Pumpkins get a taste of high tech to measure quality

HEFEI — Choosing the sweetest pumpkin at the market may soon be as easy as scanning it with a high-tech device, thereby eliminating the need to squeeze or taste it.

Chinese scientists recently developed a technology that quickly and accurately measures the sensory qualities of pumpkins.

This achievement, made by researchers from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, combines two advanced technologies: near-infrared spectroscopy, or NIRS, and hyperspectral imaging, or HSI.