Roast Pork Research Articles

Roast pig and scientific discovery. Part II.

In Part I of "Roast Pig and Scientific Discovery" (American Review of Respiratory Disease, May 1977). I gave a classic instance of Chance, or Serendipity, as related by Charles Lamb in his "Dissertation upon Roast Pig." In this essay, Lamb tells how many centuries ago Bo-Bo, the Chinese swine-herd's son, stumbled upon the delicacy of roast pork when he accidentally burned down his father's house and barn and in the process roasted ("burnt") nine newly farrowed pigs. I then gave (A) eight examples in which chance speeded or completed a scientist's ongoing work and (B) five examples in which chance changed the direction of a scientist's work and pointed him toward a new goal. In Part II, I will give more examples of a change in direction of a scientist's work that resulted from chance, and speculate on the role of chance in speeding the advance of science.

Roast pig and scientific discovery. Part I.

In Part I of "Roast Pig and Scientific Discovery" (American Review of Respiratory Disease, May 1977). I gave a classic instance of Chance, or Serendipity, as related by Charles Lamb in his "Dissertation upon Roast Pig." In this essay, Lamb tells how many centuries ago Bo-Bo, the Chinese swine-herd's son, stumbled upon the delicacy of roast pork when he accidentally burned down his father's house and barn and in the process roasted ("burnt") nine newly farrowed pigs. I then gave (A) eight examples in which chance speeded or completed a scientist's ongoing work and (B) five examples in which chance changed the direction of a scientist's work and pointed him toward a new goal. In Part II, I will give more examples of a change in direction of a scientist's work that resulted from chance, and speculate on the role of chance in speeding the advance of science.

Variations in the apparent nutrient content of foods: a study of sampling error.

1. Successive portions of boiled and mashed potatoes, roast pork, cooked, freeze-dried peas and ice-cream were taken in order to determine the total (sampling and experimental) error involved in the 'duplicate analysis' method of dietary survey. 2. These samples were analysed for water, nitrogen, fat, iron and energy. 3. The experimental error of the methods was also studied separately. 4. The sampling and experimental errors ranged from 0-3% for water in potatoes, to 23% for Fe in ice-cream. Sampling error was significantly greater than experimental error for all nutrients studied. 5. It is concluded that in reporting the results from dietary surveys, it is necessary to take account of the erros inherent even in the most precise methods.

CONTAMINATION OF FRESH AND COOKED MEATS BY ANTIBIOTICRESISTANT COLIFORM BACTERIA

Fresh meats (minced beef and sausage) and cooked meats (boiled ham and roast pork) from twenty-five butcher's shops in Essex were examined for contamination by antibioticresistant fæcal coliform bacteria. Of twenty-five samples of each meat examined, eleven sausage, three mince, no boiled-ham, and two roast-pork samples were contaminated with fæcal Escherichia coli. All samples, fresh and cooked, were heavily contaminated with other types of bacteria: up to 10 6 bacteria per g. of boiled ham and 10 5 bacteria per g. of roast pork. About 40% of fresh-meat and 4-12% of cooked-meat samples carried drug-resistant coliform organisms. Of a hundred samples only two yielded E. coli with transferable drug resistance. There was very little evidence of contamination of meats and meat products by drug-resistant fæcal E. coli, but the results demonstrated that all the foods examined were heavily contaminated by bacteria, probably from human handlers.

Preservation of foods by irradiation.

THE FEEDING of members of the Armed Forces is an important factor in effective operations. Not only must the food be nutritious but it must have an appeal that gives satisfaction to the consumer. The American soldier likes foodvariety; he likes a satisfying meal, and he likes to have it where he is and not at some inaccessible point. The concepts of military operations are changing rapidly, from concepts of static or slow-moving operations to those of extreme mobility, from concepts of concentrations in strength to those of dispersion with even greater strength. With these new concepts has arisen the necessity for versatile and effective new means of supply, one of the important segments being that of food supply. To meet such a challenge it has become necessary to embark on a program of investigation to determine the best means of supplying food to operational troops, on land, in the air, or under the sea. To meet the need of the modern military forces the food must be nutritious, light in weight, occupy a minimum of space, be extremely stable without refrigeration, and be palatable to the soldier over a considerable period of time. Studies have led to improvement of existing ration items, the development of new types of items, and investigations into entirely new types of products. From these studies have come liquid foods and semisolid foods for the feeding of airmen at high altitudes, dehydrated precooked foods that require only the addition of water to prepare a complete meal for ground troops, and ration-dense foods for seamen. One of the boldest approaches contributing to solving food problems in this area is the use of ionizing radiation to preserve food items. This paper is concerned with this particular approach to the provision of ration items for the Armed Forces. Successful preservation by irradiation would offer several advantages not apparent in other types of preservation. F'or example, preservation by ionizing radiation is a cold process and, therefore, can be used on foods sensitive to thermal processing. Also, such items as roast pork, fried chicken, bacon, or sandwich components can be preserved in their natural states without much change in flavor or loss of texture such as would be characteristic of thermal processing. While the density or weight of this type of food item can be altered very little other advantages indicate that this method of preservation would prove advantageous in certain areas.

Acute Gaseous Cholecystitis

This instance of gaseous cholecystitis is reported to illustrate the value of roentgenography in what appeared at first to be an uncomplicated choledocholithiasis. The patient, a 50-year-old white butcher, entered the hospital in January 1947. He had been in excellent health until the age of 52, when a mild diabetes mellitus developed, which was controlled by diet. In mid 1945, an attack of mild aching in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen occurred , without nausea or jaundice. The attack lasted for one day. There was no history of an idiosyncrasy to fried or fatty foods. On Jan. 18, 1947, about four hours after a roast pork dinner, the patient experienced a severe, steady, non-radiating pain in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen, with no nausea, vomiting, or chills. The pain subsided during the night, but a dull ache persisted. Two days later (Jan. 20), the patient was awakened at five o'clock in the morning by a recurrenee of severe right upper quadrant pain, which continued with diminishing intensity throughout the day. He ate alight lunch and supper and that night vomited bile. He also noticed that his urine was dark and foul and that his stool was black. He was seen by a physician and given morphine for relief of pain. A dull ache continued, however, and on Jan. 22, four days after the initial attack, he was again awakened early in the morning by severe right upper quadrant pain. He was seen that morning by his physician, who noted the presence of jaundice. The patient felt somewhat better during the next three days but the jaundice and right upper quadrant ache persisted. He entered the hospital for study on Jan. 26, 1947. The physical examination on admission revealed a moderate icterus. The liver was barely palpable and slightly tender to percussion. There was a sense of resistance in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen with slight tenderness in that area. No other abnormalities were noted. The temperature ranged between 100 and 102° F. Laboratory examinations revealed a slight elevation of globulin (3.9 gm. per cent) with normal albumin. The cephalin flocculation test was four plus. The thymol turbidity was within normal limits. The alkaline phosphatase was elevated, its highest level being W.O Bodansky units. The prothrombin time was slightly elevated. The van den Bergh reaction was prompt, with a reading of 14.8 mg. percent. The white blood count and differential count were normal. The red blood count was 4,800,000 on admission but this figure subsequently dropped to 3,800,000. Roentgen examination of the upper gastro-intestinal tract on Jan. 28, with contrast material, showed rather marked spasm of the prepyloric portion of the stomach, but no intrinsic lesion was demonstrated. During a review of the films on the following day, a persistent, rounded gas shadow was observed in the gallbladder area.