New Scientist is carrying this article detailing the development of a new technology that could be used to sterilize food without requiring pasteurization (which affects flavor). By using intense flashes of ultraviolet light and shockwaves of up to 1000 atmospheres in pressure, scientists are able to create microscopic air bubbles in food that, somehow, smash harmful bacteria to bits.

Several things puzzle me about this:

• I jump when the microwave beeps, lord knows what a roughly 1000 bar shockwave would sound like.
• While it may not affect the flavor, it sure seems like it would affect the texture. I can only imagine the mess something this violent would make out of a tomato, for example.
• They're still not at a practical level compared to other much cheaper methods of sterilization.
• Sounds like it generates enough heat to cook whatever you're working with. We already have microwaves, thanks.

The ability to confine forces like this in a box and not outright destroy all organic matter sounds pretty nifty, so who knows what other uses it might have?