The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-02-27
GETTING BETTER WORK OUT or
OLD SOL.

| OLO SOk.
Mild cigars and strong cigars, all
from the Same seed, is new ac-
complishment of the sun. Our old
friend is a chemist who knows what
to do when he Is given certain ele-
ments to combine. Hoping to event
ualiy bottle sun energy. Professor
Giacomo Giamician of Italy has al
ready discovered enough of Old Soils
chemical formulate to control the
amount of nicotine in tobacco plants
certainly queer by-product of
abstruse scientific research.
A plant is wonderful chemical
Laboratory, directed by the sun. Pro
fessor Giamician gave selected soil
food to similar tobacco plants and
the sunlight operated these natural
Laboratories to turn the food into
more or less nicotine On the surface
Lit Is simple result, but it was only
through study of deep underlying
principles of the chemical reactions of
sunlight that the professor selected
the right foods.
Photochemistry is the technical
name OF the science OF the chemical
changes produced by light. So far Its
great practical use has been In pho
Biography, but its application to the
/ old problem OF taking energy from the
sun is the new note which promises
more than all before.
The great problem now" says
Professor Giamician, is how to fx
solar energy through suitable pho
Itochemical reactions. to use the pho
tochemical processes that hitherto
that hitherto have been the guarded
secrets OF the plants" To "fix'' solar
energy means to convert 1t into cleo
tricity or some other power that men
can use. Up to this time most Of
the efforts to fix solar energy have
been to use solar heat direct by
means Of mirrors, lenses and steam
boilers.
II a plant can tx solar energy with
out any lenses or steam boilers, using
only chemical operations. cannot man
fix solar energy by initiating sthe
chemical processes with laboratory
apparatus? To discover the plant S
methods means infinite labor. A great
amount OF research by Professor Gia-
u1ician and fellow investigator is
represented by the tobacco plant sue
cess. Even this. by the way, to be
|of practical use must be further sup
plemented.
Once the scientists thoroughly I'M
Iderstand the chemistry methods by
which these tobacco plants accomp-
lished their wonders, the start will
have been made on a series of mar
vels. At the present day the accept
ed method OF controlling plants is to
select seed with great care, to breed
q plant through generation after gen
Grafton. to cross different plants. In
other words, the method Is to try
every different scheme by actually
growing plants and then using this
ZONES which grow best. A startling
short cut may come from photochemis
try. The scientist wishes to grow
Ibeets with more sugar in them, and in
stead Of gradually accomplishing 9
| little by seed selection, he goes RICH,
Ito the bottom of the matter, finds out
just what materials sunlight chem
istry will turn into sugar in the chem
ical laboratory called a beet, ane
then he sees to it that the beet lab
oratory is supplied with those ele
ments, probably in the form of fer
tilizer or other plant food
| The Italian professor himself sug
gests that here is a cheap source O
light, heat and power. if photochem
tistry keeps its promise. Plants nigh
be grown which would be adapted t,
give out a large quantity of usefu
gas when burned, just as coal vii
now. Vast haryests Of these plant
can be raised, perhaps on land nov
considered waste, and after they ar
dried can be burned for the gas. Tn
gas will be piped to consumers an
used for light and power. Some O
the gases, he thinks, might even b
JESpdi GbIu 1isQ ICHheItSu iuLO III
rates so as TO furnish fertilizer for th
|, next crop.
Coal tar has been the wonder @
the present generation, for chemistr
, has taken from 1t hundreds of CON
mercial products to replace expensiv
vegetable, mineral and animal dye
, and drugs of Older days. But coal ia
3 may become too expensive. or Their
may be shortage when all its use
E have been fully developed. The
!. science will want substitutes for coz
: tar dyes and drugs Why not hav
the plants make the dyes and drug
with the help of the suns chemistry
|, Some plant that seems adapted [
A making one kind of dye win b
/, studied and finally human interventio
E viii make that plant produce the dy
E In great quantities
d The real goal, Professor Giamicia
thinks, IS fixing the energy of tn
sun, although en- the long road ne
a ideas are sure TO be found at ever