Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-01-25
Major Advance Seen
In Energy Study
Process Thot Trops
Suns Power Described
BY THONGS R. Henry

By Thomas R. Henry
A possible long step towards trapping
without vegetation some Of the enor-
nous energy the sun pours on the
earth has just been announced by the
National Science Foundation here.
1T now is possible" says the Foun-
dation's report, Ito visualize produc-
ton line or continuous flow processes
in which high-energy materials useful
for food or fuel are created through
the action Of sunlight"
The report says DR.. Wolf vishniac.
Yale biochemist, and his associates
have been able to duplicate some of
the most essential features Of the proc
ess of photosynthesis. foundation stone
Of all life on earth, using only pure
chlorophyll the green pigment In
leaves, separated from plant cells.
Heretofore this has been possible
only by adding to solutions natural
particles of plant material containing
chlorophyll. The process still is far.
1t Is emphasized. from any practical
application and can be considered only
as major advance. Chlorophyll can be
extracted quite easily from green
leaves and Of late has become the basis
Of considerable deodorant industry.
although its efficacy has been disputed.
This extremely complex molecule
plays a major role, as yet not thor
oughly understood, by which the green
plant combines hydrogen from water
and carbon from the carbon dioxide in
the air to form sugar, starches and
cellulose. The radiant energy of light
is transformed into stored chemical
energy.
Duplication of this process without
using vegetation Is at present one Of
sciences major goals, but greatest eff
forts have been made towards complete
understanding of the mechanism which
Is extremely complex. The green plant
is a relatively inefficient converter and
the major part Of the suns energy
poured on the earth goes to waste.
For a long time. says the National
Science Foundation report. scientists
have tried to design laboratory model
of the process. Several investigators,
including DR.. Vishniac, have success
fully converted solution Of organic
compounds into compounds Of higher
energy in the presence Of light but
could only do 1t when natural particles
of plant material containing chloro-
phyll were added. BY controlled modi-
flcations of the conditions Of the ex-
pertinent biochemistS can now test and
measure the effects of many hypothesis
concerning the reaction"
Earth's Electric Skin.
The earth has an electric skin" 500
miles high.
It is an ionized layer in the extremely
tenuous farthest reaches Of the atmos-
phere from which certain long radio
waves are reflected back to earth.
This finding by Drs. j. j. Gibbons
and A. H. Waymark and their associates
of Pennsylvania State College has just
been announced by the National
Science Foundation here The layer
may represent the farthest extension
of the planet earth into space.
For more than Is years, according
to the report Of the National Science
Foundation" under whose auspices the
work was carried out, the existence of
electrified layers of particles in the
upper atmosphere has been recognized.
They make possible all long distance
radio transmission. They also are be-
lieved to have important effects, still
not understood. on weather.
The first, or Heaviside layer, ranges
from eight to twelve miles above sea
level. Above it are the E and F layers,
each probably with several subdivi-
sions. These move up and down with
variations in radiation and tempera-
ture at the very high attitudes.
Cosmic radiation, the extremely high
energy showers Of particles lombard
ing the earth from outer space. has
been constant in amount for at least
10000 years and probably for $780,
100000 years according to another
Science Foundation report on the work
of DR.. j. Laurence Kulp of Columbia
University.
This finding is significant in the
validity of the radiocarbon method Of
age determination of organic materials
by means of which it Is possible to
date with considerable accuracy the
remains of anything which ever was
alive during the last 800 centuries.
Animals Radioactive.
Radiocarbon is created by the cosmic
ray bombardment of atoms of nitrogen
in the earth's high atmosphere. This
carbon becomes incorporated in the
carbon dioxide Of the air, and is in
corporated in the sugars and cellulose
of plants. These are eaten by animals
who thus become radioactive
The reliability of this method, how
ever, rests on the assumption that
there has been no major change in the
amount of radiation, and hence in the
atmospheric content of radioactive
carbon.
The sea bottom is rich in organic
material-remains of sea animals and
plants which have sunk to the bottom
after death. Hence the ratio of radio
carbon, the ordinary carbon at various
depths in cores taken from the ocean
floors should give a fair indication of
the rate at which the sea bottom
has been built up-if the amount of
radiocarbon has been constant.
The sea bottom also contains small
amounts of the element ionium. one of
the radioactive isotopes of thorium,
which lie derived FROM, tho FRO nSnn1lto.