A method and system for spectroscopically determining surface and product characteristics is employed for rapid detection of product characteristics andor the presence or absence of suspected analytes, and the concentration of the analyte. This compound exhibits pronounced activity in arresting the proliferation of undifferentiated cells and inducing their differentiation to the monocyte thus evidencing use as an anti-cancer agent and for the treatment of skin diseases such as psoriasis as well as skin conditions such as wrinkles, slack skin, dry skin and insufficient sebum secretion. In another aspect of the invention a number of solid state power controllers are connected to an external microcontroller to form a power distribution array. The generated table includes entries corresponding to transparency characteristics of each of the objects. It further relates to devices that are made with the copolymers. In the pine straw rake system, a pine straw rake is connected to a carrier that can be self-propelled or can be adapted to be pulled by a tractor or other vehicle.