Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-07-04
SCIENTIFIC.

. IN LIZ 4nOItU6 Ue W jJCttfcCe, IrOl flHOt
enters into comparison of astronomical
phenomena, as viewed with or without the
telescope. Viewed, says Prof. ", with the
unaided eye, the stars and planets look alike
that is, appear to have the same diameter
but, viewed through the telescope, while the
planets are seen to possess clearly apprecia-
BILE diameters, the stars are still only mere
luminous points; thus the most powerful
of existing telescopes, that of Melbourne,
which magnifes eight thousand times, gives
an image of one of the planets posses
sing an apparent diameter of several degrees
Jupiter, for instance, which, observed
with the naked eye, appears as star OF the
first magnitude, with diameter of forty-hye
seconds at the most, viii In this telescope
have its diameter multiplied 5000 times,
and will be seen as if it occupied in the
heavens an angle of 100 degrees, while
star alongside of Jupiter, and which to the
eye is as bright as that planet, will still be
simple dimensionless point, though in fact
thousands of times more voluminous than
the planet
For testing the strength of woven fabrics
a machine has been introduced, designed to
report pulling strains from half kilo up to
$50 hlos. The machine consists of an up
right standard, supporting horizontal hol-
low beam of iron, containing scale levers,
with brass weighing scale having sliding
weight and graduated scale. Suspended
from the weighing apparatus is clamp
lined with leather and so arranged that when
the end of the piece of fabric to be tested is
clamped between the jaws, the strains will
be evenly balanced and distributed. Below
this, on the base of the machine, is a roller
controlled by a hand wheel, and round this
the other end of the fabric is wrapped,
when, on turning the wheel, the strains are
applied, and by moving the weight on the
scale beam, so as to keep it continually bal
anced, point is reached where the fabric
is torn apart-this point showing the break
ing strain of the material. The percentage
of stretching before breaking may also be
found In the same manner.
EXPERIMENTS have been made In France
In connection with the navy, to accurately
determine the value, comparatively, of coal
and of the compressed fuel made from the
slack of coal mines, and the report of the
Minister of Marine shows the latter to be
most advantageous in comparison with
either Cardiff or Newcastle coal. He states
that better fuel is produced in briquettes,
and, in addition to this, there are the still
further advantages of greater facihtyin load
ing stowage of a larger quantity, diminu-
ton of lost from dust, and capacity to bear
exposure. On this account, the compressed
fuel has been generally employed, of late,
in the French navy. The best article in this
line is said to come from the Amin mines,
in the north of France, and the company
working the slack from this source pro-
duces daily about 500 tons of the compressed
material.
In a recent scientific lecture, Professor
Thomson, of London, made some expert
ments to show the extreme slowness of the
diffusion of liquids He exhibited tubes
filed nine days previously, which in the
upper part contained one fluid, and in the
lower another, such as a solution of srlphate
of copper,a solution of common salt, colored
alcohol, &c A mark where the two fluids
met was registered at the time the tubes
were filed, and during the nine days the
diffusion Lad not extended upward and
downward more than two or three inches.
In one of the lecture-rooms at Glasgow, a
tube about thirty feet long was filed some
years ago, and, from the rate of diffusion,
| it has been calculated that complete inter
fusion of the two liquids Will occupy nearly
1000 years.
The newly invented match-one that may
be struck many times, and yield light each
time-is likely to prove quite useful. II
| consists of two rods of infammable material,
| placed side by side in two compartments,
| with suitable case, and to strike the light 6
scraper is moved by hand along q platform
| across the open ends of the rods; the
| scraper removes some of its substance from
each rod, and, mixing these, the light is
| produced One stick is formed of three
parts chlorate of potash and one of clay,
mixed with water into a thick paste, Their
dried; the other stick is of three parts amor
phous PHOSPHORUS and one part clay, pre-
pared in the same way
NATURE leaves art far in the rear. Thus
| upon examining the edge of the sharpes
razor with the microscope, it will apeal
fully as broad as the back of the knife
| rough, uneven, and full of notches and fur
rows-and an exceedingly small needle re.
sembles an iron bar. But the sting of bee,
| seen through the same instrument, exhibits
everywhere the most beautiful polish, with.
out flaw or blemish. The threads of the
| finest lawn are coarser than the yarns with
| which ropes are made for anchors, but g
| silkwor1n's appears smooth and shining, and
| everywhere equal.
lAMARRE has stated in communities.
| ton to the French Academy OF Sciences,
| that at the beg ming of violent snow.
| storm he saw small tufts of light at the