Show Glass Ornaments Save Suie Lives hires in 11 War I If tr you OU talk about prisms Grand Grand- Grandma ma might think you mean the Mass glass ornaments decorating her chan chan- delier d l er glut But her grandson If It hes he's a aG G GI I. I Joe Is aware of the fact that solid glass prisms have been the moans means of or sa saving many lives during the thear war ar It was early catty eart In the war that the ai army my wanted n It tank periscope supe supe- superior n 1 01 or to lo the style old old old- tyle type made of mirrors and flat Oat glass windows As Asa a 1 result glass gluss technicians here de de- developed developed a n new plate glass prism that supplied d about a 50 per Ier cent In Increase In in- increase crease in visibility And equally if It not 1105 more Important this superiority was achieved in m a unit that could be produced mass mn to take care of 0 the desperate rate need ned for prisms tradition tradition- traditionally traditionally ally turned out In small quantities tics by bythe bythe bythe the precise handicraft methods of the optical industry When the first U U. S. S S tanks wont went nt into combat however a n great need fur prismatic viewing I wing blocks developed de In those first tanks commanders had to 10 strand stand in tn the hatch exposed exp sed to sniper fire Bre if it they the wanted a hull full fullview view of their surroundings s An alarming number were killed The answer was a new tn of bullet bullet- resisting viewing panel developed by Owens Ford Glass Glan company Made of laminated plate glass the tank observation panels are so 50 placed that tank crews and com com- commanders commanders manders mandels are enabled to obtain a II degree field of vision ision when hen in m action without having to open op n the hatch to toce ce see going gon on The pris prismatic matic viewing blocks utilize for the first time the refractive refract properties of plate glass to obtain a i Some indication of the importance of these prisms might be gleaned from the number thus far turned out oUI by b the glass concern To date dale more than have been produced for various of ot war |