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"Discovery Files" Features from the National Science Foundation
"Light Snack"
Fully produced report in MP3 format:
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96 kbps
(90 seconds)
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READER SCRIPT
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A NEW WAY OF LOOKING AT FOOD... THE "DISCOVERY FILES": NEW ADVANCES IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, FROM THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION. WALK DOWN ANY SUPERMARKET AISLE, AND YOU'LL NOTICE THAT SEE-THROUGH PACKAGING HAS MADE FOOD SHOPPING A REAL FEAST FOR THE EYES. BUT, ALL THAT EXPOSURE MAY NOT BE SO GOOD FOR THE FOOD. RESEARCHERS AT VIRGINIA TECH ARE STUDYING THE EFFECTS OF VISIBLE LIGHT ON FOODS PACKAGED IN VARIOUS KINDS OF TRANSPARENT CONTAINERS. IT'S ALREADY KNOWN THAT THE SAME ULTRA-VIOLET LIGHT THAT CAN DAMAGE SKIN MAY ALSO CAUSE NUTRITIONAL AND SENSORY DAMAGE TO FOODS: IT CAN DEGRADE THE VITAMIN CONTENT OF MILK, AND CAN CHANGE THE COLOR AND FLAVOR OF CERTAIN FOODS. NOW, THESE FOOD SCIENTISTS HAVE FOUND EVIDENCE THAT REGULAR VISIBLE LIGHT CAN HAVE A SIMILAR EFFECT--AND CAN CHANGE THE SMELL AND TASTE OF FOOD. SO, THERE’S THE QUANDARY: WE WANT TO SEE THE FOOD BEFORE WE BUY IT--BUT ONLY AN OPAQUE CONTAINER WILL KEEP IT FROM LIGHT DAMAGE. THE STUDY TESTED SOME NEWER PACKAGING MATERIALS--INCLUDING SOME TRANSLUCENT CONTAINERS THAT REFLECT LIGHT AWAY FROM THE PRODUCT. WE STILL HAVE A WAY TO GO TO FIND CONTAINERS THAT ARE TOTALLY EFFECTIVE IN KEEPING LIGHT AWAY FROM YOUR LIGHT SNACK. MAYBE THAT'S WHY DINNER ALWAYS TASTES BETTER BY CANDLELIGHT. THE "DISCOVERY FILES" COVERS PROJECTS FUNDED BY THE GOVERNMENT'S NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH BROUGHT TO YOU BY YOU! LEARN MORE AT "N-S-F"-DOT-GOV--OR ON THEIR PODCAST.
For additional "Discovery Files" features from the National Science Foundation, click here.
