I did two "wood projects" in high school science class. Besides this one, "The Flex/Breakability of Different Woods", there was, of course, "The Flammibility of Different Woods". I also wanted to get in to Distilling Wood, but I never got there yet.
Here's how Flex/Breakability went:
Hypothesis: that heavier woods break at a higher weight than lighter woods.
Method: Cut 1cm x 5cm x 2mm planks, vise grip at one end, hang weights on the other end. Keep hanging lead weights until it breaks.
Materials: Woods were harvested from the church property behind my mom's house. Such as: Sassafras, Silver Maple, Yew (from the olden cemetary), Dogwood (from a branch I cut in my mom's yard!). Note: because young Peter slaughtered living trees, he also had to improvise a drying technique for the planks, which was to use a propane torch and lightly toast it!
Observations: Dogwood of course was on the top of durability. It is pretty light, but it would be worst for Sidrassi barres because it didn't seem to flex at all. Best flex- of course- was Yew. Also tested was Sumac, which has always been my favorite for coloration, but I realized then that Sumac is a weak wood, expert at breaking, thus my song-chant:
Argument for wooden Electronic Instrumenta:
Wood is one of the cleanest natural products. Sealed off from the environment by bark, it grows in "regular lifespace", not absorbing any mercury from the environment. Plus, many woods have saps that in their fragrance, stave off certain diseases.
Wilhelm Reich wrote about orgone energy, which is accumulated when organic material (he used wool but we use aromatic woods) is placed in alternation with primal metals or crystals. That is the basis of the noted "Ciat"-"Lonbarde" dichotomy. Ciat refers to crystalline structures unified by metallic armature (CIA, air cond, Crystal City VA), and Nabra refers to nappy dreadlocks, rhizomal growth, and organic in general (from the African word, "Nbara"). Nbara is the wooden barre that receives nodes, the wooden barre that flexes through the plate to the crystal.
Observe the company Jupiter Condenser, and note that their capacitors are a rolled up sandwich of metal and beeswax paper. Also note the concordance between meta-technology and the bees, noted in the video "Wax or the Discovery of Television among the Bees"
True, positioning of the piezo-transducer as well as grinding a lense shape into the barre affect its electronic response, but primordially, choice of wood for the barre is what poots that extra touch onto a Ciat-Lonbarde organ. Sidrassi. Tetrazzi.
