Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1878-11-06
Science Notes.


journals say it is decidedly the tele-
phone of the future.
The latest advices received from the
New Guiena exploration expedition, the
members of which were so enthusiastic
is to the effect that three of the partv
were dead, and the others dispirited or
fever-stricken. Itseems likely to prove
failure. s.nt,aF
The three rare and remarkable metals
cerium, lanthanum, and didymium, are
now traced by M. Cossa through the
saccharoid marble Of Carrara and the
limestones of Avellino. He considers
them to be widely diffused in nature,
and that they enter into the composition
of organized beings.
The municipality of Prague, advised
by the hygienic council Of that city,
have just issued an edict prohibiting
ladies from wearing dresses with long
trains in the public streets, on account
of the dust which the appendices raise
being detrimental to public health.
The municipality of Leipzig published
a similar edict some time ago. .....
The French journal La Science pour
Tons reckons the annual importation of
ivory into England at $4,000 kilo-
grammes, of which about one-half is
there employed in the arts, and the
other half re-exported. The cutlery
works Of Sheffield alone consume 2OO,-
600 kllogrammes per year. Tusks vary
in we; ght from $50 grammes to "A kilo-
grammes. To supply the ivory annu-
ally taken to England, $4,000 elephants
must be killed. But though, perhaps
most of the tusks go to England, very
many are exported directly to other
countries and consumed at home.
Prof S. F. Baird, secretary of the
Smithsonian institution, wishes to re
ceive report from scientific men land
women), both professionals and anna
teurs, detailing the work done by them
during the current year, for publication.
Here is chance for everybody who is
engaged either in scanning the heavens
or plodding in the earth to become
measurably immortal.
A grave discussion is going on through
the London Times as to whether it will
be possible to use the electric light for
the illumination of pictures. One cor
respondent says: "Anything more I'M
can scarcely be imagined" Another
correspondent replies: "Thc fact is,
that the electric light, which is pure
white light, seems of blueish color
only when compared with 6, yellow
light, such as that of ordinary gas"
Prof. Hughes entertains the nope, or
rather thinks it possible, that we shall
one day be able to "tap the brain of it's
thought" by means Of the microphone
He holds that all thought is accom-
panied by an unconscious action Of the
articulatlng organs, and that therefore
it may come to pass that by highly
sensitive microphone the articulate vi
bratiOnS the head will be made audi
ble., Of course, the theory that uncon-
scious articulation always accompanies
thought is purely hypothetical; but in
these times it is best not to pronounce
anything impossible unless it clearly
i'm plies a contradiction in terms-an
absurdity.
Where circular saws are in use, not
Of sufficisnt diameter to divide large
trunks, it is asserted that trees partly
sawn through may be neatly split with
powder, or split even without any saw
ing. If hole be bored in the wood OF
one inch diameter, and in depth lit
| tie more than half the thickness of the
trunk, about one-t third the length of the
log from the butt-end, and as near as
possible to the centre, powder and fuse
| put In, and the hole filled up with sand,
| "a single blast is sufficient to split log
Of considerable length, which it does,
generally, almost as clean as the saw.
| Beech and ash have been successfully
experimental upon, but with oak and
some other timber it is not so success
J full
M. Spring, of the Royal Academy Of
Belgium, has made some experiments
on the finepowders ofsome solid bodies
such as the nitrates of sodium and po-
tassium, .sawdust, chalk, etc., with the
object Of seeing what result would fol
low if they were subjected to enormous
PRESSURE With an actual pressure OF
10000 atmospheres, he obtained per-
fectly homogeneous blocks of greater
strength and density than hitherto ac-
complished by any other process. Som e
of the blocks were semi-transparent,
and did not reveal the slightest indica-
ton of the PARTICLES which composed
them. The investigator is continuing
his experiment, and some facts of the
greatest scientific and industrial interest
would appear to be promised by what
he has already discovered.
| They had another amusing time over
the phongraph in the Paris Academy
of Science when M. Bouiland, the dis
tinguished member who believed the
speaking was done by ventriloouism,
again obtained the floor. He aban-
doned his first position, and admitted
! that the sound was mechanical, but ar
gued that" even if a speaking machine
had been constructed it could by no
means be considered as q thinking ma
chine" He said that speaking was not
only a mechanical action, but also an
intellectual work, so that neither the
phonopraph nor the singing condenser
could be regarded by any means rs
7 tIN, ~ VIII Ia assam,