EFFECT OF SCIENCE ON INDUSTRY.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20178, 5 March 1931, Page 13

EFFECT OF SCIENCE ON INDUSTRY.

ALTERED DEMANQ FOR , RAW MATERIALS. ADVANCE OP CHEMISTRY; "It is'essential that we, as a primary producing country, should keep a watchful eye on the trend of. scientific development in order to avoid concentrating; .on 'the production of materials for, which the- demand ia diminishing, and may even cease altogether/' said Mr E. O. Page, president of the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, in his annijal address to a full gathering of members last night,' His address was entitled "Science as a Disturber of Primary Industry." "It is apparent that,modern science has tremendously altered in recent years the relative demand" for basic raw materials," said Mr Page: MGreat as has been the disturbance of the primary producer of long-established natural products, there is always the possibility that it is cumulative, and that in the near future there may be 311 even greater change." The part played by scientific discovery in -the more spectacular developments of modern civilisation had blinded us to its important influences on the progress of primary industries. Not only had science revolutionised the methods of primary production, but also it had raised powerful competitors to natural products. It had produced beet sugar, synthetic indigo, and artificial ,silk to compete with the . growth of cane sugar, natural dyestuf?B, and wool; and consequently industries that had been essential to man's welfare for centuries were finding that, owing to the discoveries of science, they no longer occupied the positigp of monopolies; but, on the contraryi" were having to fight * or ex*Btence against 'young and vigorous competitors; . Probably tho first , primary industry to be disturbed by a competitor produced" by'science was the growing of cane sugar. A procoss was found, and beet fields of-France ana Germany' were* pp wpr fpi rivals ,of the canesugar plantations of the tropics.

- Befrigeration. I The introduction of refrigeration had j enabled perishable food products from | the more sparsely-settled countries to | compete with similar food materials produced near tho centres of population, thus adding greatly to the difficulties pf the fanner throughout Europe, and especially in England. New Zealand ] 'and', the Argentine had been ablo to i bnild- op large export trades in lamb, mqtton, pork, and beef. _ During the last few years tho scientific study of special aspects of low-temporature food preservation had enabled the land apple-grower to marketing apples in England, ar.d it seemed that it was by improved methods of P^ eservJ"Sf&it, vegetables, and meat that . the primary producer must find the icmre of Ms" present troubles. . t.s t! A?»ew methoft, quick freeing, whiflh took minutes instead of hours, nw ■been introduced in America. Anothf* radical 'change to food preservation had been brought 'about in the last five vcars by the introduction of so-called "Dry-ice" was the trade name for solid carbon-dioside. and its production had grown from nothing « awtf to - 30,000 tons last year, would "be to the. XLu hencflfe pf the consumer and the proespecially mfld iSSaSSlfjg to'produce early at fancy P^ B -, i petroleum, rubsaid Mr (fjtfto'.jnost cpnprimary last thirty years g number of synced,the faetoyy ■tare Dyerstuffs, pw»cet, and dr«g» . the chemist.'!.. & a»t '•'s£sr« if supply, and so s seem that »ne ed. been ablo' rto,; ir it I"®® 6 " 0 '!?? effjie. Just peer, the arc and the fixation of atiftiiitt'mimcL.iinzoKHn «ja<shed the eom-

■--The Sie&p- of SS^^oSSS hard bit. «om.ftttifen- o£ nafctora! products tint interests M mora directij »tatea Mr **«?• **J; ih'oW; this: has been „ known tot 40 yea«f.\it is only recently tbat it.has become a seiions rival of natural fibres. 'Jbuxag the fast five years the worlds SprodwstimF of - synthetic fibres 'has i*st y«ar equwalent to the acacl' from, W» thvv 100 million steep," Ifhilji tte prices,, New Zealand w.oot r has Jbmjglu this season are themrili 47« i with (lijfteiiltjftWgar tacking in stieagth, wet; and was compora- <«& beavy.. Way ha*9 been dvereQjhe. Bygstuffa" nave been developed' tb|»t' 'will 'qyo it 'a full }® vel sbadjeVaaO. types flf synthetic flbro have bean duKjftyared that pre -very njueh tb« original type wnen wet,'. -Sfetnods.of spin'ning under ten"iqfct few tad>,<tave ttppdoeeci -a fibre ■tfftT hKtoxal trite; JUtfcough at only nicest 'of the flb*o proWtios of the world, there seems every thpt ja the'.near future it gains on Hs'-Coldpr 1 t^ t /A ~~W- of artificial 'ciOC that affects Kbw, Zealand producers h »a ipatatfJyJa af»the nA ' itebaJk frsuHs attained trow research. inrostiga,'iijdttW extending over 1 five*'or six ye&ra s Aynthet'i: sausage fckius have bi-cn pro <dU£fcd'- from artificial i&Uf,"- 1 iJfcW use fOr varpisheC was rapidly difiwiihior result of eoiupetitfon ,by litrocellff|o|e ; ' iacqo«*B ; AVhere it used 'tp take tim'W fiWn days to vorniaXf' '« motort»K it>WW took three &./>iih saving in stoto, 1 i,pom> and:l#bonr,. a»4 these- fiafafrUjfa stood up bettor to dijrt, mad, oil: and jibra?ion than ordinary ear* As 1 , &: result ■ export of three'>»§#«, ft»4"the - avenge vtlua per poottd had dipped from one to,ejgb*pencp.- /\ v ' >„ , \' ■" Itf generpJ, exempt, in those, eases ythety i£ was S;op«aere? to be of n»i, iVSVii * -*

I tionrt importance that a country should bo independent of foreign sgurces of «mnl^oYsome essential commodity, it «M consideration* that started substitute for any naturaTproduet. Consequently the dearer a ray materfal r was the more likely it was to meet eOjnpetition from synthetic Bubstiisites hid been discovered for platinuinHn its many not now ne«essaiy to employ the prepious metal in sparking plngß> ejoctnc light bulbs, and fan-Jewellery. The decrease in the demand had brought the price, down 'to a third of what it .was five years ago. ~ ■„ 1 . Probably the highest-priced material it. the world .'io-day was radium, but, owing to its! properties, pro* per ties not shared by any other available material, the Belgian producers of radinjnr- had naturally felt themselves safe, from competition; and had made uo attempt to lower their prices. Just recently a five million-volt tube had been made by the Capegie Institute of Wash. j r g|>«n which was claimed to produce rays equivalent, in penetrating power to those given off by worth of radittin. Food Supply Safe. '"Wphavo.' seen that all types of natural products' are subject to the compeUfion -of synthetic substitutes; but it Is still true that so far there is no indicatio&that olir future food supply will come fjroin anything other than animals or plants,'' Said. Mr Page. "Cereals certainly Seem unlikely, "to meet serious competition; but there are at least indications tbflt meat products may considerably dimdnisb in popularity. Apart i from vegetarianism, .meat-like 'proteins are i beiog developed from vegetable sources at '& price with vrhich meat may find ■ it dJffic'ult .to complete. IJven now one i factory alone is,producing 300,0001b of - yeftat dailjr, containing the protein equi valent of some 500 head of beef cattle. Sd- many of our, products' have already felt tbe.presetfre.of sneh altered deftiand d09,t6 developments that it is essential'for our wolfare'to avoid the fate of tfio indigo grower-who found his market gone almost single night." ,' "A of thankjs.was moved by Dr. H. G. J)enh|Uni who'said that we should t4slFe f advantage of the Improvements-in j Bcieiiiso, to tie-quality, of our 1 oriin'fltv jrpods. Vbidb had undoubtedly ' irope tlack. ' waflr seconded by ;Br. I E. B. ». Milligan, and. *as carried by »'. ' _