Carbon (6)

Carbon

I was not there in the beginning

but formed soon after in the hearts of lights

to be scattered through space on a super nova wave

as star dust

I can be mixed beyond measure

hard and soft

clear and black

I am in your second skin

You use me in tools of creativity

I power the world

I power you

Energy rides me

In Life I am always there

February 3 & 5, 2011
Tressa Lee Breen

My Notes & Resource Tools:
4th most abundant in universe
Sun, stars, comets, most atmospheres
Diamond-transparent, hardest, low conductivity
Graphite-opaque/black, soft, high conductivity
More compounds than any other (mix beyond measure)
Chemical basis of all known life
Present in all known life forms
Powder form: charcoal, lampblack (soot)
Charcoal, coal, oil (powers the world)
Pencil "lead" (communication, chart our history)
Not present in Big Bang
Scattered through space as dust/supernova
Human Body-2nd most abundant by mass after oxygen
W/ hydrogen: refrigerants, lubricants, solvents
W/ hydrogen & oxygen: sugars, alcohols, fats
W/ nitrogen: alkaloids
W/ sulfur: antibiotics, amino acids, rubber
Add phosphorus too: DNA, RNA, ATF (energy transfer molecules)
Monoxide, cyanide, methane
Diamond: gem/industrial
Carbon polymers of animal origin: wool, cashmere, silk
Plant (cellulose-carbon polymer): cotton, linen, hemp
Carbon Black: ink, oil paint, watercolours, toner
Carbon on Wikipedia