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Show - THE MOSf ECONOMICAL POWER PRODUCER Man It a Much Better Engmo Than a Locomotive and Yield Moro Energy En-ergy Than an Automobile. To test the efficiency of a man as an engine, Professor Atwater, of Wes- leynn University, hns been engaged recently In making some remarkable experiments, employing u stationary bicycle ns n means of measuring tho power developed by n muscular rider. By tho simple expedient of making tlio tiro of the rear wheel (the cycle has no front wheel) pass between two electro-magnets, which nre connected with a dynamo, nil of the energy transmitted trans-mitted to the pedals Is converted Into a current of electricity. This current enn bo measured, nnd thus Is ascertained ascer-tained exactly how much power is employed. em-ployed. Tho rider operates his wheel Inside of n great box of wood lined with metal. He Is not permitted to leave the box for several days and nights, nnd nil of his food and drink Is carefully care-fully weighed. In this way the amounts of fuel nnd water supplied to the human engine nro nccurntcly ascertained, ascer-tained, and the totnl energy which they represent cnu he easily figured out. As a result of the experiments, It has been found that a man Is a much better bet-ter engine than u locomotive, yielding nearly twice as much power for n given , amount of fuel. He Is superior in this respect to the best und most economical pattern of automobile. In fact, no i kind of engine ns yet contrived steam, gasollno or electric In equal to him R ns n producer of energy. U Professor Atwnter snys that the most I economical engine built to-day utilizes, I In tho shape of work, only llftecn per I ceut. of the energy contained In tho I fuel supplied to it. ts human power I machine develops twenty per cent. I without' counting whnt Is required to D keep tho Internal mechanism of tbo I body running. Of course, It takes eon- sldernblc power to keep the heart-pump going, nnd the digestive apparatus In operation. To reckon the expenditure for thctic nnd other functions nt nn 1 nddltlonnl twenty per cent, would not 1 be over the mark. 1 Thus It Is seen that tho human en- H lno runs with much less wnsto than W any mechanical contrivance yet de- i vised. Man stnnds to-day the model I n achlne, nnd with nil his vaunted in- I genulty he cannot construct nn appar- j ntus thnt comes near to equalling his) own body as n work-producer. Nor, Indeed, In-deed, will any other kind of engine, though built of tbo best obtainable materials, ma-terials, run for anything like so long i period without wearing out, requiring In the same time so small an expenditure expendi-ture for repairs. Boston Herald. M |