Evening star., 1939-12-15
BY THOMAS r, HENRY.

| AAOouSCAul VI CAp1OOlllS CdIUOIl.
dioxide, the gas which in its ordinary
form is the keystone Of the whole
structure Of life on earth, by SCI
entists of the Carnegie Institution
OF Washington was announced to
the institutions trustees this morn
ing by President Vannevar Bush.
This accomplishment at the ter
restial magnetism laboratory In
Washington by Drs. Merle o. Tuve
and j. H. G. Smith is considered one
OF the farthest steps yet taken to-
ward solving the secrets OF life's
fuel-making processes and the
eventual possibility actually of syn
thesizing starches end sugars with
out using living things as necessary
agents.
Report Submitted.
This Is the goal described by DR..
Bush In his report to the trustees
as some day possibly enabling man
ito carry on the involved chemical
transformations on raw materials
exposed in trays to the sun of the
desert, and this may in the next
generation profoundly influence
the dependence of the race on its
environment"
1.-The photochemical mechanism
which produces plant life" DR.. Bush
continued, "is one of the most basic
Of the processes that have made
possible the complex evolution on
this planet. We are a product Of
that evolution"
The exploding carbon -dioxide Is
one of the many transmutations ac-
complished during the past year
with the high voltage apparatus
under DR.. Tuve's direction in the
pear-shaped atomic observatory on
the edge Of Rock Greek Park. The
carbon atom in the gas molecule is
rendered radioactive by lombard
ment at high voltage with minute
atomic particles. some of which
make direct hits on the carbon
nuclei.
For some years research on the
carbohydrate manufacturing mech
anism of green plants has been a
ajor activity of the institution. DR..
Smith was working on the problem
in the plant biology laboratory at
Palo Alto, Calf, but came to WASH
ington when the possibilities of DR.
Tuve's apparatus for throwing light
on the mysteries of plant physiology
became apparent.
DR.. Tuve already had prepared
various other radioactive elements
for use in medical research, it was
explained to the trustees, among
whom was former President Herbert
Hoover.
At the same time DR.. Bush an
nounced plans for setting up here a
$150,00O cyclotron, another form OF
atom smashing machine devised by
DR.. E. o. Lawrence of the University
OF california. which has proved OF
special value in producing radio
active transmutations of elements
essentially artificial radium-and In
the new neutron ray treatment OF
cancer.
Recently DR.. Lawrence has set up
a cyclotron much more powerful
than any used in the past. The ma
chine to be installed in Washington
will be essentially a duplicate of
this. 1t is felt, DR.. Bush explained,
that such an apparatus should be
available somewhere in the East
where 1t can be used by the nu-
merous medical and biological labo-
ratories in this part of the country.
Apparatus Being Constructed.
The apparatus, DR.. Bush told the
trustees, now is being constructed.
A new building will be put up to
house it.
Without extreme precautions a
cyclotron Is a dangerous apparatus
to use, with its operators possibly
exposed to the constant lombard
ment of the most penetrating parti-
cles on earth. To insure safety the
machine will be mostly underground
and all other possible precautions
are being taken to protect workers
with what DR.. Bush described as
"the most potent equipment, from
certain points of view. that man has
ever used for his purposes"
Life is fameless fire, Carnegie
bio-phycists explained in discussing
the significance of the accomplish
ment Of DR.. Smith and Tuve.
1t depends absolutely on the
strange phenomenon of photosyn-
thesis-the creation of sugars and
starches by plants out of carbon
dioxide and water through the
energy Of sunlight. Less than a
hundredth part of the atmosphere
IS composed Of the gas, carbon d.
oxide. This is breathed In by plants
through their leaves. At the same
time they absorb water through
their roots. The gas and the water
are combined in all sorts of complex
ways to produce the carbohydrates
which are the basic fuels of all lv-
ing things, without which the fire of
life would go out as quickly as a
furnace fire when the coal in the
bin is exhausted.
This creation of sugars and
starches is possible only through
the peculiar properties Of chloro-
phyll, the green coloring matter in
leaves, which acts as a catalyst for
harnessing the suns energy in the
job of synthesis.
The green plants make and store
the carbohydrates. Animals eat the
plants. Other animals eat the ami
mails that eat the plants. The in
dividual animals die and their
bodies make fertilizer for the grow
ing Of new green plants, but the
fire Of life may be expected to go
on forever, in some form or other,
so long as the process Of photosyn-
thesis continues.
Grown More Complex.
Back in the primaeval seas more
than billion years ago the fire
kindled. The process has grown
more and more complex in the
course of evolution to the higher
forms Of plant and animal life on