Increased and combined knowledge of food processing, molecular biology, health and nutrition has triggered production of many different types of functional foods and pharmaceutics recently. The efficacy and safety of such products are being assessed prior to marketing by in vivo and/or in vitro studies. Traditional in vivo studies require excessive time, cost and labour, as well as ethical approvals with subject to humans or animals in some instances. Therefore excessive number of runs may be avoided if reliable in vitro system is available. During the course of this study, an in vitro physicochemical upper gastrointestinal tract system (IPUGS), the first of its kind in literature, has been developed to simulate the relevant conditions of the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) as closely as possible to the human physiology with multi-disciplinary approach, combining biology, physiology, gastroenterology, process technology, chemical engineering and automation. The IPUGS is aimed at having a high predictive capability towards the real digestion processes occurring in the human upper GIT which allows for examining of the bioavailability of nutrients and drugs, drug-nutrient interactions, viability of probiotics and case studies of gastrointestinal disorders. Digestion of rice and baby foods have been studied with the IPUGS by UV-spectrophotometer, HPLC, light microscope and pH meter under the conditions of normal state and common gastric disorders, such as gastroparesis, dumping syndrome, Zollinger-Ellison syndrome and hypochlorhydria. By comparing the data from many physiological and clinical sources in the literature, it would seem that the IPUGS was able to generate more reliable data compared to the existing in vitro digestion (mechanical) models in the literature. In future, computer-controlled and computer-recorded data by possibly designing a new software or equations would be desirable to implicate a better understanding of the digestive processes.

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Various drying models have been developed in the extent which they are available for the analysis of drying processes in a variety of practical drying systems. However, most were focused only on a single unit operation; mainly the dryer. Nevertheless other unit operations such as cooling and tempering units are also employed in industrial drying systems. Therefore, there is an important need for an integrated analysis of rice drying systems which takes into account all the interactions between the units that appear in a drying process. The aim is to select a process out of the large number of alternatives and operating conditions which meet the specified performance. In this work, the synthesis problem of drying processes will be thoroughly investigated using various drying models. Both simplified (empirical) and rigorous (theoretical) models were used. The aim is to find the optimum configuration and operating conditions which satisfy two optimization criteria. One is to maximize the quality (head rice yield) and the other is to minimize the energy consumption. To solve the synthesis problem, mathematical programming will be used as a tool. Three major steps involving the application of mathematical programming in synthesis problems were developed and presented; superstructure representation, problem formulation and optimization strategy. For the synthesis problem using empirical models, the problem was formulated as an MINLP model. However, due to the fact that different mathematical models are often possible for the same synthesis problem and the recent advances in modeling techniques, generalized disjunctive programming (GDP), known as an alternative model to MINLP, was used. The objectives are to investigate the benefit of using GDP as an alternative model to MINLP and also to exploit a disjunction part of a GDP model for integrating alternative choices of empirical drying models to eliminate the problem of having drying models which are valid only in a small range of operating conditions. The results showed that different drying strategies were obtained from using different drying models in the case of maximum head of rice yield (quality) while the same strategies have been found from using different drying models in the case of minimum energy consumption. This finding is due to the reason that quality as an objective function is highly nonlinear; therefore it contains many local solutions while the energy objective function is a simple linear function. In the aspect of using GDP model, we found that GDP models provide good structure of variable relationships which can improve the search strategy and solution efficiency for the problem dealing with highly nonlinear functions such as in the case of maximum head price yield. Moreover, because of this good characteristic of MINLP based GDP model, the synthesis problem of rice drying processes dealing with various kinds of empirical models can be solved in reasonable time in GAMS. Nonetheless, in the case that the optimization problem is dealing with the simple mathematical function, the GDP model did not outperform the ad hoc MINLP model for the case of minimizing energy consumption. Also, GDP modeling framework facilitated the problem formulation of the synthesis problem which had two drying models valid in a different range of drying operations in rice drying processes. The synthesis problem using theoretical models arising from the simultaneous heat and mass transfer balances gave rise to a mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MIDO) model. Such problem is highly nonlinear, multimodal and discontinuous in nature and is very difficult to solve. A hybrid method which combines genetic algorithms (GAs) and control vector parameterization (CVP) approach was proposed to solve this problem. In the case of maximum head rice yield, the results of the synthesis problem showed that high quality rice grain can be preserved regardless of the choice of drying configuration as long as the drying process is operated under a condition which produces the least amount of moisture gradient within the rice grain. Many local optimum solutions which gave rise to different drying configurations and operating policies were found from using different initial guesses. In the case of minimum energy consumption, the results showed that a cooling-tempering configuration which operates at ambient temperature gave the minimum energy consumption. Different initial guesses converged to the same drying configuration (cooling-tempering) but different operating policies and total number of passes. Moreover, since the optimal operating time in a cooling unit is at the upper operating bound allowed in this unit, the effect of the bound of operating time for a cooling unit on the total number of passes required was studied. The results showed that less number of passes would be obtained if longer periods of cooling are allowed. The hybrid proposed method was able to solve MIDO problems; albeit at a relatively large computational expense. For the comparison aspect between the theoretical and empirical models for synthesis of rice drying processes, empirical models are easier to use for the synthesis problem but they are valid only within the range which they were developed. Also, there is a need for developing a model for each particular unit employed in rice drying processes. For the synthesis problem with theoretical models, this problem gives rise to the most difficult class of optimization problems; however, a theoretical model provides a better understanding of the drying kinetics happening in rice grain. Moreover, theoretical models alleviate the need to develop models for each particular unit employed in rice drying systems. The common feature found from using theoretical and empirical models is that head rice yield objective function always gives rise to different choices of drying configurations while the energy objective function always give rise to a unique drying configuration (cooling-tempering). Different drying strategies have been found from using different drying models. These alternative configurations provide a broader vision on the operation of drying systems. To decide which one is the best, other factors must be taken into account such as investment cost, term of uses and available technology.

Various drying models have been developed in the extent which they are available for the analysis of drying processes in a variety of practical drying systems. However, most were focused only on a single unit operation; mainly the dryer. Nevertheless other unit operations such as cooling and tempering units are also employed in industrial drying systems. Therefore, there is an important need for an integrated analysis of rice drying systems which takes into account all the interactions between the units that appear in a drying process. The aim is to select a process out of the large number of alternatives and operating conditions which meet the specified performance. In this work, the synthesis problem of drying processes will be thoroughly investigated using various drying models. Both simplified (empirical) and rigorous (theoretical) models were used. The aim is to find the optimum configuration and operating conditions which satisfy two optimization criteria. One is to maximize the quality (head rice yield) and the other is to minimize the energy consumption. To solve the synthesis problem, mathematical programming will be used as a tool. Three major steps involving the application of mathematical programming in synthesis problems were developed and presented; superstructure representation, problem formulation and optimization strategy. For the synthesis problem using empirical models, the problem was formulated as an MINLP model. However, due to the fact that different mathematical models are often possible for the same synthesis problem and the recent advances in modeling techniques, generalized disjunctive programming (GDP), known as an alternative model to MINLP, was used. The objectives are to investigate the benefit of using GDP as an alternative model to MINLP and also to exploit a disjunction part of a GDP model for integrating alternative choices of empirical drying models to eliminate the problem of having drying models which are valid only in a small range of operating conditions. The results showed that different drying strategies were obtained from using different drying models in the case of maximum head of rice yield (quality) while the same strategies have been found from using different drying models in the case of minimum energy consumption. This finding is due to the reason that quality as an objective function is highly nonlinear; therefore it contains many local solutions while the energy objective function is a simple linear function. In the aspect of using GDP model, we found that GDP models provide good structure of variable relationships which can improve the search strategy and solution efficiency for the problem dealing with highly nonlinear functions such as in the case of maximum head price yield. Moreover, because of this good characteristic of MINLP based GDP model, the synthesis problem of rice drying processes dealing with various kinds of empirical models can be solved in reasonable time in GAMS. Nonetheless, in the case that the optimization problem is dealing with the simple mathematical function, the GDP model did not outperform the ad hoc MINLP model for the case of minimizing energy consumption. Also, GDP modeling framework facilitated the problem formulation of the synthesis problem which had two drying models valid in a different range of drying operations in rice drying processes. The synthesis problem using theoretical models arising from the simultaneous heat and mass transfer balances gave rise to a mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MIDO) model. Such problem is highly nonlinear, multimodal and discontinuous in nature and is very difficult to solve. A hybrid method which combines genetic algorithms (GAs) and control vector parameterization (CVP) approach was proposed to solve this problem. In the case of maximum head rice yield, the results of the synthesis problem showed that high quality rice grain can be preserved regardless of the choice of drying configuration as long as the drying process is operated under a condition which produces the least amount of moisture gradient within the rice grain. Many local optimum solutions which gave rise to different drying configurations and operating policies were found from using different initial guesses. In the case of minimum energy consumption, the results showed that a cooling-tempering configuration which operates at ambient temperature gave the minimum energy consumption. Different initial guesses converged to the same drying configuration (cooling-tempering) but different operating policies and total number of passes. Moreover, since the optimal operating time in a cooling unit is at the upper operating bound allowed in this unit, the effect of the bound of operating time for a cooling unit on the total number of passes required was studied. The results showed that less number of passes would be obtained if longer periods of cooling are allowed. The hybrid proposed method was able to solve MIDO problems; albeit at a relatively large computational expense. For the comparison aspect between the theoretical and empirical models for synthesis of rice drying processes, empirical models are easier to use for the synthesis problem but they are valid only within the range which they were developed. Also, there is a need for developing a model for each particular unit employed in rice drying processes. For the synthesis problem with theoretical models, this problem gives rise to the most difficult class of optimization problems; however, a theoretical model provides a better understanding of the drying kinetics happening in rice grain. Moreover, theoretical models alleviate the need to develop models for each particular unit employed in rice drying systems. The common feature found from using theoretical and empirical models is that head rice yield objective function always gives rise to different choices of drying configurations while the energy objective function always give rise to a unique drying configuration (cooling-tempering). Different drying strategies have been found from using different drying models. These alternative configurations provide a broader vision on the operation of drying systems. To decide which one is the best, other factors must be taken into account such as investment cost, term of uses and available technology.

Using rice chromosome 1 pseudomolecule as a reference, a minimal tiling path for the euchromatic arms of sorghum chromosome 3 was constructed, in which 23 contigs contain an estimated 57.56 Mb of DNA. A total of 409 EST-STS markers and 255 genetic markers have been mapped onto the euchromatic arms providing excellent integration of the genetic and physical maps. A total of 21 contigs containing 9 ESTSTS and 35 genetic markers have been constructed across the heterochromatin block of sorghum chromosome 3 which comprise 16.57 Mb of DNA. Macrocolinearity between sorghum chromosome 3 and rice chromosome 1 was examined based on the mapped EST-STS markers. Approximately 85% of the EST-STS markers were colinear between these two homeologous chromosomes. Estimates of recombination were also determined, which indicates the existence of recombination cold and hot spots. Microcolinearity between sorghum chromosome 3 and rice chromosome 1 was examined at two different levels. In one case, overlapping sorghum BAC pools orthologous to a 5.1 Mb region of rice chromosome 1 were constructed and sequence skimmed. Alignment of the sorghum skim sequences to the TIGR rice gene models revealed ~62% colinearity between the two orthologous regions. In addition, colinearity between sorghum chromosome 3 and rice chromosome 5 was detected within this region which is likely due to the segmental homology between rice chromosome 1 and rice chromosome 5. Microcolinearity between sorghum and rice was also examined by comparing 2 fully sequenced sorghum chromosome 3 BAC clones to the orthologous region of rice chromosome 1. In this analysis, ~65% colinearity was detected for sorghum BAC 82G24 and ~59% colinearity was detected for sorghum BAC 181g10. Microcolinearity was largely confined to gene coding regions and sequences of exons displayed the highest percent identities. Small-scale gene rearrangements were also detected. Finally, RT-PCR analysis was carried out between a set of colinear and non-colinear genes from sorghum and rice to determine whether the loss of colinearity between orthologous genes resulted in a change in transcriptional regulation. No direct link between loss of colinearity and expression pattern was detected in these experiments.

Rice produces a lot of biomass which is an important trait in increasing grain yield and it is a potential feedstock for bioenergy production. High biomass rice is important to meet the growing demands of grains and biomass for food, fodder and bio-fuel industries. Limited studies have been conducted to determine its response to unfavorable conditions. The main objectives of this study were to determine the response of selected high biomass rice to drought, rainfed and flooded conditions and identify best genotypes that can be grown in unfavorable areas. Two experiments were conducted in summer 2009 to evaluate biomass yield and agronomic traits of selected high biomass genotypes. A greenhouse study had genotypes grown under drought condition - different field capacity (FC) i.e. 100 percent, 75 percent and 50 percent FC, while the field study had rainfed and flooded environments. Most of the genotypes performed well under fully saturated soil conditions but some were less affected by drought. Limited water delayed first tiller emergence and reduced tiller count, rate of tiller production, plant height, rate of increase in height, shoot and root weight, root:shoot (R:S) ratio, percent dry matter (percent DM) and total biomass. The plant height, tiller plant-1, and total biomass at maturity were lower under rainfed conditions and their flowering was delayed compared to flooded conditions. Majority of these traits were correlated with high biomass yield. Genotype 11 which is tall and late maturing produced the highest number of tillers plant-1 and tillers/ 750 cm2 and had the highest biomass yield under both rainfed and flooded conditions. It performed equally well under drought conditions particularly in root and R:S ratio, but genotype 12 was the best in most parameters measured in the greenhouse. Although it was the shortest genotype, it was highest in biomass yield, earliest to tiller, had the highest shoot weight and tiller count, and had the fastest tiller production. The high biomass genotypes like conventional rice were affected by drought and performed better under flooded conditions. However, these two genotypes can produce optimum results under limited availability of water and hence be used for biomass production under stressed environments.

Taiwan became a member of the WTO in November last year. This helped push Taiwan to the International business circle successfully; also it helped all the Taiwanese businesses to grow positively, but Taiwan would face strong international competition as well. This essay is about how Taiwan¡¦s rice policy will react and adjust to the strong international competition after joining the WTO. Also we will talk about how the rice policy of Taiwan revolves into what it is today since WWII. We will look at the good and the bad from previous policies, so we can create better agricultural policies for now, and better the economy of Taiwan¡¦s rice business for the future. The problem that Taiwan is facing now is the policy of limited quota. We have to follow the rule of ¡¥minimum access¡¦ once we join the WTO. The import number of brown rice in 2002 is 8% of the total amount consumed in Taiwan from 1990 to 1992. According to the statistics from the Food Bureau of Taiwan, The total consumption of brown rice in Taiwan in 1990, 1991, and 1992 are; 1,834 thousand tons, 1,897 thousand tons, and 1,694 tons. If we count the grain it would be approximately 2,260 thousand tons. If we use the minimum access policy, 8% of it would be 180 thousand tons of grain. If we do not have the proper ¡¥Tie-in sales¡¦, the price of local rice sales and the amount the farmers earn would fall drastically. Tie-in sale is actually a short-term solution. In the long term, Taiwan¡¦s rice policy will lead to results with tariff. At this moment, the price of Taiwanese rice would not be under any protection, so the most important thing is to raise the ability to compete internationally for Taiwan¡¦s rice. The result, after a careful examination, is that Taiwan is no competition with the U.S., Thailand, and China on the price aspect. Besides from that, the personnel and the space of land cost much higher than the other countries make Taiwan hard to compete. The only way is to raise the quality above the other competition then we can actually have a place to compete with the rest of them. At the same time, if we can create a large-scale center for tie-in sales, it should help lowering the base cost of grain rice. As for the government, it should change the policies to assist with the rice farmers. Transform the current guaranteed purchasing policy for guaranteed price , to direct payment , which should help Taiwan¡¦s rice market to market suitable diversion and reduction ,would minimize the impact actually. . In the future, the rice farmers will grow rice for consumers, not for the needs of the government. The agriculture of rice will go back to the natural market rule; the rice farmers will work with the government to develop higher quality rice. Joining the WTO brings both good and bad to the grain rice industry, so if we can take chances at the right times and avoid risks, we can be in the business for a long time.

The Texas rice industry has undergone many changes over the course of the industry’s existence. Recently, high costs of production and the structure of government payments have contributed to a decreasing trend in rice acreage planted in Texas. While Texas was once the top rice producer in the United States, it now ranks fifth. Despite the fact that Texas has one of the lowest levels of production among rice producing states, it currently maintains the highest per acre yields. One of the major factors in maintaining superior yields is the development of high performance rice varieties and hybrids, which provide increased yields on fewer acres. Research institutions invest a great deal of time, effort, and money towards the development of new varieties every year. Each one of these varieties has a specific set of traits that are believed to be in high demand by producers and processors. However, during the developmental stages, scientists are uncertain as to how each new gerplasm will perform once it reaches the market. This study develops a regression model, which includes competition and the characteristics of a specific variety, to estimate the life cycle of new varieties and hybrids. In addition, simulation techniques are utilized to incorporate risk into the life cycle, providing a more robust prediction of the cumulative adoption and disadoption path. Results indicate that the life cycle of new rice varieties is becoming shorter over time. Furthermore, the length of the life cycle is directly related to a new seed’s performance, compared to other varieties on the market. Varieties that provide higher levels of performance, especially higher yields, tend to have a longer life cycle and achieve a larger market share, on average.

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The Rice Sprout Song, the first novel ever written in English by Zhang Ailing, was finished during the time when she resided in Hong Kong, namely, from 1952 till 1955. Forty-one years after she released the book and secured a firm position in the world of literature, she passed away in the USA in1995. According to Su Weizhen, it was Hu Shi that made the earliest comments on the novel. In his reply letter to its author, Professor Hu stated that ¡§from beginning to end, your novel focuses on famine, which might have been a suitable title if you had opted for it. On the whole, the story is described in an unadorned but natural manner.¡¨ Several decades later, Professor Xia Zhiqing offered the same commentary as Hu¡¦s, adding that the novel boasts considerable literary value. After making a probe into the background and inspiration of the novel, this paper dwells on its creative techniques, such as the multiple interpretations conveyed by the narratives, the skillful mastery of images in original writing, the presentation of colorful, concrete pictures, and the clever employment of irony. After that, this paper analyzes the music, mythology, drama, as well as ethical structure mentioned in the novel, and even investigates the standpoint from which the author shapes the characters successfully. Born at the turn of a new era and strongly influenced by both eastern and western cultures, Zhang Ailing is separate from her contemporaries in that she has stuck to her own writing style throughout her career. Nevertheless, as the masterpiece representative of her middle career, The Rice Sprout Song exhibits plainness and purity by basing its plot on real people and experiences. Being a member of Zhang¡¦s distinctly feminine creations, the novel differs from her early or late counterparts. For instance, one of her early hits, The Legends, is overly ornamental and brightly colored while two woks completed in her late years, The Discontented Woman and The Long-lasting Love, are genuinely refreshing and intriguing. Besides, it should be pointed out that the content of the novel is gradually shifted from the physical aspect to the ideological one. A writer trapped ¡§in the narrow corner of human history,¡¨ Zhang Ailing has only a little freedom to exercise her imagination. Therefore, it deserves deep thought that the uniquely rebellious author shows, out of humanitarian concern, sincere sympathy for the plight of Chinese peasants. Concentrating on the theme of rural poverty, she presents her observations in a direct and simple way and thus renders the novel different from her earlier works, which are characterized by a decorative and intricate style. Though described in easy language, the novel displays mature skills which demand heartfelt awe from its readers. No wonder Professor Wang Dewei recommends the novel as ¡§a vulgar model revolting against the modern trend.¡¨ In addition, what the characters say and do reflects the features of the man on the street rather than those of the upper class. As a result, it is fairly effortless for the readers to get exposed to ¡§true-to-life records of human history.¡¨ Keywords: Zhang Ailing (Eileen Chang), The Rice Sprout Song, symbolism, color image, anti-communism literature