Printer Friendly
The Free Library
4,544,732 articles and books
Member login
User name  
Password 
 
Join us Forgot password?

Scratch and sniff.


Scouring the produce section for that perfect, mouth-watering fruit? Squeeze and sniff no more. New Zealand scientists have invented high-tech packaging with color-changing labels to show when fruit is ripe.

Plants produce fruit as a way to spread their seeds for reproduction. When fruit is mature, it broadcasts its lusciousness by releasing organic chemicals (molecules containing carbon atoms as their backbone), which attract hungry animals. Scientists at HortResearch spent five years developing a sensor that responds to the pleasant-smelling chemicals, known as aromatic compounds, given off by fresh fruit.

The hands-off labels, called ripeSense[TM], change color as their built-in sensors react to the fragrant chemicals released by the ripening fruit. "You could say these are labels with a sense of smell," says Kevin Moffitt, of Pear Bureau Northwest, which recently tested the labels on pears PEARS - Porcine Epidemic and Respiratory Syndrome.

U.S. stores could see ripeSense-labeled pears within a year. And as scientists develop sensors for other fruits, the days of mango mangling and peach-pinching may soon be over.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Scholastic, Inc.
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 2004, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

 Reader Opinion

Title:

Comment:



 

Article Details
Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
Title Annotation:Physical/Chemistry
Author:Goldman, Laurie
Publication:Science World
Date:Apr 5, 2004
Words:165
Previous Article:Taxing sacks.(Graph It/Environment)
Next Article:Out of whack.(Earth/Atmosphere)



Related Articles
Making scents of Alzheimer's.(scratch-and-sniff test results may be an indication of future Alzheimer's disease)(Brief Article)
FOWL ODOR; IT'S CARTOON DEBUT OF `SMELLY TELLY'.(L.A. LIFE)
Spring into spring: welcome a fresh spring season with crafts featuring egg-carton insects, scratch-and-sniff art, and recycled trash robots.(Brief...
Keep traffic flowing. (New Products).
Faint smells of schizophrenia.(Behavior)
No clowning around.(Life/Brain)
FSCT hosts spring VLC on Mechanical Properties of Coatings.(FSCT News)
Search 'n' sniff: doggie-style fourth amendment.(Citings)(Brief Article)
The Spooky Smells Of Halloween.(Brief article)(Book review)
Scratch resistance of automobile clearcoats: chemistry and characterization on the micro- and nanoscale.

Terms of use | Copyright © 2008 Farlex, Inc. | Feedback | For webmasters | Submit articles