Fifteen years ago another research project was set up to help find
the answer to this fundamental problem. When it was started, we
employed some very young men and I told them, "This may be a two or
three generation job. So don't get discouraged." They all smiled, but
15 years have passed since then and, although much has been learned,
the final answer is not in sight. After all, we mustn't be discouraged
- it probably took nature several million years to do this trick. Dr.
Inman once said, "Nature apparently has plenty of time to solve her
problems while man, as an individual, has so little that he learns
patience with difficulty."We know that a plant can take carbon dioxide from the air and water from the ground and put them in such physical condition that oxygen is released when light shines on the leaf, and entirely new substances, such as sugar, starch and wood are formed. Our problem is to take this same light and produce in the laboratory similar chemical compounds or other products by using the principles we will ultimately learn from the plants. There is a long road to travel yet, but in our journey we have discovered many interesting and valuable by-products which would have remained unknown if this research had not been started. |
