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Since 1953 a Phytotron Committee at Davis has been concerned with various means of controlling the environment of plants. A glass block-roofed phytotron unit which combined the best features of the greenhouse (sunlight) and the conventional growth chamber (insulation) was built and tested as a possible research tool. The present study reports details of the phytotron unit's construction, operation, and maintenance; energy exchanges and operating costs; efficiency of the glass blocks as a light-transmitting medium; and preliminary experiments with plants. Incandescent lighting was investigated. Other devices, including reflectors and rotation of a room to face the sun, were studied. Some of the detailed information gathered during the course of this study has been omitted from this publication. The information is available, however, on microfilm for anyone having need for further details. Directions for obtaining a microfilm of this supplementary material will be found on the inside back cover.

Allergic disease is one of the most prevalent chronic medical conditions in the world. Allergen avoidance has been accepted as a form of treatment for allergic disease; however, the success of treatment is often dependent on how patients choose to manage their condition. The purpose of this study was to explore how allergic conditions affect the lives of allergy sufferers and what information they believe would be useful to other allergy sufferers in the management of their allergic condition. Patients suffering from non-life-threatening allergies stated that their allergy affected many aspects of their life, such as their work, their social life, their emotional state, their physical appearance and, hence, their interactions with others. The chronic symptoms of their condition caused the greatest concern to patients. Many of these participants 'accepted their condition' and undertook controlling-measures as part of their daily life. In contrast, patients suffering from life-threatening allergies stated that their allergy did not affect their life. Knowledge of their allergic condition was more important than acceptance. The findings elicited from allergy sufferers identified how nurses can educate patients about their condition and assist them in learning to live with their condition.

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