Rub and light

2003/01/19 Roa Zubia, Guillermo - Elhuyar Zientzia

• Materialak
• Teknologia

For pipe smokers, there is nothing like the fire of wooden matches.

From a silver ship an astronaut descended into the boat. Very surprised, he noticed the match that the sailor had just turned off. In the end, this time machine deserved to be stolen. The laser has eliminated the footprint of fire in my society." The sailor, on his knees, asked the astronaut eagerly: "Get out of here. Take me back home and I will teach you intense fire."

When the sea swallows the boat, they both flew on the astronaut's ship.

At home, except the sailor, he taught the astronaut the matchbox. Each was fascinated by the traditional technology used by the other. But everyone was a child of his time. For the sailor it was already 1849; for the astronaut, still 1849. However, already or still, in that year matches were habitual in all houses.

Sailors used the technological advances of the time, including matches.

The astronaut was crazy: his friend lit the fire with a simple move. It seemed witchcraft. For the sailor the situation was very curious, almost funny. In exchange for explaining the 'functioning' of the match and organizing an eccentric demonstration, the man who comes from the future saved his life.

The astronaut had seen the matches in the books of history for some time, but his confrontation caused him excitement and restlessness. They consisted of wooden trunks that at one end had a white powder prepared with white phosphorus and sulfur, basic but effective technology. However, the astronaut did not understand how the match was extracted, but had a very old and simple team.

Phosphorus

Apparently, the astronaut had not read the story. Phosphorus was extracted from urine by Robert Boyle and others in 1680. Subsequently, the methodology was gradually improving. These people, though with few tools, had the ability to do amazing things.

The sailor filled the pipe with tobacco. It was a great day. Recovering lost life deserved a couple of pipes. The astronaut carefully observed the ignition process, expressing his doubts and asking for explanations. The sailor lit another match to clarify some doubts before the nose. Smelling smoke from this second match, the sailor fell upside down. I was agonizing for the second time the same day.

The smoke released by white phosphorus is poisonous, not that of red phosphorus.

The sailor's eyes screamed for help. The astronaut saw that nervous but interested scene. "I knew there was a danger that something like that would happen," he said very happy. So it was, I had read it. The famous white phosphorus is a very suitable substance to ignite the fire by rubbing, but the vapor it gives off in this way is very poisonous. The brother-in-law yelled at him, "You knew, then, that cursed one." The astronaut replied to him to be calm. You could also use red phosphorus to make matches, which when rubbing ignites fire but is not harmful. "You will learn to face this problem."

The sailor was like society, science and anything else. Cheap death does not allow consolation. I wanted to live with desire, but I couldn't. He died.

The astronaut picked up the matchbox and entered the time machine to start the annual journey. He flew through history, always to follow the traces of fire. At the previous stops he saw ovens, wedges and fireworks. He also tested matches made of almost any material. For example, the XXI. collected the ones used by the subalterns, of paper soaked in wax.

The theme of the matches captivated the astronaut. Therefore, at the next stop I would get those who do not turn on rubbing. They were sticks, bigger than those I had already collected, but small. At one end they had sulfur containing dust, but they were not lit rubbed, but had to be lit otherwise. It was very interesting for the astronaut.

I was making a good collection. He made a museum on fire and would form a great book with everything collected on the trip. If the book was sold, well. And if the book is not sold, halfway. It would give him fire.

Although the best known are of this type, throughout history there have been numerous types of matches.

When he was on the boat, he remembered with the sailor's pepper. This mixture of tobacco and wood had a pleasant, marleable smell. Therefore, before leaving and together with the matchbox, the astronaut picked up the pipe and the tobacco to carry it. Now I felt the need to smoke.

He turned the pipe on, but immediately it went off. Resurrect. Turn off again. It is not easy to have the long pipe on. In that work the matches were over. He burned almost without realizing the last achievement for his collection.

But the solution was simple. He went back and found the sailor in the waves…

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