Avian Influenza Menace

Hey guys, got some scary news. Just recently, more and more countries are getting disturbed about the rapid progression of bird flu virus to different regions of the planet. Most countries in the South Asia and Southeast Europe are plagued by dreaded disease. Romania and Turkey just recently announced the menace brought about by the virus. Chickens were culled and some bird species quarantined. I have read that Europe strickly bans the vaccine innoculation of chickens lest it will pave the way for the transformation of H5N1 virus to a different strain and assume a form which infects humans. Despite these recommendations, some countries in Asia are still in the practice of vaccination which are believed inimical to the current research progress conducted by several countries combating this disease. May God help us all. If you would like to know more infomation about Bird flu virus simply click on the link below which will lead you to a different website containing the information in question. Thanks!

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/gen-info/facts.htm
http://www.who.int/csr/don/2004_01_15/en/

The Chemistry Behind Invisible Ink

Hola! Enough of those biological principles! :) I would like to introduce you to the chemistry of the invisible ink and how it works so we will all be familiar with the principles underlying this wonderful Science. Many household products can be used to make this experiment but some that remains popular are lemon juice ink, baking soda and corn starch. Inferring on their pH content, these substances are basic and acidic substances. To the best interest of everybody, the principle behind invisible inks is the process of weakening the molecular bond that holds cellulose together (polysaccharide, glucose molecule) that makes up the paper material. The application of the acidic substances or basic substances weakens the part of the paper where the basic/acidic substance was applied to and made visible when passed over a flame or a hot object or when heat is directly applied to show the damaged part of the paper. I have searched some experiments online which you can use with your students or when making clandestine dates with your girlfriends or boyfriends or sending secret messages. Hehe. Pretty cool, huh! Please use the links below and paste it in your external browser's address field for detailed instructions on how to prepare this cool stuff. :) Enjoy!

Jules

Chemistry of Invisible Ink: http://chemistry.about.com/b/a/207468.htm?nl=1
Lesson Plan on making Invisible Ink: http://www.iit.edu/~smile/ch9602.html