MIKE'S COMMENTARY AND/OR BITS OF WISDOM THE CHEMISTRY OF AUTUMN COLORS Every autumn across the Northern Hemisphere, diminishing daylight hours and falling temperatures induce trees to prepare for winter. In these preparations, they shed billions of tons of leaves. In certain regions, such as our own, the shedding of leaves is preceded by a spectacular color show. Formerly green leaves turn to brilliant shades of yellow, orange, and red. These color changes are the result of transformations in leaf pigments. Colorful Forest The green pigment in leaves is chlorophyll. Chlorophyll absorbs red and blue light from the sunlight that falls on leaves. Therefore, the light reflected by the leaves is diminished in red and blue and appears green. The molecules of chlorophyll are large (C55H70MgN4O6). They are not soluble in the aqueous solution that fills plant cells. Instead, they are attached to the membranes of disc-like structures, called chloroplasts, inside the cells. Chloroplasts are the site of photosynthesis, the process in which light energy is converted to chemical energy. In chloroplasts, the light absorbed by chlorophyll supplies the energy used by plants to transform carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and carbohydrates, which have a general formula of Cx(H2O)y. light x CO2 + y H2O x O2 + Cx(H2O)y chlorophyll In this endothermic transformation, the energy of the light absorbed by chlorophyll is converted into chemical energy stored in carbohydrates (sugars and starches). This chemical energy drives the biochemical reactions that cause plants to grow, flower, and produce seed. Chlorophyll is not a very stable compound; bright sunlight causes it to decompose. To maintain the amount of chlorophyll in their leaves, plants continuously synthesize it. The synthesis of chlorophyll in plants requires sunlight and warm temperatures. Therefore, during summer chlorophyll is continuously broken down and regenerated in the leaves of trees. Paper birch Another pigment found in the leaves of many plants is carotene. Carotene absorbs blue-green and blue light. The light reflected from carotene appears yellow. Carotene is also a large molecule (C40H36) contained in the chloroplasts of many plants. When carotene and chlorophyll occur in the same leaf, together they remove red, blue-green, and blue light from sunlight that falls on the leaf. The light reflected by the leaf appears green. Carotene functions as an accessory absorber. The energy of the light absorbed by carotene is transferred to chlorophyll, which uses the energy in photosynthesis. Carotene is a much more stable compound than chlorophyll. Carotene persists in leaves even when chlorophyll has disappeared. When chlorophyll disappears from a leaf, the remaining carotene causes the leaf to appear yellow. A third pigment, or class of pigments, that occur in leaves are the anthocyanins. Anthocyanins absorb blue, blue-green, and green light. Therefore, the light reflected by leaves containing anthocyanins appears red. Unlike chlorophyll and carotene, anthocyanins are not attached to cell membranes, but are dissolved in the cell sap. The color produced by these pigments is sensitive to the pH of the cell sap. If the sap is quite acidic, the pigments impart a bright red color; if the sap is less acidic, its color is more purple. Anthocyanin pigments are responsible for the red skin of ripe apples and the purple of ripe grapes. Anthocyanins are formed by a reaction between sugars and certain proteins in cell sap. This reaction does not occur until the concentration of sugar in the sap is quite high. The reaction also requires light. This is why apples often appear red on one side and green on the other; the red side was in the sun and the green side was in shade. Red Maple During summer, the leaves of trees are factories producing sugar from carbon dioxide and water by the action of light on chlorophyll. Chlorophyll causes the leaves to appear green. (The leaves of some trees, such as birches and cottonwoods, also contain carotene; these leaves appear brighter green, because carotene absorbs blue-green light.) Water and nutrients flow from the roots, through the branches, and into the leaves. The sugars produced by photosynthesis flow from the leaves to other parts of the tree, where some of the chemical energy is used for growth and some is stored. The shortening days and cool nights of autumn trigger changes in the tree. One of these changes is the growth of a corky membrane between the branch and the leaf stem. This membrane interferes with the flow of nutrients into the leaf. Because the nutrient flow is interrupted, the production of chlorophyll in the leaf declines, and the green color of the leaf fades. If the leaf contains carotene, as do the leaves of birch and hickory, it will change from green to bright yellow as the chlorophyll disappears. In some trees, as the concentration of sugar in the leaf increases, the sugar reacts to form anthocyanins. These pigments cause the yellowing leaves to turn red. Red maples, red oaks, and sumac produce anthocyanins in abundance and display the brightest reds and purples in the autumn landscape. Sugar Maple The range and intensity of autumn colors is greatly influenced by the weather. Low temperatures destroy chlorophyll, and if they stay above freezing, promote the formation of anthocyanins. Bright sunshine also destroys chlorophyll and enhances anthocyanin production. Dry weather, by increasing sugar concentration in sap, also increases the amount of anthocyanin. So the brightest autumn colors are produced when dry, sunny days are followed by cool, dry nights. http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/chemweek/fallcolr/fallcolr.html
THE CHEMISTRY OF AUTUMN COLORS
Colorful Forest The green pigment in leaves is chlorophyll. Chlorophyll absorbs red and blue light from the sunlight that falls on leaves. Therefore, the light reflected by the leaves is diminished in red and blue and appears green. The molecules of chlorophyll are large (C55H70MgN4O6). They are not soluble in the aqueous solution that fills plant cells. Instead, they are attached to the membranes of disc-like structures, called chloroplasts, inside the cells. Chloroplasts are the site of photosynthesis, the process in which light energy is converted to chemical energy. In chloroplasts, the light absorbed by chlorophyll supplies the energy used by plants to transform carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and carbohydrates, which have a general formula of Cx(H2O)y.
light x CO2 + y H2O x O2 + Cx(H2O)y chlorophyll
In this endothermic transformation, the energy of the light absorbed by chlorophyll is converted into chemical energy stored in carbohydrates (sugars and starches). This chemical energy drives the biochemical reactions that cause plants to grow, flower, and produce seed. Chlorophyll is not a very stable compound; bright sunlight causes it to decompose. To maintain the amount of chlorophyll in their leaves, plants continuously synthesize it. The synthesis of chlorophyll in plants requires sunlight and warm temperatures. Therefore, during summer chlorophyll is continuously broken down and regenerated in the leaves of trees.
Paper birch Another pigment found in the leaves of many plants is carotene. Carotene absorbs blue-green and blue light. The light reflected from carotene appears yellow. Carotene is also a large molecule (C40H36) contained in the chloroplasts of many plants. When carotene and chlorophyll occur in the same leaf, together they remove red, blue-green, and blue light from sunlight that falls on the leaf. The light reflected by the leaf appears green. Carotene functions as an accessory absorber. The energy of the light absorbed by carotene is transferred to chlorophyll, which uses the energy in photosynthesis. Carotene is a much more stable compound than chlorophyll. Carotene persists in leaves even when chlorophyll has disappeared. When chlorophyll disappears from a leaf, the remaining carotene causes the leaf to appear yellow.
A third pigment, or class of pigments, that occur in leaves are the anthocyanins. Anthocyanins absorb blue, blue-green, and green light. Therefore, the light reflected by leaves containing anthocyanins appears red. Unlike chlorophyll and carotene, anthocyanins are not attached to cell membranes, but are dissolved in the cell sap. The color produced by these pigments is sensitive to the pH of the cell sap. If the sap is quite acidic, the pigments impart a bright red color; if the sap is less acidic, its color is more purple. Anthocyanin pigments are responsible for the red skin of ripe apples and the purple of ripe grapes. Anthocyanins are formed by a reaction between sugars and certain proteins in cell sap. This reaction does not occur until the concentration of sugar in the sap is quite high. The reaction also requires light. This is why apples often appear red on one side and green on the other; the red side was in the sun and the green side was in shade.
Red Maple During summer, the leaves of trees are factories producing sugar from carbon dioxide and water by the action of light on chlorophyll. Chlorophyll causes the leaves to appear green. (The leaves of some trees, such as birches and cottonwoods, also contain carotene; these leaves appear brighter green, because carotene absorbs blue-green light.) Water and nutrients flow from the roots, through the branches, and into the leaves. The sugars produced by photosynthesis flow from the leaves to other parts of the tree, where some of the chemical energy is used for growth and some is stored. The shortening days and cool nights of autumn trigger changes in the tree. One of these changes is the growth of a corky membrane between the branch and the leaf stem. This membrane interferes with the flow of nutrients into the leaf. Because the nutrient flow is interrupted, the production of chlorophyll in the leaf declines, and the green color of the leaf fades. If the leaf contains carotene, as do the leaves of birch and hickory, it will change from green to bright yellow as the chlorophyll disappears. In some trees, as the concentration of sugar in the leaf increases, the sugar reacts to form anthocyanins. These pigments cause the yellowing leaves to turn red. Red maples, red oaks, and sumac produce anthocyanins in abundance and display the brightest reds and purples in the autumn landscape.
Sugar Maple The range and intensity of autumn colors is greatly influenced by the weather. Low temperatures destroy chlorophyll, and if they stay above freezing, promote the formation of anthocyanins. Bright sunshine also destroys chlorophyll and enhances anthocyanin production. Dry weather, by increasing sugar concentration in sap, also increases the amount of anthocyanin. So the brightest autumn colors are produced when dry, sunny days are followed by cool, dry nights. http://scifun.chem.wisc.edu/chemweek/fallcolr/fallcolr.html
Autumn (often referred to as Fall in North America) is one of the four temperate seasons, the transition from summer into winter.
In the temperate zones, autumn is the season during which most crops are harvested, and deciduous trees lose their leaves. It is also the season in which the days rapidly get shorter and cooler (especially in the northern latitudes), and of gradually increasing precipitation in some parts of the world.
Astronomically, it begins with the autumnal equinox (around September 23 in the Northern hemisphere, and March 21 in the southern hemisphere), and ends with the winter solstice (around December 21 in the Northern hemisphere and June 21 in the Southern hemisphere). However, meteorologists count the entire months of March, April and May in the Southern hemisphere, and September, October and November in the Northern hemisphere as autumn. An exception to these definitions is found in the Irish Calendar which still follows the Celtic cycle, where Autumn is counted as the whole months of August, September and October.
All though the days begin to shorten in July or August in the northern lattirudes and in January and February in the south, it is usually in September or March where twilight becomes evidently shorter and more abrupt in comparison with the more lingering ones of summer.
Autumn is often defined as the start of the school year in most countries, since they usually begin in early September or early March (depending on the latitude).
Either definition, as with those of the seasons generally, is flawed because it assumes that the seasons are all of the same length, and begin and end at the same time throughout the temperate zone of each hemisphere.
Autumn's association with the transition from warm to cold weather in the northern hemisphere, and its related status as the season of the primary harvest, has dominated its themes and popular images. In Western cultures, personifications of Autumn are usually pretty, well-fed females decked out with fruits, vegetables and grains that ripen at this time. Most ancient cultures featured autumnal celebrations of the harvest, often the most important on their calendars. Still extant echoes of these celebrations are found in the late-Autumn Thanksgiving holiday of the United States, the Jewish Sukkot holiday with its roots as a full moon harvest festival of "tabernacles" (huts wherein the harvest was processed and which later gained religious significance), the many North American Indian festivals tied to harvest of autumnally ripe foods gathered in the wild, the Chinese Mid-Autumn or Moon festival, and many others. The predominant mood of these autumnal celebrations is a gladness for the fruits of the earth mixed with a certain melancholy linked to the imminence of harsh weather. Remembrance of ancestors is also a common theme.
In modern times, apart from being the start of the school year, it is one of the seasons in which the film industry starts releasing movies that are usually low-budget in scope, but worthy of artistic achievement at academic institutions such as the Oscars and the BAFTA awards (whose award ceremonies are held in late-February). Such movies are considered low-key, deeper in content and more serious than their big-budget, effects-laden summer counterparts. Autumn, which begins on the weekend following Labor day and ends-- in leap years-- on the weekend before the US Presidential Elections, is the shortest and least profitable season of the movies.
Autumn is also associated with the Halloween season, and with it a widespread marketing campaign that promotes it. The film and music industries use this time of year to promote movies and records that closely associate with such holiday, and their releases begin in early September but no later than October 28, since their themes rapidly lose strength once the holidays ends.
Autumn, like spring, is highly unpredictable and, in many regions, it is also short. Temperatures in September can get above 86°F (30°C) and with the heat index, it may make for dangerous conditions regarding people neglecting them-selves in regards to heat stroke (hyperthermia) risks. In October, especially in the northern lattitudes, there maybe some cold snaps and a mix of rain and snow, although permanent snow cover is usually not established until mid-November.
The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket. & Do you realize that in about 40 years, we'll have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos and belly button rings.
KCNET CLASSES:
Beginner Windows 9x/XP 4 session course Topics include an introduction to all parts of the computer, learning about the desktop, mouse features and operation, and features and operation of the keyboard. Also creating shortcut icons, using recycle bin, wallpaper and screen savers, toolbars and taskbars, drag and drop, using window features (minimize, maximize, resize, etc), control panel, accessing the different drives, and more. There is always time for questions and general exploration.
Intermediate Windows 9x/XP 4 session course Topics include organization of windows programs, creating and organizing folders, file extensions, saving files from Internet, folder and file views, formatting floppy disks, installing programs, download programs from Internet, HTML email, uninstall vs delete, scandisk and defrag, email attachments, and more. There is always time for questions and general exploration.
Advanced Windows 9x/XP 4 session course Topics include a review of the management of folders and files, an introduction to photo manipulation, introduction to web page creation, using the sound recorder, attaching recordings to emails, introduction to eyeball cams and Internet transmission, and an introduction to burning your own CDs. There is always time for questions and general exploration.
KCnet Users Group: (formerly know as "Senior Net Learners" most recently called "Advanced Class"). I wanted to call this class "The Abusers Group", but Sue would not hear of that. Attendees are persistent in their search for computer knowledge. They ask great questions and present interesting challenges. The cost for this class is $0.00 for members of KCnet and $2.00 per session for non KCnet members. There is no set format for the sessions. Occasionally we will take a specific subject and do a detailed study over a period of successive weeks. Don't be afraid to ask questions. The folks that have been attending for awhile are always happy for a review and in most cases new or better ways to do things will surface. Questions stimulate in-depth exploration with the usual result being an understanding of how and why. We welcome new attendees from the Advanced sessions and our forever growing KCnet membership. This is an advanced group and we cover a lot of territory. We are kind of free flowing. You never know what will transpire. It is not necessary for attendees to have their own computers but it sure helps with the learning curve. KCnet Advanced Class computer knowledge and Advanced Class computer skills are necessary.
OTHER CLASSES: CLICK HERE FOR ORIENTATION - BEGINNERS - INTERMEDIATE - ADVANCED CLICK HERE FOR SCANNING - MAC- GENEALOGY - WEB PAGE - EXCEL - WORD - DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY - PHOTO MANIPULATION - OTHER SPECIALTIES
THIS WEEK'S CLASS SCHEDULE
PC Basics Class at KCnet Mondays & Wednedsays -- 12:00-2:00 PM Third and Final Sessions -- September 26 & 28 Instructor: Wayne Smith
E-mail Class Tuesday & Thursday - 12:00-2:00 PM First and Final Sessions -- September 27 & 29 12 Noon to 2 PM. Instructor: Wayne Smith
Investing Class Tuesday, September 27 at 6:00 PM $5.00 per session -- New attendees are welcome. Future sessions will be held on the last Tuesday of each month at 6:00 PM. Next sessions will be: October 31, November 29, and December 27 Group Leader: Howard "Bud" Casselberry
KCnet Users Group: Every Wednesday The starting time is 9:00 AM on this Wednesday September 21. We meet in Computer Lab 1 (The Big Room). Leadership is Mike Foust and anyone that wants to jump into the fray. Quite a day this past Wednesday. We got rollin' with some pics and movies sent by Advanced User viewers and other gleaning by Mike. My favorit this week was found by Jack Laubschere and is a hilarous description of a minor traffic accident that ended in the person causing the accident being attacked by the elderly ladies he hit. Take a moment to enjoy the "On The Spot" radio broadcast of the event. You'll be holding your tummy and rolling on the floor. http://www.chumfm.com/MorningShow/bits/march24.swf
...then settled into the seats and took another wild tech ride. Among the many 'puter topics covered we...
...STICKY KEYS!! We played with Sticky Keys. Thanks to Worldstart for this nice suggestion to a common problem. Check the write-up on the technical page of this Newsletter. It is the third tip in the Technical Section.
...reviewed two articles pertaining to Security Flaws in Firefox. We learned from a Symantic project that since January 05 the Mozilla browsers have had more Security Flaws identified (25) than were found in the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser (13). But the bottom line is Mozilla as of this morning (9/21/05) has patched all but 3 of them, while Microsoft has 19 security issues still unresolved. Read more: ZDNET http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5873273.html?tag=nl.e589 And The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/19/AR2005091900026.html?referrer=email
Followup: A Notice arrived in my email this afternoon announcing a Firfox update available now which should resolve the remaining issues. The download is about 5 megs and can be accessed at: http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/releases/1.0.7.html Click on Downloading. Updates for Mozilla will be available 9/24/05. Internet Explorer updates have not been announced 7 PM 9/21/05.
...Picassa 2! Wow what a program. It is a 16+ meg download. It does Photo Organizing, Photo Manipulation, Slide Show Maker/ and many other little goodies. Read about it first. Heed the warning about what it will index from your computer. Then decide if you want it to index all of your hard drive or just the folders that hold your photo files. Keep in mind that it will scan and index your browser histories, temporary internet files , cache files, etc. if you do not regulate the indexing scope. You will be asked before the indexing begins. I point this out because of space and unsolicited content that may appear in the temp files. This indexing does not move or delete any pictures from originating folders but simply copies them to a single area and indexes/lists them by date in "albums". Picassa 2 can see and index all popular photo extensions and many video extensions. The greatest feature of Picasso 2 is its speed. Go to Google. Choose More (last choice of search types) Choose downloads from the list in the left column. Choose Picassa 2. Read about it first. Oh well here is the link: http://www.google.com/downloads/ We will look at it some more next week. I'll be grateful to any member that has conquored this program and is willing to share the knowledge.
I came to class today not sure that I had enough topics or information to keep us interested for an hour and a half. Turns out we could have gone a couple of hours. In fact Wayne was getting nervous that we might run into his noon PC Basics Class. As Hannibal Smith of the A Team would say, "I love it when a plan comes together." In this case it worked much better than expected. This class often becomes idea swapping and we learn by sharing our many experiences and I'll tell you all again, that really happened this week. Thanks to all that brought in suggestions, asked questions, and helped with explanations.
OTHER KCNET CLASSES STARTING SOON Call KCnet 893-8111 to register
WEB PAGE CREATION (BEGINNERS) Call to be added to list of attendees Dates to be disclosed later. Call KCnet at 893-8111. Instructor: Mike Foust
Music Creation Starting when four students register--call 893-8111 to register. Participants should be able to play a piano/keyboard by sight or ear. Instructors: Carsten "Jon" Ahrens & Mike Foust
Orientation to KCnet One-Session Class – No Charge for KCnet Members Third Wednesday of Every Month 6:00 – 8:00 pm Instructor: Bob Fenton
MAC User Group Meets 2nd Wednesday of each month Time is 4:30 PM Instructor: Clair Falls
For more class details and to register visit: http://www.kcnet.org/class/ Registration can be done online, simply click on the course you are interested in and enter the information requested. Registration can be done via phone 893-8111.
NEWS AND NOTES WITH SUE FOUST:
When you think about it, most non-profit organizations depend upon volunteers and donations. We've been very fortunate for most of the 10 years we've been in existence - we've been able to maintain our services without fund drives and without requests for financial donations. There has been a base of volunteers that have been wonderful to KCnet whohave about giving our community a high level of service, with love. Jon Ahrens always refers to KCnet as the Internet Service with a heart!
Over the past 2 months, we've been able to give 4 computers to needy homes - computers that have been donated to KCnet. We have reformated them and put them back into use by someone who didn't have a computer for their kids or who needed a computer to learn job skills. Sometimes we've had to replace modems or add memory and we've been able to do it, using the time and technical skills of our technicians. Also, over the past several years, we've received donated monitors and printers from people who have "traded up." They find themselves with extra parts and programs they don't need. This week, we are advertising some of the monitors in the trading post. And, we've sold several of them. We think you will consider this a good use of donated items and we consider this a good way to receive some extra benefit from your donations.
Until next week...
KCnet Board Of Directors Officers: President Bill Raco, Vice President Bob Rolley, Secretary Jon Ahrens, Treasurer Don Miller and Past President Judy Yoho. Other members of the board: Carolyn Carl, R. Keith Kelly, Paul Korn, Donna Lannan, Amy Lapriola, Tom Livingston, Ray McGill, and Rich Wykoff.