Boffins cook up ultimate bacon sarnie
Another triumph for UK university research
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The UK's universities are fast forging a reputation for the kind of ground-breaking research which can only leave lesser seats of learning looking on in awe.
Indeed, hot on the heels of the Aberdeen better darts project, triumphant scientists at Leeds have cracked that most imponderable of posers: how to create the ultimate bacon sarnie.
And the answer? Simple: take two or three back bacon rashers, cook under a preheated grill for seven minutes at around 240°C and nestle between two slices of farmhouse bread around 1-2cm thick. Then eat.
In case you think this recipe is something any self-respecting undergraduate could cook up, you should know that it took four Leeds University Department of Food Science experts 1,000 hours to work their way through 700 bacon sarnie variations.
According to the BBC, in the process they tried "different types and cuts of bacon, cooking techniques, types of oil, and a range of cooking times at different temperatures", then ran a shortlist through a computer to measure the texture of each sandwich. Finally, 50 volunteers "judged each sandwich according to its taste, texture, and flavour".
Lead boffin Dr Graham Clayton, explained: "We often think it's the taste and smell of bacon that consumers find most attractive. But our research proves that texture and the crunching sound is just - if not more - important. While there was much debate within our taste panels on the smoked or unsmoked decision, everyone agreed that tough or chewy bacon is a turn-off."
Anyone wishing to verify the team's findings can avail themselves of the following formula: N = C + {fb (cm) . fb (tc)} + fb (Ts) + fc . ta, where N=force in Newtons required to break the cooked bacon, fb=function of the bacon type, fc=function of the condiment/filling effect, Ts=serving temperature, tc=cooking time, ta=time or duration of application of condiment/filling, cm=cooking method, C=Newtons required to break uncooked bacon. ®
COMMENTS
Reply to Steve
3, 4) I'm sure that no Governement funding went into this study directly. The tart who was interviewed on the radio (Today programme) twice mentioned "Danish bacon" in his replies to the interviewer's questions. The only person named on the BBC website article is Commercial manager of the Food Science Department, located at the "Food Chain Centre of Industrial Collaboration". I suspect that Danepak, or some other manufacturer of plastic Danish bacon, approached this group directly because of their known willingness to take money to come out with whatever rubbish is required about the perfect way to dunk a McVitties Digestive, or whatever.
5) Yes, it does. It's not just Leeds though: Ben Goldacre has a piece over at badscience about a chap loosely associated with Cardiff University, who comes out with formulas for worst Monday and so on (paid for by tour holiday operators, if I recall correctly). A few days after Reading closed its physics department there was a press release about one of its computer scientists solving the '2000 year-old problem' of division by zero.
7) I have to disagree here - there is a perfectly respectable science of food, essentialy a sort of practical physics and chemistry applied to proteins, fats and carbohydrates, including the way these are broken down by the digestive system. Unfortunately it also covers the technology of making bacons 'cuts' from mechanically recovered meat (i.e. abattoir slurry), or finding new uses for pam oil.
Thats a formula?
It just goes to show that any subject with Science in the title isn't really a science. Chemisty, Physics, Biology even Maths are sciences. They alone should be trusted with "scientific formulae".
Confusing mixed units, whats it supposed to mean anyway? Functions the functions aren't mentioned might aswell have N = +/- undefined constant.
And is it just me that wonders where they took personal preference into account? With just 50 samplers it'd be interesting to see their statisical analysis (though that was probably to indepth for them so they drew something pretty in Crayon.)
Tim (Studying MPhys, for which I had to study A-Level maths, and further maths)
Steve
OK so its supposed to be a bit of fun but....
1) There an implicit assumption that all tastes are homogeneous. I'm sure Levitts 1974 prediction hasn't come true...
2) If you can't make a formula dimensionally consistent, don't make a formula at all...
3) How much did this cost the taxpayer?
4) Gov't funded research is justified by the externalities associated with that knowledge. Are there really positive externalities to this research? I.e. why couldn't it have been funded by a bacon company?
5) Surely this just degrades all scientists who have a degree from Leeds?
6) Can you imaging the Vice Chancellor of Leeds at a conference with other Vice Chancellors.... the bacon buttie jokes will be endless...
7) Finally WTF is a food scientist? You have Chemistry, Biology, Bio-Chemistry, Physics, possibly Zoology, but really "Food Science" that involves eating bacon sandwhiches... What the hell are our universities coming to???
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