Evening star., 1952-02-29
Bureau Chemists Find
to Explode Sugars
Pfeduet May Help 10 selvs
Deep bieIesieaI Problems
BY Themes R, HeAvv

BY Themes H. Henry
Exploding SUGARS have been pFea
dHeed DIV unlted States Bureau OF Stands
aFds chemists
Fhey aFe VaElGus varieties Of spRaP
In whose meleeVla has bpen lnpgppersIGd
VI atom gf earben u the radioactive
lgFIl o. tne element which u the eeFneFs
The new SUGARS premise 10 be a
scientific tael o. the utmest lmpaFtanee,
maklne passlhle research Into snnDs Of
tha deepest Of hlelpeieal problems,
pF. Horace lshell, who was In charge
af Tho pF0ieet, has been directing Q
Team OF research chemists for the past
three years,
Application In Ri0legy,
n typical application In biology Ia
the study OF how the body uses laetase,
or common milk sugar, Lactoae is made
up OF glucose and galactose, Glucose Ia
tne primary source OF energy In animal
lie, while galactose Is an important con.
stltuent OF brain and nervous tissue,
Animals can he fed radioactive lactose
ana later he examined to and where the
sugar was utilized, Biologists are inter-
ested IN knowing whether the galaetose
round IN the nervous tissue came from
the original lactose received through
the diet or whether II was manufactured
IN the body.
There are almost innumerable similar
problems. A large portion of the con-
stituents Of animal and plant life con.
sists OF carbohydrates or their deriya.
tiyes. Carbohydrates are combinations
Nnfhnn hUdnAaANA
vary IN completely from simple sugars
to hlgniy complex substances like starch
and cellulose.
Previously there has been only limited
success IN the synthesis Of radio -actiye
sugars. Yields have amounted 10 only
3 70 10 per cent Of the original Carbon
- while. by the Bureau OF Standards
process. from 40 10 90 per cent has been
recovered.
The sarth'S crust 10 about 2S miles
thick. "'"v'
AZ around that depth there Ia sharp
dividing iine-rough and Irregular
which marks the beginning OF the
planets mantle, its basic outer surface,
upon which the light crust floats like
ice on water.
Mountains are like icebergs, their
great weight pushing downward 10
FORM depresSionB In this mantle,
These are among the hypotheEeS from
extensive tests Of the speed OF Ehoek
waves at various depths lust reported
py the Department Of Terrestrial Mag.
netlsm OF the Carnegie Institution az
washington. Measurements on Wavea
set UP by explosions we're carried ouL
under the Middle Atlantic coastal rss
ion, under the AppAlAthlAfs near the
Tenfessees virginia border and tihder
Northern Minnesota, Much Of this work
was carried out with The c0sOperatlon
OF the once OF Naval Research,
s Slow increase In VelOeily,
,Thefe u 4 SLOW Increase u tie veibUlty
oi thsge eSplDslbh waves tht6uHh rock,
accpruifik 70 the Carnegie sGlehtlbts tes
ppftl from about . kll6ifieters tjer Aee6hd
a. tie slitfatt d6Wh ID 4 llt(le 6vtf
klltitietefS NJ \ depth VI about M
kklIli1,iiietefs kiIi,t T1e Increase Ia progressive,
wlth ti6 SHARP brbaksI 0'''''
, Az somewhere at6liHd SB kIl8HalepA
lh6wtssvtt tfiete u Il SHARP breAk WltH 4
sPeed 6f I'll kllbtfetetsI lhdleAtlfiR thH6
tHs waves Htg Mbvlhk tht6uRh A GIlEs
ran1eTeHV hnlu OF fbtki THHfF ihl lHH
teata ihdleAteI. no 0lByeflHRF GT fHa
satthB tttlstI u ltlAt eetb fA0th and mara
Hetse Wlth ,lfiefeAAlfk .bfehAlte dawn M
Wv ttitieHi B0ihb Whefe the Elahtla
,.Aa unexpected aHdlag psAAlbW Win
!nM.,pi1Ite9eHlHk lhBlleAtl6hA WM lhBb
Ehlle othE glHnEIa htRrted AZ 4 deBth ri
NtMa w w klllppltlleHteth Hllaef MAfvlAna
WA pHFlea, RR1Ht 4O kllamREhF6 daRR
hnAeF Ene hlaH AnHalRGhlAnAI qhlR IHHs
p9fM HE llgnHtleAls III the laebRpg nRtiITa
n MHHhtAlna 1hflF grRat WRlgHt GRlIsRR
Lltpn w slHk .affH lhta thR mRHtle a.
lpebeFgR slnk lnt9 the ReR ''"' wv
yeGts In MesRbl VFHH ReglNH,
pFlLlpHl tFsEs Wfre PAppled pHt IN The
MeFRhl lpan Feglan ri Northern Mime
AAtAr .Fhf fKnlsed rocks In this AREA
age NJ part NJ the sa-palled Canadian
Ahleld which covers oil OF Narthern
pRnAaa, " consists OF some OF the oldest
rocks on earth, all dating from tho pre-
pRmnFlAn geological period before there
were any traces OF lite on earth, This
rock may he considered representative of
the planets earliest outer garment,
IWenty-nlne blasts OF from $4,000 to
$4,000 pounds OF high explosive were set
or IN corporation with the various
mining companies, The results were OBJ
served with special instruments set up
aH over Minnesota and into Canada and
south Dakota. Here 1t was found that
the lower boundary Of the earth's crust
was fairly uniform at about 20 kllo-
meters.
a limited number OF explosions In
California and Washington, however,
failed to show the sharp boundary and
there Is no present hypothesis to explain
this failure.