Instructor: Jeannine Delwiche, Ph.D.

Laboratory Coordinator: Rachel Liggett

This course will deal with the sensory techniques used in evaluating the taste, smell, flavor, color and texture of foods as well as the evaluation of consumer acceptance. This includes methods for measuring these qualities, underlying psychological principles, statistical methods for analyzing results, and proper interpretation of these results. The overall objective of this course is for learners to be able to effectively interact with a sensory group, as well as judge the quality of their work.

The specific objectives of this course are for each learner to be able to:

1.              Use sensory tables (binomial, d’, beta-binomial, Chi-square, etc.)

2.              Conduct simple statistical and graphical analyses

3.              Interpret the meaning of statistical results

4.              Evaluate the quality of a sensory study

Prerequisite: Understanding of null hypothesis, critical value and alpha level. If you are not familiar with these terms, you need to read Chapters 1-4 of the required text as soon as possible.

Required Text: Sensory Evaluation of Food: Statistical Methods and Procedures. Michael O’Mahony. Marcel Dekker, 1986

Optional Text: Sensory Evaluation of Food: Principles and Practices. Harry Lawless and Hildegarde Heymann. Aspen Publishers, 1998

Format: Lectures, Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 1:00-1:48pm in Parker, Rm 114

Labs, Tuesdays from 10:00- 11:48am in Parker Food Science, Rooms 122 and 124

Instructor: Jeannine Delwiche, Assistant Professor                     315 Parker Food Science & Technology

247-6756                                                               delwiche.1@osu.edu

Office Hours

Formal office hours are immediately following lectures, from 2-3pm, and by appointment. Drop–ins are welcome, but aren’t guaranteed attention. Finally, I will NOT be available the hour preceding class.

Course Grade

Your course grade will be heavily weighted on lab reports and less so on exams. Point breakdown will be:

2 Lab reports (30 pts each)                   =  60 points      ~  21% of your course grade

6 Lab worksheets (15 pts each)            =  90 points      ~  32%

1 problem set                                       =  15 points      ~    5%

Lecture Selection                                  =  15 points      ~    5%

Midterm                                               =  50 points      ~  18%

Final Exam                                           =  50 points      ~  18%

Grading Policy

Grades will be based upon a modified percentage system. As is typical, a percentage of points will correspond to a particular grade (see below). However, at the end of the quarter, the highest point-total received by a student will become the point-total by which the percentage will be determined. With this approach, everyone can do well in the course, even if grading seems very strict. Percentage scores correspond to the following grades:

General Laboratory Procedure

1) Meet in Room 124, Parker Food Science Building, Tuesdays promptly at 10:00am.

2) Hand-in extra-credit “thought papers.”

3) You will participate in the demonstrations, held in Rooms 122 and 124.

4) The data files will be made available later that same day.

If it is necessary for you to miss a lab, be sure to contact me before that lab period.

Academic Misconduct

Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly activity free from fraud and deception and is an educational objective of this institution. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, fabrication of information or citations, facilitating acts of academic dishonesty by others, unauthorized prior possession of examinations, submitting work of another person or work previously used without informing the instructor, or tampering with the academic work of other students. Any suspected violation of the Code of Student Conduct will be forwarded to the Committee on Academic Misconduct.

Laboratory Demonstration Goals

The labs are DEMONSTRATIONS, not research experiments. The laboratories are designed to introduce you to sensory principles and analytical methods. Emphasis is given to the appropriate application of tests and the advantages and limitations of each procedure. Throughout, attention is given to the careful collection of sensory responses, to proper statistical analysis of the data, and to meaningful interpretation of the class responses. Please remember: IT IS NOT IMPORTANT HOW 'GOOD' A TASTER YOU ARE; IT IS IMPORTANT HOW MUCH YOU LEARN. Therefore, I hope that you will develop a feel for:

1) careful attention to experimental procedures,

2) a critical view of the reliability and validity of results

3) the importance of the professionalism in your reports

Lab Worksheets and Reports

Worksheets and reports are due Mondays by 4 pm. Late reports will be penalized 5 points/day. Under extreme circumstances, an extension may be granted, but only if prior arrangements have been made by the preceding Friday. Extension requests made on the due date itself will not be granted. However, keep in mind that since a worksheet or report is due nearly every week, by postponing one, you are cutting into the time you can spend on the next.

If it is necessary for you to miss a lab, be sure to contact me before that lab period. You will still be responsible for a laboratory report.

It takes only about two hours to collect your laboratory responses, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. The out-of-class preparation of your worksheets and reports will be how you achieve much of your learning. Each must be an individual effort. The only way you can fully benefit from this course is to learn how to analyze and interpret data on your own. However, it is perfectly acceptable to compare and discuss your results with other classmates, or to confer with the instructor. Plagiarism of published or on-line materials, or of another student’s report, will not be tolerated – it is grounds for dismissal from the university and are examples of academic misconduct.