Bulletproof Wheat
I wonder whatever became of this miracle product. If Larry Rogers, its inventor, was 31 in 1984, then he'd be 62 now. Is he still working away on it somewhere? Or did the product actually make its way onto the market, though under a name other than "bulletproof wheat"? Who knows. I can't find any follow-up info about the story.
Larry Rogers, 31, a Salinas scientist, figures he has the answer to the nation's wheat and coal surplus problem. Earlier this year he invented a substitute for firewood out of wheat and corn. Now he says he's reconstructed things to make the firewood bulletproof. He says he also can turn it into an excellent replacement for wood as a building material by adding high sulfur coal, carbon and cellulose. The material will also be fireproof. He says it stopped an Army M16 rifle bullet during testing. And, because its impact resistant, it's ideal for protective housing units for troops, he says. The product is being tested at Micro Organic Fuel in Carson City, Nev.
Spokane Chronicle - Sep 24, 1984
Santa Cruz Sentinel - Sep 18, 1984
Comments
Big Lumber probably suppressed his invention, just like Big Oil did with that 100 mpg carburetor.
I once dated a girl who made a cake so dense you could drive a nail with it. No, I did not marry her - I learned to cook in self-defense.
I once dated a girl who made a cake so dense you could drive a nail with it. No, I did not marry her - I learned to cook in self-defense.
Posted by KDP on 08/18/15 at 10:16 AM
Pasta from chaff??? No... I'll pass.
Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 08/18/15 at 10:22 AM
'Turning grain wastes into a substance that can be easily digested' sounds like a job for brewer's yeast. 😜
I have driven nails with bananas - I'll have to try it with my sister's fruitcake sometime. :cheese:
I have driven nails with bananas - I'll have to try it with my sister's fruitcake sometime. :cheese:
Posted by tadchem on 08/18/15 at 12:56 PM
Sounds like a fly by night scheme to me.
Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 08/18/15 at 05:28 PM
It's digestible because it's breaking cellulose down into simpler carbohydrates. It faster, easier, and tastier to simply feed the raw material to a cow (whose digestive systems can break down cellulose), and then eat the cow.
As 'wood,' it's crap because long strings of cellulose is what gives wood it's strength. Get this stuff wet or have point loading and it disintegrates.
It's bulletproof in the same way a phonebook is -- impact is dissipated by the layers, and the layers in this are microscopically thin. It's not practical because absorbing the impact disrupts the structure. It'll stop one bullet fine, it might slow a second, but a third bullet would sail right through.
As 'wood,' it's crap because long strings of cellulose is what gives wood it's strength. Get this stuff wet or have point loading and it disintegrates.
It's bulletproof in the same way a phonebook is -- impact is dissipated by the layers, and the layers in this are microscopically thin. It's not practical because absorbing the impact disrupts the structure. It'll stop one bullet fine, it might slow a second, but a third bullet would sail right through.
Posted by Phideaux on 08/18/15 at 05:51 PM
The company his product was being tested at in Carson City, Micro Organic Fuel, Inc. is listed as suspended by the franchise tax board in 1984, Its agent was Dewey Rogers, hmm. His wife I bet.
Posted by Carson City Dave on 08/18/15 at 07:48 PM
Simple, everything went fine until the first rain fall, then it started sprouting
Posted by Ed Dart on 08/19/15 at 11:38 PM
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Category: Inventions | 1980s