Image Number K8166-11

Using a differential scanning calorimeter, plant physiologist Christina Walters can detect phase-state changes of water and lipids in seeds. First she cools thin slices of seed tissues sealed in tiny aluminum pans (held in tweezers) to -170°C. The relationship she finds between a seed's water content, temperature at which its heat capacity changes, and size of the change give clues about the nature of glasses that form.

Photo by Scott Bauer.

640 pixels wide: (k8166-11.jpg)