starseed

lapielquebrilla: Waterfall Walkway - St. Beatus Caves,...

Tue, 14 May 2013 13:16:08 -0400

Waterfall Walkway - St. Beatus Caves, Switzerland.

sagansense: Microbiologist finds five types of unidentified...

Fri, 03 May 2013 01:53:11 -0400

Microbiologist finds five types of unidentified funghi in Capri Sun

Fans of the delicious and nutritious German drink brand Capri Sun, look away now. A microbiologist has found that the price we pay for preservative-free deliciousness comes in the shape of five nasty-looking funghi.

This is by no means the first time Capri Sun has had some explaining to. Over the years, various reports have surfaced of strange and unusual objects lurking instead its foil pouches. In June 2010 one concerned parent found a type of “foul smelling” object in a Capri Sun Apple Splash, in May 2011 a man from Texas identified what he assumed was a worm in his drink and in 2012 reports of another worm and a black particle-covered glob surfaced. On all occasions — all of which were in the US — manufacturers Kraft Foods blamed it on mould.

Since the drink is free from preservatives, if one of the airtight containers gets even a tiniest pinprick, oxygen could feed any spores already inside. Even before getting samples to the lab, Kraft has in the past blamed this issue on something similar to “common bread mould”. This happens a lot to poor Kraft Foods, so it tends to preempt complaints (it’s the top question in its FAQs, which appear in Google as “FAQs - Mold, Etc”). In a statement released earlier this year over yet another sighting, the company said: “If mould does occur, we completely agree that it can be unsightly and gross, but it is not harmful and is more of a quality issue rather than a safety issue.”

Intrigued by the ruckus, Kathleen Dannelly, associate professor of microbiology at Indiana State University, decided to investigate the curious case of the Capri Sun mould. A news station had brought Dannelly a sample after a concerned parent contacted them, and Dannelly confirmed it was fungal mat. She was hooked.

With the help of biology student Leah Horn, the pair spent a year pouring Capri Sun juice through a vacuum filter to collect any microbes. They found not one bog-standard bread mould, but five so far unidentifiable funghi — three from Tropical Punch, one from Roarin’ (sic) Waters and one from Fruit Punch.

“They are all five different species,” Horn said in a statement. “We’re not 100 percent sure which ones they are. We’re still testing.” Aside from the sheer revulsion many might feel after pulling a fungal mat from the their refreshing drink, Danelly says the substances are “probably” not harmful, but adds: “In patients who are immune-compromised and some other underlying diseases, this could create a health concern for them.”

She agrees with Capri Sun that the growth is most likely the result of a tiny hole in a packet: “Maybe what happens is that the package just gets breached enough, not a big hole, a tiny pin hole that’s enough to let air and oxygen in so that gives fungi room to grow, what they need to grow, then you get fungal mats. Maybe that’s why it’s only occasionally there’s the large growth of an organism.”

To verify the theory, she and Horn plan on puncturing packets, testing for spores, then seeing if a mat forms. It’s likely the spores are already there, because of the lack of preservatives.

A Kraft Foods representative told Wired.co.uk: “Since there are no preservatives in our drinks, mould can grow in a pouch that has been damaged or punctured. That’s why we placed a statement on the carton recommending leaky pouches be discarded. Among the many millions of pouches we produce a year, it is a rare occurrence. But if it does happen, we want to hear about it.

“The reality is, mould spores are literally everywhere. That’s why most foods, especially those without preservatives, eventually spoil and get mouldy. Our quality controls are designed to minimise this exposure. No system is perfect though, so we regularly review and improve our quality control procedures.”

image: ISU Photo/Tony Campbell

electricspacekoolaid: Chris Hadfield Reflects on his Time at...

Fri, 03 May 2013 01:51:04 -0400

electricspacekoolaid:

Chris Hadfield Reflects on his Time at the Space Station

During his evening ritual of sharing images taken from the International Space Station, Commander Chris Hadfield posted this gem: a gorgeous night-time view of the southeastern United States, with the Moon hovering over Earth’s limb and the terminator separating night from day. Dawn is just beginning to break to the east, as the ISS flies overhead.

This image reflects the ‘wistful’ feelings Hadfield is having as his time in space in coming to a close. He and his two crewmates Tom Marshburn and Roman Romanenko will head back to Earth on May 13.
Hadfield said his emotions go between feelings of great responsibility and great honor to have been asked to command the space station, and he wants to “do it right,” making the most of his experience and communicating to as many people as possible on Earth.

“You do feel the responsibility of it to try and do it right, to try and have one perfect day on the station where I don’t make even one little mistake in any of the procedures, and I haven’t done it yet,” Hadfield admitted. “I’ve been here 130 days and I have yet to have day where I haven’t

“I’m looking forward to fresh food and the crunch and the snap of food of all different varieties and the smell of rich coffee and the smell of fresh bread baking — that type of thing, a more full assault of the senses when I get home,” Hadfield said.