| By :
Mark Etinger
Paper is thousands of years old and along with the wheel, is one of humanity's most important inventions. Without it, transmitting ideas would have been much more difficult and the proliferation of books and science would have been indeterminately postponed! Reeds and vellum are not recyclable in the way that paper is. Today we use paper for many reasons. Specialty paper begins in tree form. Trees are cut down and brought to paper mills where they enter a long process to go from wood to paper. First they chip the wood. Then they add water, heat and a couple of chemicals to turn the wood into a pulp. The slurry pulp is sprayed onto a big screen and the water drains and the wood pulp forms an emergent form of paper. This quasi-paper is then rolled to get the remaining moisture out and dried. The paper is cut and rolled into long sheets. But what separates normal everyday paper from the printable paper and the specialty paper? Paper comes in different weights. The heavier the paper, the more wood used in making it, thus the better it is. Many papers use acid which can cause damage over long periods of time, especially if you're using the paper as a background for stamps or other collectibles. Alkaline specialty paper can last for a thousand years, middle-grade acid-free paper can last for up to 500. Plus acid-free paper is better for the environment - it requires less energy, the machinery lasts longer and all the byproducts can be recycled. Since specialty paper comes in different sizes and stiffnesses, it's important to check that your printer is compatible with this paper before investing in big stacks. There are many different kinds of specialty paper. Depending on your purpose, whether it be printing photographs or making crafts, writing letters or mounting stamps, the different kinds of specialty paper are all practical in their own way. Although today LCD screens are replacing many books, notepads and journals, paper will always have a place in human culture. There is something personal about it, perhaps a relation to nature that brings the user that much closer to a natural interaction, rather than a manmade one experienced on a plasma screen. Perhaps that is the reason printable paper continues to be the preferred method of information transmittance for aficionados. It preserves a tradition and frankly, it feels better.
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