Day Two at ASCUS Lab (Edinburgh)
Second day at the lab and it is clear that the samples in alcohol are producing the deeper colours. Although when painted on acid free paper (paper can affect the hue) the colours are still quite pale – need to concentrate by putting in oven so excess alcohol can evaporate. I prepare larger amounts of the fungi and Keira suggests whizzing it up in the blender as breaking it down might release more pigment.
At this point I realise that there are a lot of spores in the dried fungi so all prep moves to the fume cupboard and the mask goes on. Opening the blender after whizzing the cinnamon bracket results in a huge cloud of spores.
I speak to my partner who tells me my daughter has been very unwell overnight, vomiting etc. I’m worried about this and arrange for him to take her to the GP in the afternoon. Work continues in the lab and I’ve also been improving my technique with the microscope, looking at sections of the fungi and the spores.
It really changes your perspective looking through the microscope – the cinnamon bracket could be a lunar landscape.
Images left to right: Microscopic view of the 'teeth' of the sarcadon imbricatus fungi, View of the gills of the cortinarius semisanguineus fungi, Microscopic view of a slice of Cinnamon bracket fungi.
Nearing the end of the day I phone my partner to find out how things are going. To my alarm they have seen the GP who has called an ambulance for my daughter as she is concerned about how poorly she seems. Clearly, I need to cut my trip short and head home to England. I rearrange my flight and Keira offers to clear up for me and complete the pigment extraction I have started tomorrow. Thank you, Keira!
Back at the hotel I arrange to check out and book a cab for 4:15am! After about an hour and a half wait for the ambulance, my daughter is finally in A&E although it is not until 10pm that she sees a Dr. Eventually she is diagnosed with influenza A (think the Spanish flu) but as it is a virus and her oxygen levels are OK she is to be sent home. This is explained to me by the Dr at 1:30am on the phone.
Now I think I will try and sleep. My partner has other ideas, sending me various missives asking whether he will be able to get our car out of the GP’s car park etc. His final volley is to tell me that there is a train strike tomorrow, leaving me to wonder how I will get from Luton airport to home in Bucks! Finally, I realise there is no point trying to sleep so I have a cup of tea, finish packing and head down for the cab to the airport.
On finally arriving home my daughter has a temperature of 39.8 centigrade, very flushed and a bit confused. A bit panicked but phone by my niece Catharine (a Doctor) and she calms me down – and then proceeds to tell me what symptoms I should panic about! Much fluid and paracetamol later my daughter is improving. It took her another week or so to fully recover. All in all, she has missed the second week of her mock GCSE’s and the last two weeks of the term. Next year I will get her a flu jab!
Keira completed my pigment extraction and packaged up the results (thank you to my brother, Stephen, who arranged for everything to be couriered back to me). Below are some of the examples of the colours achieved.
Images left to right: Colours produced from small samples, Colour produced by adding potassium hydroxide to the cinnamon bracket – produces purple compared to ethanol only.
As the trip was cut short I didn’t mange the second part of my experimentation, which was to concentrate the pigment, mix it with some kind of binder to make blocks of paint. I will see if I can continue this at home. But still I have, at least, succeeded in extracting colour from mushrooms and getting a fairly varied palate.