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The history of glow sticks is over 40 years old when Edwin Chandross, a chemist at Bell Labs, invented the glow technology which used chemical energy to emit light. This was quite an achievement as at that point either battery or electrical power was used as an energy source for emission of light.
Many scientists took Chandross' work and refined the process further. Unfortunately for Chandross, the patent for Chemical Light Device was registered by Richard Taylor Van Zandt in the US Patents office.
Glow sticks are a single use device can come in various different sizes and shapes in translucent plastic tubes. One of the chemicals used in the device are contained within a brittle inner case surrounding by another chemical needed for the reaction. When the brittle case is broken the two chemicals combine and produce light through a chemical reaction known as chemoluminescence.
40 years on glow sticks are used all over the globe as a source of light in a wide variety of applications and colors. Last year alone, it is believed the United States Department of Defense used 15 million chemlights (as they are known in the military).
There are many uses of glow sticks and some of them are listed below:
- A dance form known as glow sticking is extremely popular in present day. Glow sticks are used for entertainment in parties, concerts, and dance clubs. This is one of the most widely acknowledged uses of glow sticks in pop culture.
- They are commonly being associated with festivals and holidays. Glowsticks are used extensively during the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong. For Westerners where Halloween is celebrated, you will find parents and kids alike using illuminesent lights when trick or treating. In addition to adding to the spooky atmosphere from the eerie light produced by glow sticks, it allows parents and drivers to see where children are wandering about much more effectively than reflective tape.
- Glowsticks have 4 properties that make them favorite tools of divers, campers and the military. They are disposable, inexpensive, waterproof and can withstand high pressures.
If there is an earthquake, these sticks come very handy and are a safe source of light. Even in places where there are explosives, the sticks can be used as they do not use batteries or electrical filaments and there is no worry about causing sparks.
Glowsticks saw a huge surge in popularity in the 1980s, but even today they are just as popular. In order to get the best bang for your buck, it is advisable to get a stick that lasts. Cheap glow sticks fade out rather quickly. The better the quality the stick, the longer and stronger it will last. Good quality glow sticks will usually last for 12 to 24 hours.
