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NOTES AND NEWS ITEMS 



The Experiment Station Record for June has this to say editor- 

 ially of recent work with the respiration calorimeter. "Of late a 

 new line of experiments has been undertaken with the respira- 

 tion calorimeter, which marks a departure in studies of this 

 kind and indicates a broader applicatipn of the apparatus. These 

 new studies relate to the ripening of fruit, and are being carried 

 on in cooperation with the Bureau of Chemistry. They have 

 shown that the apparatus is suited to studies of the changes 

 going on during ripening, and that as a living body the functions 

 of the plant as well as of animals may be observed." 



"A number of bunches of green bananas were placed in the 

 respiration chamber and kept under observation until the ripening 

 process was completed to the usual commercial stage, which 

 requires three or four days. During this time the oxygen con- 

 sumption, the carbon dioxid excretion, and the heat elimination 

 were determined in a manner not previously possible, throwing 

 interesting light on the chemical process of ripening." 



"These experiments have been repeated sufficiently to check 

 the results and suggest the nature of the changes. Important 

 data have already been obtained regarding the respiratory quo- 

 tient, the carbon dioxid thermal equivalent, and the amount of 

 energy liberated by the bananas during the ripening process. 

 The indications are that physical and chemical factors which are 

 of the greatest value in the study of this problem, important from 

 a practical as well as a theoretical standpoint, can be accurately 

 measured with the respiration calorimeter. The results will 

 assist in the interpretation of analytical studies and throw a new 

 light on the problems involved in the ripening and storage of 

 fruit. As the method is applicable, not only to fruit of all kinds, 

 but to vegetables and other products, it is believed to have a 

 wide range of possibilities." 



"It has been suggested furthermore that some of the changes 

 taking place during the germination of seeds, a subject which has 

 been studied in other ways, could be more accurately determined. 

 The heating of grain in storage is also a problem to the study of 



