Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-08-12
THE FIRE FLY
As Economical Light Giver Puzzle
to Science.

As Economical Light Giver a Puzzle
to Science.
The iight-giving bugs have attracted
the attention of scientists from very
early tunes. During recent years
mucn careful and more or less elab-
crate investigation Of them has been
carried on by highly trained natural
lists and chemists.
They have been dissected under
the miscroscope and in the test tube,
domesticated and studied alive, *
rayed, ultra violet rayed, treated with
electricity and nearly every common
chemical substance. Their light-giv-
ing parts have been dried and pre-
served, and revivined after several
years; their light itself analyzed with
both spectroscope and photometer
In fact, pretty nearly every possible
angle OF approach has been tried In
the effort 10 unlock the secret Of pro-
ducing light without heat.
For the fire fiy's light is so much
more economical than anything
luminous man has been able to de-
wise that an aruncial lamp only so
per cent as efficient would CIR prop
erly handled commercially place its
inventor in the same class as the
present Standard Oil magnates. But
after all this work, with our wonder
full modern methods and instruments
and brains-the puzzle still remains.
The fire fly as a light-giver, is near
ly 100 per cent etticient-to be ex-
act, 80 per cent, according to recent
tests on "Photuris Pennsylvania"
The best that man has been able to
do in light making efficiency is some
thing less than per cent.
1t Is worth noting in this connec-
ton, however, that a paper on the
mechanism of physiological light by
Professor r. Dubois, OF the Universi-
ty Of Lyons, was presented to the re-
cent chemical congress In New York,
in which it was claimed that some of
the most puzzling chemical problems
OF the fire fly had already been solv-
ed.
Prof. Dubois declares that the
process is nothing more
than a reaction between a nucleo-
proteid Luclferase and a phosphorus
containing protreid which he has nam
ed Luciferine. The former Is
yeast like body that can be replaced
by an oxidizing agent. A fiuorescent
pyrophorine. which plays
some psrt in the reaction in the case
of "pyropJ.orus noctilqcus," he con-
siders either a glucoside or an al
baloid. ... a
Even though Prof. Dubois con-
clusions are confirmed by other stu
dents, has apparent belief that. as we
now know the chemistry Of the fire
fly, an artificial reproduction of him
for commercial lighting is close at
hand, seems rather premature. So
long as the bugs and worms retain a
in the manufacture Of lu-
ciferine and luciferas, these names
will help us little in cheapening our
1t may be Of interest,
therefore, to summarize briefly some
some of the comparatively recent
work on fire fies other than that done
in Professor Dubois laboratory.
Many years ago, probably as far
back as 1893, it was known that the
luminous arts of fire flies, glow
worms, etc., could be dried and pre-
served out Of contact with the air for
periods, without losing
years it has been possible to prove
this permanence Of the light giving
power for at least IS months. Kastle
and McDermott were able, upon open
ing tubes containing the luminous or
gans Of the common fire fly preserved
in hydrogen or a vacuum, to obtain
quite a brilliant light, by simply
with water. The light
was increased when hydrogen peroX-
ide replaced the water.
Indeed, such organs, after acci-'
dental exposure to the air for many
six at least were found still
to possess some luminosity. In the
case of the fire fly, the light-giving
tissue can be heated to 100 degrees
without perceptibly in
juring it's activity upon moistening."
and is also, unharmed by tempera-
ture extremes at the other end of he
scale.
F. A. McDermott records the fol-
lowing experiment with fire fly: "A
living lampyrid dropped into test
tube, immersed in liquid air, flashed
rapidly for a few seconds, but was
soon overcome by the cold, and fell
back in the tube, frozen stiff; mean
while the luminous organ began to
shine brilliantly, but the brilliancy
the diminution in brillian-
cy being accompanied by change In
the color Of the light, which became
very reddish.
The light finally disappeared en-
tirely or very nearly so. On warming
TO the room temprature the light
first appeared reddish, and with in
crease in intensity, became more and
more like the normal light of the in
sect. The insect was dead, but the
luminous tissue continued to glow for
some time."-Philadelp Ledger.
Why Dueis are Harmless.-A large