To carry out sensory evaluation of food products, it is necessary to use a panel consists of people with normal senses. The substance concentrations used in discrimination tests to screen for such a panel have been extensively studied in previous researches. The concentrations reported include values that are now around 40 years old. This study was carried out in view of the possibility that the changes associated with the diversification of food may have changed the gustation of young people and could change the concentrations used for panel screening. Accordingly, a study was made of college students’ taste discrimination ability using a triangle test with reference to previous research concentrations. The following findings were obtained. 1) Gustatory detection rates were 47.9% for sweet, 98.6% for salty, 47.9% for sour, 49.3% for bitter and 91.8% for umami. Gustatory recognition rates were 39.7% for sweet, 68.5% for salty, 34.2% for sour, 35.6% for bitter and 60.3% for umami. 2) In comparison of previous matching tests and the triangle test used in this study, both produced almost identical results for salty and umami, but results for sweet, sour and bitter in the triangle test were approximately 20-30% lower than that of previous matching tests.

We aimed to address the differences in bathing associated with mist heating. Specifically, we compared physiological strain and thermal comfort for two general bathing categories: 1) mist sauna bathing and half-body bathing with mist heating, and 2) whole-body bathing or half-body bathing without mist heating. Eight healthy young males bathed for 10 min under four conditions (whole-body bathing: W, half-body bathing: H, half-body bathing with mist heating: MH, mist sauna bathing: M) on separate days. The water temperatures for whole-body and half-body bathing were 40°C and 38°C, respectively. The results were as follows: :(1) the mean skin temperature was significantly higher after MH compared with H (p<0.001). (2) The perception of comfort was significantly greater after MH compared with H (p<0.05). (3) The decrease in blood pressure was significantly smaller during M compared with W (p<0.05). (4) ‘Hotness’ perception with respect to the face was significantly greater during M compared with W. Conversely, perception of coolness with respect to the feet was significantly greater during and after M compared with W. These results suggest that half-body bathing with mist heating could sustain high skin temperature and thermal comfort after bathing. Additionally, the airflow direction and mist temperature may impact bathing comfort and warmth.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare estimates the number of elderly people in Japan to cross 8million including people with MCI (Mild Cognitive Impairment). In these circumstances, music therapy and music for rehabilitation have been attracting attention and there are hopes that they will have beneficial effects in welfare facilities for the elderly and in the medical field. In this study the authors investigated how music therapy was conducted in a closed-access room or in an open-access space at 5 welfare facilities for the elderly in Kinki district, observed how they reacted to the music therapy about voice and rhythm and gave them three different marks. The authors also researched changes of the clients’ lives after the music therapy by conducting a questionnaire survey among the staff, analyzed the data and classified by sex, age and level of nursing care. The data show that clients who obtained better marks were men than women, in the third stage of nursing care and in their 90’'s while the survey by the staff showed the clients in their 60'’s and 70'’s obtained better marks. In addition, the mark in close - access space is better than in an open - access room. The average mark was higher at the facilities with music therapy instructors.