Abstract: A method for producing biodegradable plastic from natural materials containing polysaccharides by treating the polysaccharide-containing materials with a basic aqueous solution, subsequently treating the mixture with a modifying material that converts pendant hydroxyl groups at any carbon atom of the anhydroglucose units of the saccharide to create polysaccharide carboxylate, and then reacting the product with proteins to produce a biodegradable copolymer with electrostatic chemical bonds between protein and polysaccharide carboxylate molecules. The process provides relatively inexpensive methods for preparing biodegradable plastics that are useful for manufacturing various articles.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for making a holographic shadowgram of an object are disclosed. The method and apparatus include a light source for generating and expanding a coherent light beam. The method and apparatus also include a reflector for reflecting the coherent light beam to simultaneously produce a diffuse object beam and a coherent reference beam such that differential vibration between the object and reference beams is substantially eliminated, and for illuminating the object with the object beam and creating an interference pattern between the object and reference beams. The method and apparatus further include a recorder for recording the interference pattern to produce the holographic shadowgram.

Abstract: Described is a method of separating and recovering metal values from a waste stream containing metal hydroxides comprising the steps of providing an aqueous waste stream containing metal values including chromium; subjecting the waste stream to an oxidation process to convert the chromium to chromium (VI); precipitating the other metal values in the aqueous stream by adjusting the pH of the stream to cause the precipitations; and separately recovering the chromium (VI) from the remaining metal values. The process described pertains to separating and recovering metal values such as those from an electroplating process or an electroless process wherein the metals may be iron, cobalt, zinc, cadmium, nickel, copper, silver, aluminum and chromium. The chromium recovery step is performed by oxidizing chromium (III) to chromium (VI) preferably in the presence of a manganese catalyst and preferably utilizing ultrasound waves. The remaining metal values are separated by the use of a chelating ion exchange resin.

Abstract: A HOE for use in a wavelength .lambda..sub.3 is made by recording a holographic corrector plate at a wavelength of .lambda..sub.1. The HOE is then recorded at a wavelength .lambda..sub.2. Aberration caused by differences between the wavelength of recording and the wavelength of HOE usage is compensated for by inserting the holographic corrector plate in one of the beams in used in recording the HOE.

Abstract: Provided is a systemic approach to creating a hologram from a sequential series of two dimensional transparencies each having a differing viewpoint of a scene taken simultaneously by a camera in incoherent light and a projection apparatus using coherent light in combination with said transparencies to form a rainbow hologram of the scene originally photographed. The invention utilizes a lenticular lens array to provide parallax information and a perpendicularly oriented cylindrical lens for focusing, along with additional optical enhancing elements, to obtain high quality rainbow holograms from scenes originally photographed in natural light.