Woodworker's Journal 1993-17-3, страница 4

Shoptalk

Wonderful Wood

A million or so years ago some early hominid hacked a poinl on (he end of a slick and realized thai it could be used as. a digging tool or even a weapon. Since then we've done quite a lot of hacking, scraping, carving, cutting and joining to make everything from simple boxes to lofty clipper ships.

Willi its availability and responsiveness to being worked, wood is truly user-friendly and a wondrous raw materia!. Now recent news stories have indicated thai some woods may have unique, almost magical properties lhal can benefit us in ways we never would have imagined.

A cancer drug called Ta.roI apparently "imprisons" and represses malignant cell growth. Until now. the drug has been derived from a rather rare Pacific yew tree, so the supply has been limited and expensive. But researchers are now close to a breakthrough in attempts to synthesize Taxol from a substance called pinene. which is a cheap and abundant extract of good old friendly pine.

Articles in The New York Times and in (he Hardwood Forestry Bulletin. published by the Hardwood Research Council, refer to a finding b\ University of Wisconsin microbiologists that wooden cutting boards are far safer for use in food preparation than (he plastic boards dial have been recommended and have replaced wood in commercial kitchens.

It seems that even deadly strains of bacteria die off within just a few minutes on wood surfaces but remain unaffected on plastic surfaces. Seven different hardwoods were tested against four types of plastic and ii was found that the rapid reduction of bacteria on the hardwood surfaces was unrelated to (he species, age or number of times ihe board had been scrubbed clean. Yet the same bacteria thrived and multiplied on all types of plastic cutting boards. Of course, good hygiene is still essential when using wood surfaces for tbod preparation.

I'm delighted lhal wood has been exonerated in this matter, and can't help wondering what amazing properiies deep within the siruciure of certain woods can inhibit malignant cell development and kill off bacteria. The day is probably not far off when scientists will learn what these properties are and how we can use them to work further miracles. And you thought wood was just wood!

Editor ami Publisher James J. McQuillan

Managing Editor 1 homas G. Uegnai Associate Editor Das id F. Peters Copy Editor kimberh Udlatk Contributing Editors Jim Barren, kick and Klk-n Hut/. Dennis Preston. Kubert .1. Hlasacek. Sr.

ri Director Dan Thornton Associate Art Director and Photographer Michael Gellati)

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Pholo ( redils: Gerard Nov. cover, pg 17. 4f>. 65. John Kane Silver Sun Studios, pg. J, <tV, 52. Tom Barrett, pg. 21-27; Country Accents. Pg 28-

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~t"he Woodworker's Journal