Newspapers / The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.) / Oct. 15, 1990, edition 1 / Page 8
Part of The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
GuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilfordLifeGuilford On Guilford Pond On Guilford pond, by Guilford pond or anywhere near Guilford pond, the fallen, blazen leaves can hardly go unnoticed. My mother tells me that when I was four years old, I woke up one fall morning and announced, all faith, "King Midas came over night and used his magic touch to turn all the leaves into gold." It happens to be a fact that the predeces sors of professional science were the magicians of the middle ages—alchemists, who studied ore and, particularly, gold. Magicians considered themselves nature's assistants. The role of assistant became more like associate when the Merlins were replaced by scientists at the beginning of UfeiisJ Meuu —t "[ f - ~______ o /oo MOO LOo*P> (DO I J —— 5 —— ■■ ■— r— —————————— /'""I I I 7\ /-T ACV3E:O fee *°Y * S \ —-\£ — J/ I /Ann fit SGOH'T CHANGE TH6 /500 CAd'T tJAOe\ /T(v\ *OT f2 t ,n,cJ ( Soejecr. po aoo ) (ths Poafcvee. po ) I *-u r J boo LOOe. J* V 7 V. y OO M 6? J TO KriOiJ j >r PO^^OLO^e y ~ oo Fofe TVAE LAST TlMt, ) />oe TV4e UAST\ ° jSTVT^ \ Qo uwe VJwe, vo ao o I ' \Lm lj-S 8 THE GUILFORDIAN October 15, 1 §9O by Lara Ramsey the 17th century. Even the scientific ex planation for the gold and red brilliance of leaves in their dying stages has a magical effect on me. I read an article in Reader's Digest by Diane Ackerman, 'Where Fall Colors Come From' (Oct. 1990). It turns out that all summer long, trees have been feeding their leaves with chlorophyll so that they can process sunlight. The green pigment of chlorophyll camouflages the underly ing range of orange hues until the tree begins to retract its nutrients for winter. As the chlorophyll supply is sent to the trunk and the roots, the green of the leaves be gins to fade and the leaves begin to suffo cate. The dark green of the stem is the last green to go, and fiery colors emerge gradu ally. At last the stem will be sucked dry and the leaf will fall, exposed and radiant. Cool, sunny, dry autumns produce more anthocyanin, the pigment which makes leaves, as well as apples, red. Carotene, the pigment which colors carrots orange and leaves gold, is not so dependent on sunlight and temperature. Exposure to these elements does affect the pattern of splattering, such as whether trees turn from top to bottom or from outside leaves to the interior. On a personal level, it's refresh ing to think that the colors which emerge with the advanc ing of age have been undis covered but inherent all along. Midterms hover only one week ahead, and are inevitable in the season of our education. Many, many students are col oring leaves of paper with their ideas, their inspirations and their absolute best bull. Be sure that when you pack your trunk to go home for fall break that you retain the nutrients and energies which have helped you flourish so far. Leave the professors with your brilliant residue, but may the life-force be with you wherever you go. 6|9qt> ev MW £>f?o£NW6 Germany >• continued from page 5 During its break from Communism, East German's economy collapsed, says Geis ler. West Germany could therefore set its own conditions for reunification. East Germany effectively went into "receiver ship" and was taken over "lock, stock and barrel" by the West. Geisler is "con cerned" that reunification may have "happen[ed] too fast" and that the process may endanger some of the positive aspects of life under the previous regime in East Germany. An example is the question of abortion. East Germany had more liberal laws with respect to abortion than the West. Contro versy over the conflict of laws infected the reunification talks. By a constitutional compromise, what used to be East Ger many will keep its existing abortion laws for three years, after which the subject will be reopened. Geisler, who visited East Germany in 1984 when the Communists were in power, says that despite "übiquitous political oppression" under the Communists, East Germans enjoyed job security. This is now endangered. If, as some have pre dicted, three to four million East Germans become unemployed during the transition to capitalism, right-wing extremists may be able to exploit the situation. One thing Geisler fears in the event of "severe eco nomic unrest" is hostility between East Germans and the millions of ethnic Turks and gypsies in Germany. If the economic situation stabilizes over the next two years, however, Geisler sees no reason to fear. Germany may become "the major eco nomic power" in Europe, says Geisler. He predicts "double-digit growth rates" in Germany by the last half of the 19905. One advantage enjoyed by Germany lies in its economic links with Eastern Europe, links which developed before the collapse of the Communist regimes. Germany is "sitting pretty" to take advantage of the opening up of the East. Geisler sees a significant role for Ger many in Europe. Turkey and the East European countries are seeking to join the European Economic Community. They need to be brought up to "roughly the same level" of economic development as the older members of the EEC. Otherwise, freedom of movement among the EEC nations will result in an influx of workers from the less developed to the more devel oped countries. Germany, says Geisler, "will be asked to fund most of the pro grams" set up to integrate newer members into the EEC. Geisler says that Germany's economic connections with Eastern Europe make German the "lingua franca" of that region. There is a great demand for German speak ers. Geisler concludes that "German is not the worst language or culture to learn under the circumstances."
The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Oct. 15, 1990, edition 1
8
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75