| Show scientific miscellany among the advantages to be looked for in electric torpedo boats are the lack of naming flaming funnels and noisy machinery to give notice of approach freedom of risk from cut steam pipes or wrecked boilers diminished upper works to serve as a target and ease and rapidity orf manipulation by the commander with ope oae hand band on the controller A writer in the electrical world suggests the possible suitability of primary batteries for a foot boat with a displacement of tons engines of 2000 horse power are necessary to give a speed of 26 25 knots and a weight of 76 75 tons la is all that could be allowed for batteries and motors four motors of horse power each would weigh about 12 tons this would permit the carrying of cells consisting of 13 zinc plates 18 inches square and 12 plates of like size alze of copper oxide compressed on copper with an electrolyte solution of strong caustic alkali glass jars of 19 inches cube with watertight water tight covers would contain i the elements it if such a battery would work satisfactorily it should drive the vessel at full speed for one hour or about miles at 10 knots I 1 education of the protoplasm Is prof ray Lan IAne casters axters explanation of the prevention or cure of severe disease by mild inoculations protoplasm can be taught to tolerate chem chemical cal action from which it naturally shrinks and on growing to the edge of a tion of sulphate of iron would at first draw dram back and then plunge in thereafter having no fear of sulphate of iron certain corpus corpuscles cles of the blood are attracted to disease germs andt and swallow them but the bacteria in turn produce a poison that repels the corpuscles corpus cles and it is by teaching tho the latter by gradually increasing doses that they are made capable of resisting the full poison of the disease the so called singing shells are a marvel of B Batti a caloa lake in ceylon and on a qui et evening the weird phenomena produces an effect that is decidedly pleasing modern refinement in scientific research is strikingly illustrated in the or heat balance of prof S P langley which is designed to measure extremely small amounts of radiant heat its action depends upon variations of electrical resistance produced in stripes of platinum by changes of temperature the alterations thus thua cau the strength of the current passing through the metal being registered upon a delicate galvanometer the instrument first described in 1881 has now no w been so improved that its ita sensitiveness siti veness Is times as great as at first changes of much less than one on ten millionth of a centigrade degree may be detected by it the accuracy to la practically absolute and its precision of pointing is such that it may be directed toward any line in the spectrum with a probable error of little more a second of arc on the first observation during recent aars the has been employed in washington in mapping the lines in the invisible portion of the spectrum the observations being made in a chamber whose temperature is automatically kept constant within one tenth of a centigrade degree the dark days which formerly brought such consternation to the world axe are usually supposed to be due to smoke from extensive forest fires or to volcanic dust the direful import of new En glands dark day of 1780 is still i a matter of local tradition but an even more remarkable occurrence was recorded in 1783 when a bluish haze obscured the sun for many days throughout europe and northern africa in july 1896 a thick smoke covered the whole of siberia for eleven days the nights very singularly being clear A rutlan astronomer M adam czysz ez ewski states that there were no large fires and no volcanic eruptions eru in northern asia and concludes that this was wad a cosmic phenomenon due perhaps to the passage of part of the earth through a gaseous nebula or the tall of a comet hay cut during the smoky period was reported to poison sheep A medical authority condemns slow eating as well as hurried eating for both beget imperfect mastication but rapid and energetic chewing with freedom from mental anxiety ensures the most thorough mastication while stimulating the secretion of saliva in the most favorable manner an improved method of preserving milk for transportation is stated to have developed an important new industry in sweden and denmark the tb milk is collected at a central station from neighboring farms and is there ther pasteurized at about deg F V after which part of it is frozen at 15 deg the blocks of frozen milk aro 9 placed in stout wooden casks which they half fill sterilized milk being poured into the remaining space tb casks are then hermetically sealed and as they are perfectly full and kept cool by the frozen masses the milk cannot be churned into butter in transports trans poAl tion and may be kept in good condition tor for at least twenty days TWO makes Is in possible for the danes and swedes to supply even england and prance france with whole cargoes of milk the tide like effect of gales on lakes having no ordinary tides is very considerable sid erable in the caspian says mr W H wheeler a gale will raise the water on one side six feet causing a total difference of level of feet in the baltic easter gales will produce a change of eight feet and in lake erie heavy gales occasionally cause a difference of level of more than fifteen feet the me observations of earth currents at greenwich observatory have been made practically useless for several years by the electric railway from stockwell to bondor modern instruments being so sensitive that indications of the current of this railway have been detected more than miles away an early effect of the railway led to a funny experience the generating station was visited by the magnetic superintendent of the observatory and on his return to work the tracings of his magnets showed a curious deflection which continued day atter after day but only during the hours of his attendance the idea that he was magnetized was a st ratling one but one day he left his umbrella at home and there was no disturbance the umbrella having been a permanent magnet since the visit to the power station |
