Winter Jackets Animation Mushrooms Gold Rings
Today on "how it's made"... Winter jackets, animation, mushrooms, and gold rings. As anyone who's shivered through a cold winter knows, you've got your run-of-the-mill winter jackets and then, those really warm winter jackets that can run up to $1,000. The difference is what they're made of and how they're made. A top-of-the-line winter jacket gives you the warmth without the weight. It's waterproof and comfortable-- no bulky stuffing or constrictive styling. The designer draws a pattern by computer. A software program then adapts the pattern to different sizes. A giant printer puts it to paper. The tailor spreads out several layers of each of the fabrics that'll make up the jacket. He lays out the pattern... Then pins it in place. Next, he cuts through several layers of fabric at a time with electric scissors. These scissors maneuver much like a jigsaw around the lines and curves of the pattern pieces. The finished jacket will actually be made up of two jackets sewn together-- an insulation jacket on the inside and a windbreaker on the outside. The inner insulation jacket begins with a nylon lining. Then they layer the key components-- a film to stabilize and protect the insulation, then the thick polyester insulation itself. At this point, the insulation layer is larger than the lining. This ensures that every inch of the jacket will have insulation. Working with one piece at a time, they stitch the layers together. Each line of stitching is tacked at the beginning and at the end for added strength. They cut off the excess insulation, then sew an overlock around each piece to hold the remaining insulation solidly in place. Once they've completed each piece of the insulation jacket, they sew it all together. Next step-- the windbreaker. The outer fabric is heavy nylon. The lining is a special fabric with tiny holes, large enough to let humidity escape, but small enough to stop water droplets and wind from penetrating. This is what will allow the jacket to breath, while at the same time, making it windproof and waterproof. Finally, it's time to put the two jacket components together. Using two separate strong threads, they sew seams made of knotted stitches. No seams go through the jacket because that would break the insulation barrier and let in cold air. They join the two jackets together only where they have to--  at the collar, the cuffs, the hem, and along the zipper. And this isn't any ordinary zipper. It's made of corrosion-resistant nylon with a nickel-plated slider that lasts seven times longer than a normal slider. Until now, they've been sewing the jacket turned inside out. Now they turn it right-side in for finishing. These heavy-duty snaps have sturdy grips that anchor themselves between the fibers in the material so they won't tear the fabric with repeated use. Some jackets have decorative embroidery. Designers use a computer program to prepare the pattern. The automatic machine embroiders five jackets at once. This intricate owl pattern takes 1 1/4 hours to complete. The final result is a stylish jacket whose secret weapon is that hidden layer of insulation. It traps air inside your body, then heats it up, creating a cushion of warmth against the cold of winter. What is biophotonics? Well, bio is short for biology. Photonics is the physics of light. Biophotonics uses sophisticated imaging and other sensitive optical instruments to conduct biomedical research. Biophotonics has a range of uses from medical diagnosis to drug screening. In the golden years of animated film, teams of animators would draw every single illustration by hand. Today, they do much of their work by computer, but that doesn't mean it's any less artistic. It all starts with a screenplay-- a script containing not just dialogue, but also physical descriptions of the characters and background scenery. The art director begins creating the characters. He draws in pencil. When he's finished, he traces the drawing in felt pen. Then he erases the pencil marks. He adds shadowing to create relief. Once he's drawn all the characters, he starts the backgrounds... And then the objects that appear in the backgrounds. The storyboard artist blocks out the film on paper, drawing by drawing. The production team will follow this storyboard the way a dressmaker follows a pattern. They blow up the drawings, scan them into the computer, then play them back in chronological order. This creates what's called an "animatic"-- a two-dimensional version of the film, minus the animation. Should the director now decide to change, say, a ground-level view of the street to an aerial view, he has the artist redraw the street from that new angle. Meanwhile, the animators work on bringing the characters to life. Using specialized software, they build a skeleton to fit inside the character's body. When they move the skeleton, the software makes the body move with it. They make the characters three-dimensional using a technique called wireframe animation. First, they build the shape of the character using a wire structure. Then they add color and clothing. They further refine the character by modifying facial features, by adding texture, and by shadowing. They use specialized software to synchronize the character's mouth with the dialogue. The technician works syllable by syllable, picking the mouth movement that matches each sound. It's a painstaking process that takes many months. Another animator applies the lighting effects. Lighting is as important in an animated cartoon as it is in a movie with real people. It creates relief, making everything look more realistic. The animators cut and paste the characters and objects onto the backgrounds. With the characters' movements programmed into the computer, the animators turn a two-dimensional still version of the film into a three-dimensional animation, essentially a rough cut of the film. Meanwhile, in the studio, the soundtrack takes shape. Actors record the characters' dialogue. The sound technician weaves together the voices, the music, and the sound effects using specially designed software. They sync the soundtrack to the rough cut of the film. Then they refine the rough cut, playing with colors and textures and smoothing out the characters' movements. After a full year's work and more than 42,000 drawings, this 24-minute computer-animated film is finally finished. Have you ever dined on fungus? Well, if you've eaten mushrooms, you have. We like to think of those tasty little umbrella-shaped things as vegetables, but technically, they're fungi. Fungus omelette, anyone? Mushrooms grow in compost, and preparing that compost is a science in itself. It starts with horse manure and straw. The correct balance of moisture and air is critical, because mushrooms need both to grow, so mushroom farmers have to turn the pile frequently to air it out, and they water it daily for about a week. This kicks up plenty of chemical and biological activity. Ammonia forms, and microorganisms grow and reproduce, releasing heat. Good compost requires a nitrogen content of about 2%, so farmers add a nitrogen supplement-- chicken manure. They also add gypsum-- a mineral that improves the structure of the compost and neutralizes its acidity. At the week to two-week mark, depending on how the compost is progressing, it goes into the composter, which waters, aerates, and blends it. The compost comes out chocolate brown, smelling of ammonia. Next, they pasteurize it, to kill off any insects or insect eggs. They heat the compost at 136 degrees for eight hours, then at 113 degrees for five days. Then, over several more days, they gradually cool it to 77 degrees as microorganisms turn the ammonia into a nitrogen protein--  a mushroom nutrient. The compost is finally ready. The farmer sows grains of wheat inoculated with mushroom mycelium-- fine threads of fungi that act as the mushrooms' roots. A layer of soil and peat moss goes on top of the compost. The mycelium draws water from the soil and nutrients from the compost. After about two weeks, tiny mushrooms begin to develop. They grow fast, doubling their size every 24 hours, and this in relative darkness. Green plants need sunlight for photosynthesis but mushrooms don't. What mushrooms do need is air, because they breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide. Green plants do the opposite. Another three days, and the tiny mushrooms are fully grown and ready for harvesting. Pickers have to be careful not to remove the roots because left intact, they'll sprout a new batch of mushrooms every three to five days for about three weeks. They put the harvested mushrooms in a refrigerator just above freezing temperature, for about a half-hour, to stop the growing process. On the packaging line, they weigh the mushrooms and arrange them in a container, buttons up. A machine perforates the plastic covering to let the mushrooms breathe. This ensures a longer shelf life. The mushrooms stay in a fridge until they leave for the store the following day. It's taken about 12 weeks from the start of composting to your supermarket shelf. Gold jewelry has been a symbol of wealth and status throughout the ages. Today, though, it isn't just for the rich. Even ordinary people are likely to have a gold ring or necklace, just a little less diamond-studded. As early as 2,000 b.c., egyptian kings and queens adorned themselves in golden jewelry encrusted with precious gems. When the spanish sailed to the new world in 1492, they discovered mayan and aztec masterpieces of colored stones and pure gold. Today, elaborate gold jewelry and precious gems are well beyond the reach of the average person, except for the diamond ring-- still the customary symbol of engagements. The client and the jewelry designer first decide how the ring will look. The designer then measures the client's finger to determine her ring size. He then sketches out the design they've agreed upon-- a grooved band with three diamonds. The model maker works with a special carving wax. Using a compass, he measures and marks the width of the band, then carefully saws it off. He takes his gauge and puts it on a stick with ring-size markings, called a mandrel. He adjusts his compass to the ring size, then scores the finger hole on the block of wax. He then takes his drill and carefully carves out the hole he scored. Then he grinds off the wax on the outside of the band. Using the compass again, he scores the middle of the band, where he'll make the groove. Then, using a fine drill bit, he carves out the groove. With a file, he then refines the groove and shapes the curves of the ring according to the design. After putting wax prongs on the band, he attaches a wax stem to the model. He then positions the stem into the base of the cylinder that the jeweler will use to cast the ring. The base goes onto the platform of a vacuum machine. The jeweler puts a cylinder on top of the base, then pours in a special plaster. The vacuum sucks all the air out of the plaster. This is a key part of the process, because if any air bubbles remain, the finished ring will be out of shape. In less than a minute, the vacuuming is done, and the cylinder goes into the furnace at 1,350 degrees fahrenheit. The wax model evaporates, leaving a void the exact shape of the ring in the hardened plaster. Next, they melt the gold. The gold content of jewelry is measured by karat. The lower the karat, the less gold and the more alloy, or cheaper metals such as nickel, silver, and copper. After five hours, the cylinder comes out of the furnace and goes into the casting machine. The machine spins for about a minute. The centrifugal force shoots the liquefied gold into the plaster mold that's inside the cylinder. The jeweler then immerses the cylinder in cold water. This cools the gold and makes the plaster disintegrate. What's left is the cast gold ring, but its surface is rough, so on to the finishing process. The jeweler saws off the stem and gets to work. He files and grinds the ring until the surface is smooth. Then he stamps on his trademark and the karat marking. Then he hammers the ring on the mandrel to make it perfectly round. The jeweler then hands it off to a specialist in polishing. The polisher runs the ring against a series of buffing wheels until it's bright and shiny. The polisher then hands it off to a specialist in setting gemstones. The setter straightens the prongs that'll hold the diamonds. Then, with a delicate drill bit, he carefully carves out the inside of the prongs. The edges of the diamonds will fit directly into these slots. He readjusts the prongs, then sets the diamonds, making sure the prongs hold them down securely. That's a 1-carat diamond in the middle, a 1/2-carat diamond on each side. The jeweler then immerses the finished ring into the ultrasonic machine. The vibrations in the water penetrate every nook and cranny, washing the ring. Finally, he puts the ring under a jet of hot steam to blast away any remaining residue. And voilà. With a ring like that, who wouldn't say "i do"?