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Curran (material)
Curran is a microcrystalline nanocellulose fibre derived from the pulp of root vegetables. It was developed by Scottish scientists David Hepworth and Eric Whale, with funding from the Scottish Government. The sources of root vegetable pulp used to manufacture Curran include carrots, sugar beets, and turnips. It is named after ''curran'', the Scottish Gaelic word for "carrot". The material was developed as a potential substitute for carbon fibre and is often used in polymer composites. It has numerous industrial and technological applications, especially for the production of paints and sporting equipment. History The material was developed by Scottish material scientists David Hepworth and Eric Whale, who met while studying for their PhDs at University of Reading. They began researching carrot-derived cellulose fibres in 2002. In 2004, they founded Cellucomp, Ltd. in Fife with funding from the Scottish government agency Scottish Enterprise. They hoped to develop a composite that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Microcrystalline Cellulose
Microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) is a term for refined wood pulp and is used as a texturizer, an anti-caking agent, a fat substitute, an emulsifier, an extender, and a bulking agent in food production. The most common form is used in vitamin supplements or tablets. It is also used in plaque assays for counting viruses, as an alternative to carboxymethylcellulose. Structure A naturally occurring polymer, it is composed of glucose units connected by a 1-4 beta glycosidic bond. These linear cellulose chains are bundled together as microfibril spiralled together in plant cell walls. Each microfibril exhibits a high degree of three-dimensional internal bonding resulting in a crystalline structure that is insoluble in water and resistant to reagents. There are, however, relatively weak segments of the microfibril with weaker internal bonding. These are called amorphous regions; some argue that they are more accurately called dislocations, because of the single-phase structure of mi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Food Grading
Food grading involves the inspection, assessment and sorting of various foods regarding quality, freshness, legal conformity and market value.Saravacos, George D.; Maroulis, Zacharias B. (2011''Food Process Engineering Operations'' CRC Press. pp. 198-199. Sivasankar, B. (2002)Processing and Preservation'' PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd. pp. 175-177. Food grading is often done by hand, in which foods are assessed and sorted. Machinery is also used to grade foods, and may involve sorting products by size, shape and quality. For example, machinery can be used to remove spoiled food from fresh product. By food type Beef Beef grading in the United States is performed by the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Agricultural and Marketing Service. There are eight beef quality grades, with U.S. Prime being the highest grade and U.S. Canner being the lowest grade. Beef grading is a complex process. Beer In beer grading, the letter "X" is used on some beers, and was traditional ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slurry
A slurry is a mixture of denser solids suspended in liquid, usually water. The most common use of slurry is as a means of transporting solids or separating minerals, the liquid being a carrier that is pumped on a device such as a centrifugal pump. The size of solid particles may vary from 1 micrometre up to hundreds of millimetres. The particles may settle below a certain transport velocity and the mixture can behave like a Newtonian or non-Newtonian fluid. Depending on the mixture, the slurry may be abrasive and/or corrosive. Examples Examples of slurries include: *Cement slurry, a mixture of cement, water, and assorted dry and liquid additives used in the petroleum and other industries *Soil/cement slurry, also called Controlled Low-Strength Material (CLSM), flowable fill, controlled density fill, flowable mortar, plastic soil-cement, K-Krete, and other names *A mixture of thickening agent, oxidizers, and water used to form a gel explosive *A mixture of pyroclastic material, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sofinnova
Sofinnova is the name shared by two venture capital firms, Sofinnova Partners and Sofinnova Ventures. The name Sofinnova is a contraction of the French, "Société de Financement de l’Innovation" or, Innovation Venture Capital Company. Both firms trace their roots back to Sofinnova SA, an investment institution founded in Paris in 1972. The two firms have raised ~$4B since inception and have generally shared a similar investment strategy of financing projects and ideas in the life sciences and technology sectors. The two firms distinguish themselves on the basis of their target geographies, stage of investment, and sectors. They have been independent entities since 1997. * Sofinnova Partners is based in Paris, London, and Milan and focuses primarily on European biotech, medtech, biopharma, and industrial biotech investments, with a similar allocation for the US. * Sofinnova Ventures has offices in Menlo Park, CA, and San Diego, CA, and focuses largely on US biotech investmen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used by Károly Ereky in 1919, meaning the production of products from raw materials with the aid of living organisms. Definition The concept of biotechnology encompasses a wide range of procedures for modifying living organisms according to human purposes, going back to domestication of animals, cultivation of the plants, and "improvements" to these through breeding programs that employ artificial selection and hybridization. Modern usage also includes genetic engineering as well as cell and tissue culture technologies. The American Chemical Society defines biotechnology as the application of biological organisms, systems, or processes by various industries to learning about the science of life and the improvement of the value of materials ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Annabelle Ewing
Annabelle Janet Ewing (born 20 August 1960) is a Scottish politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, alongside Liam McArthur, since May 2021. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), she has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Cowdenbeath constituency since 2016, having previously been an MSP for the Mid Scotland and Fife region from 2011 to 2016. Ewing previously served in the British House of Commons as a Member of Parliament for Perth, from 2001 to 2005. She was Scotland's Minister for Youth and Women's Employment from 2014 to 2016, and Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs from 2016 to 2018. Her brother, Fergus Ewing, is also an MSP in the Scottish Parliament, and their mother, Winnie Ewing, previously served as an MSP, MP and MEP. Background Ewing was born on 20 August 1960 to Winnifred Margaret Ewing (née Woodburn) and Stewart Martin Ewing. Her mother is a prominent former Scott ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minister For Youth And Women's Employment
The Minister for Employability and Training was a member of the Scottish Government. The Minister reported to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills and the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work, who split overall responsibility for the portfolio, and are members of cabinet. As a Junior Minister the post holder was not a member of the Scottish Government Cabinet. The post was abolished as part of the cabinet reshuffle in June 2018. History The post of Minister for Youth and Women's Employment within the Scottish Government was recreated on 21 November 2014, but had existed in the very recent past (until April 2014) under a different title. The Junior Ministerial post of Minister for Youth Employment was created on 7 December 2011 following the recommendations of the Smith Group. From April 2014, this was promoted to a Cabinet Secretary position, as Cabinet Secretary for Training, Youth and Women's Employment. The November 2014 Cabinet reshuffle saw the Cab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glenrothes
Glenrothes (; , ; sco, Glenrothes; gd, Gleann Rathais) is a town situated in the heart of Fife, in east-central Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south of Dundee. The town had a population of 39,277 in the 2011 census, making it the third largest settlement in Fife and the 18th most populous settlement in Scotland. The name Glenrothes comes from its historical link with the Earl of Rothes, who owned much of the land on which the new town has been built; ''Glen'' (Scottish for valley) was added to the name to avoid confusion with Rothes in Moray and in recognition that the town lies in a river valley. The motto of Glenrothes is , meaning "From the earth strength", which dates back to the founding of the town. Planned in the late 1940s as one of Scotland's first post-second world war new towns, its original purpose was to house miners who were to work at a newly established coal mine, the Rothes Colliery. After the mine closed, the town developed as an importa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swiss Federal Laboratories For Materials Science And Technology
The Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa, German acronym for ''Eidgenössische Materialprüfungs- und Forschungsanstalt'') is an interdisciplinary Swiss research institute for applied materials sciences and technology. As part of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology Domain, it is an institution of the Swiss federation. For most of the period since its foundation in 1880, it concentrated on classical materials testing. Since the late 1980s it has developed into a modern research and development institute. Research According to its vision – Materials and technologies for a sustainable future – Empa aims at developing solutions for current problems facing industry and society in areas such as energy, the environment, mobility, health and safety. Research is concentrated in five Research Focus Areas: "Nanostructured Materials," "Sustainable Built Environment," "Health and Performance," "Natural Resources and Pollutants," and "Energy". Em ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Framework Programmes For Research And Technological Development
The Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, also called Framework Programmes or abbreviated FP1 to FP9, are funding programmes created by the European Union/European Commission to support and foster research in the European Research Area (ERA). Starting in 2014, the funding programmes were named Horizon. The funding programmes began in 1984 and continue to the present day. The most recent programme, Horizon Europe, has a budget of 95.5 billion Euros to be distributed over 7 years. The specific objectives and actions vary between funding periods. In FP6 and FP7, focus was on technological research. In Horizon 2020, the focus was on innovation, delivering economic growth faster, and delivering solutions to end users that are often governmental agencies. Background Conducting European research policies and implementing European research programmes is an obligation under the Amsterdam Treaty, which includes a chapter on research and technological development. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been described as a '' sui generis'' political entity (without precedent or comparison) combining the characteristics of both a federation and a confederation. Containing 5.8per cent of the world population in 2020, the EU generated a nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of around trillion in 2021, constituting approximately 18per cent of global nominal GDP. Additionally, all EU states but Bulgaria have a very high Human Development Index according to the United Nations Development Programme. Its cornerstone, the Customs Union, paved the way to establishing an internal single market based on standardised legal framework and legislation that applies in all member states in those matters, and only those matters, where the states have agreed to act ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parsnips
The parsnip ('' Pastinaca sativa'') is a root vegetable closely related to carrot and parsley, all belonging to the flowering plant family Apiaceae. It is a biennial plant usually grown as an annual. Its long taproot has cream-colored skin and flesh, and, left in the ground to mature, it becomes sweeter in flavor after winter frosts. In its first growing season, the plant has a rosette of pinnate, mid-green leaves. If unharvested, in its second growing season it produces a flowering stem topped by an umbel of small yellow flowers, later producing pale brown, flat, winged seeds. By this time, the stem has become woody and the tap root inedible. The parsnip is native to Eurasia; it has been used as a vegetable since antiquity and was cultivated by the Romans, although some confusion exists between parsnips and carrots in the literature of the time. It was used as a sweetener before the arrival of cane sugar in Europe. Parsnips are usually cooked, but can also be eaten r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
