliefs, does not promote â€Å"reverse discrimination† or create quotas for groups to adhere to. On the contrary, it gives minorities and women the opportunity to have jobs and positions they are already qualified for. Affirmative Action â€Å"calls for minorities and women to have special consideration in employment, education, and contracting decisions†(Fromkin). Although the name â€Å"affirmative action† has only been applied in recent times, there is a history of affirmative action actions taken in the United States. This history is an example for the endless fight for equality among women and all minorities. These actions can be seen in amendments to the constitution, especially the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 19th amendments. They abolished slavery, granted citizenship to the former slaves, that the right for United States citizens to vote can not be denied or reduced on the account of race or color, and lastly the 19th amendment gave women the right to vote. Furthermore, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, title VI, states that the use of literacy or other voter-qualifications cannot be used to keep any minority off the voting lists, reassuring an equal voice in the democracy of the US. I n addition, former President Johnson and Kennedy used executive orders 11246 and 10925 to show government support of affirmative action through the â€Å"equal employment opportunity† and the establishment of the Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity respectively. The downfall in affirmative action history is the passing of Proposition 209 and the California Civil Rights Initiative (CCRI) which ended affirmative action in California. Affirmative Action has played a large role in history, as a fighter for equal opportunity, despite race or gender.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Affirmative Action provides women and minorities equal opportunity in higher education Affirmative Action in higher education allows minorities and women not given the opportunity of a prestige education to go further in life and attend side by side with students given better opportunities.

Homelessness in Public Schools Essay -- Education

In the United States nationwide public schools are faced with dilemmas. The choices schools make has to be effective, serve the students, and have the best outcome. Well known problems such as bullying, special educational needs, budget cuts, new standards, and job cuts. Some of the problems are well known to the public while other problems are left in the background. According to the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY) reported that the U.S. Department of Education collected data stating â€Å"during the 2008-2009 school year that 954,914 homeless children and youth were enrolled in public schools.† This problem affects the child socially, mentally, and most importantly academically. The National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY) defines Homelessness â€Å"is a lack of permanent housing resulting from extreme poverty and/or unsafe or unstable living environments† (NAEHCY, 2011, p. 2). In the year 2004, it was required that all states were to report to CSPR (Consolidated State Performance Report) of data collected of children and youth enrolled in any educational services (Bowman, Dukes, Moore, 2012, p. 6). The table presented below shows reports the school years of 2004-2010. Number of Homeless Students Reported by States in the CSPR 2004-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-2010 655,591 906,680* 679,724 794,617 956,914 939,903 The National Center on Family Homelessness (NCFH) conducted research and collected data and found during a three year research of CSPR reports. (Bowman. ET al.’s, 2012). In the school years 2006-2009 â€Å"41% increase in the number of homeless student enrolled in schools across the nation† (Bowman... ...2). Summary of the state of research: On the relationship between homelessness and academic achievement among school-aged children and youth (ED-04-CO-0056/0002). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Education website: http://www.serve.org/nche Carter. Samuel, C. (2000). No excuses; lessons from 21 high performing high poverty schools. Washington, DC: The Heritage Foundation. Murphy.Joseph, F. & Tobin.Kerri, J. (2011, November). Homelessness comes to school. How homeless children and youths can succeed, 93(3), 32-37. Retrieved from http://kappanmagazine.org National Assocation for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth. (2011). Facts about homeless education. Retrieved from http;//naehcy.org/facts.html W&B School of Education. (2012). History of the mckinney act. Retrieved from http://education.wm.edu/centers/hope/resources/mckinneyact/index.php