Gorilla Glass Takes on the Tough Jobs in Tech

When we think of sweaty gaffers toiling at the glory hole around here, we think of pure animal strength. Now Corning has put some of their high tech knowledge to use in creating a durable fused layered glass for tech applications called "Gorilla Glass."

It's Manufactured using "Corning’s proprietary fusion process" says the website. We imagine this to mean it's a layered glass like the strengthening process that makes bulletproof glass. Isn't it great to know a Gorilla couldn't hurt your cell phone? Especially since we leave it out where little hands can get to it.

Or we drop it off our laps as we exit the car onto the asphalt. Ouch. That used to mean a totaled screen. I know I destroyed my first i-pod this way.

The surface of Corning's "Gorilla Glass" has the same surface quality as all of Corning’s high-technology display substrates. A substrate is a layer that underlies something. Makes sense.

Gorilla Glass is RF compatible, and has the optical clarity that makes it ideal for HD and 3-D television screens.

Mr. Rodgers and Koko image courtesy of the Feefee the RN's Blog. The Gorrilla watching the laptop is from Fast Company's (one of my favorite magazines) website.

Steuben No More, Say NO!

The Cornell Daily sun reported today, September 8, 2011, that Steuben, the 100 plus year old American Crystal factory will close later this year.
In the press release, the company said its sole factory and a store, both located on the Corning Museum of Glass campus, will close Nov. 29
The flagship store in NYC will close when it's inventory is sold.
What a shock. I can hardly think. I know the costs involved in keeping the furnaces stoked. The increase in energy, materials, chemicals, transportation, labor, benefits, safety, and gosh what else? I know the drop offs in sales. Don't we all know the drop off in sales of objects of beauty for the American home?
It is truly an American Art Glass Armegedon. Nobody can imagine an American art glass scene without Corning New York's iconic century old lead crystal factory curning out those one of a kind designer works by visiting artists and the usual cigar ash trays, trumpet flower vases and the like. The polishing room there was as close as we, Americans got to a traditonal glass works where there were actual highly skilled glass finishers working daily on loads of fabulous flawless objects d'arte. The blowers were on a par with many other countries, it was in the melting and the polishing that Steuben in the later half of the 20th Century excelled.
It's all too much for me. I have to go and chill now.