Threats to the Thermal Mineralized Waters Used for Therapeutic Purposes in Jordan

Although Jordan is a country with very limited water resources, the country is rich in its thermal mineralized water possessing curative properties, historically used for the therapy of a variety of ailments. Due to the country’s increasing water demand resulting from population growth, urbanization, and industrialization, extractions from the groundwater sources feeding the thermal mineralized springs has started to affect negatively the discharged quantities from the springs. In addition, urbanization, mining activities, over-exploited groundwater resources in general and severe drop in the level of the Dead Sea are leading to declining discharge of springs in general, and thermal mineralized in special, deteriorating water quality and contamination by human activities. In this article, the current quantitative and qualitative situation of the thermal mineralized springs is given and the threats to their discharges and quantities are discussed. In addition, some water policy changes and measures are suggested to conserve these therapeutic waters for the use of generations to come and to alleviate their depletion and quality deterioration on the social and economic state of Jordan.

Effect of grinding methods and packaging materials on fenugreek and black pepper powder quality and quantity under normal storage conditions

The effects of different grinding methods and packaging materials on qualities of fenugreek and black pepper powders were evaluated.Various parameters and their evaluation methods are as follows:change in colour determined using Chroma meter calorimeter,aroma and odour measured by sensory evaluation,and change in moisture measured using oven drying method.Packaging materials such as glass jar,steel jar,plastic jar,aluminum bag and poly bags were used for keeping ambient and cryogenically ground fenugreek and black pepper powders.Packed powders were stored in dry and cool places under ambient condition.Sensory evaluation revealed quality reduction in terms of colour,odour,flavour,aroma and acceptability for fenugreek and black pepper powder stored for a long term(6 months).However,glass jar and steel jar were found to be better containers for storing powders for longer storage period than other options.For practical applications,the present investigation on the deterioration behaviour of fenugreek and black pepper powder contributes to the design of a suitable grinder out of ball,hammer,rotor,and pin mill for spice grinding.The study also helps select a suitable packaging material or container to store spice powders.A method to assess the quality of stored powder and its deterioration with the storage time is provided.

Combining Knowledge-and Data-Driven Fuzzy Approach to Evaluate Shelf-Life of Various Seafood Products

Due to the complexity of the deterioration process of seafood products,relying on one indicator is not adequate to determine the quality of such products.Usually,shelf-life was estimated based on various indicators complicating the decision-making process.Decision Support Systems are considered as a good solution.The current study aims to establish a simple and novel fuzzy model based on a combination of knowledge-and data-driven approaches to define a fuzzy quality deterioration index(FQDI)in various seafood products(rainbow trout,threadfin bream,and white shrimp samples)during cold storage.Total volatile basic nitrogen(TVB-N)and psychrotrophic microorganisms counts(PMCs)were determined based on traditional methods.The sensory analysis was performed by a data-driven fuzzy approach.Overall,the shelf-life of the rainbow trout fillet was estimated to be 8 d,based on all the freshness parameters.However,the shelf-life of the Japanese threadfin bream fillet was 5-7 d according to the microbial and chemical parameters,respectively.This time for shrimp samples was 6-8 d using sensory score and TVB-N contents.The results of data-driven fuzzy approach showed all of the quality properties were considered as the'Important'-'Very Important'(defuzzification score>75).The TVB-N and PMCs were the most and weakest freshness quality properties(defuzzified-values:84.64 and 78.75,respectively).Based on FQDI,the shelf-life of the rainbow trout,Japanese threadfin bream,and shrimp samples were estimated to be 8,5,and 7 d,respectively.This method was able to successfully provide a comprehensive deterioration index for evaluating the seafood shelf-life.Such a total index can be considered as a comprehensive output(y variable)to predict seafood freshness by rapid and nondestructive method.