St. Landry democrat., 1881-01-29
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

rainbow was observed at a Prussian
town on the morning of November Goth
The ends Of the semicircle, the centre
Of which WAS the sun, rose and moved
westvards with the latter for some
thirty minutes, when the appearance
vanished.
A new theory of the cause of earth.
quakes has been propounded by Or
Novak, Of Pesth, He considers that,
besides the rotation of the earth on its
axis and it's revolution around the SIM,
multiplicity of motions of the earth ap-
pear in space, in virtue of which the
earth's axis, anu with it the equator,
shift their position. This causes a va
ration Of the forces centrifugal and
centripetaD influencing the earth ) form
and the earth's crust has tendency to
adapt itself to tho change.
A new project is to 10 tried for dimin-
ishing the fogs of London. BY the plan
proposed about 5000 cubic feet OF gas
would be extracted from each ton Of coal
burned in the city, the coal being thus
rendered srnokeless. The gas would be
used for illuminating purposes. In this
manner, the perfect combustion of both
the coal aud the gas would be insured,
and Londoners would no longer have
an atmosphere thick with particles of
unconsumed carbon.
Speaking, in recent lecture, of Her
schel's discovery that the sun is rapidly
moving toward a point in the constella-
ton Hercules, Prof. Ball. the Astrcno-
mer Royal for Ireland, told his audience
that at the end of the lecture they would
be 5000 miles nearerto it thantliey were
at the beginning.
Paris has Young Mems Scientific So
ciety. 1t holds weekly meetings, and
each member in turn gives lecture up
on some scientific topic.
On August lat an ia ternationai exliibi-
ton Of electricity will open in Paris.
Every description OF electrical appsrat-
ne will be shown. 1t is considered quite
probable that the Prince Of Wales will
act as president Of the exhibition.
A new French appliance is an electric
brake which is made to operate on the
wheel brake by means Of electricity
generated during the motion of the
train and applied at pleasure. Expert.
ments thEa far made with this apparat-
us have been entirely successful.
A Nuremhurg chemist has devised a
new method Of decorating silks and
other fabrics, which is expected to super
sede embroidery. The artis called edo
graphic, and the operator uses hollow |
pencils which are charged with fluid |
metallic compound. On exposure to air
the compound instantly hardens. Every |
color can be produced, and the designs |
traced with the pencils are exceedingly
lasting as long as the materials |
90 which they are traced. Glass can he
stained and woodenwarc decorated by
The same process. The manufacture of
the pencils has already become a con-
industry in Germany.
The experiment of irrigating lands in
The neighborho0d OF Paris with water
rom the sewers ia said to be working
luccessfully. Sterile tracts of land have
been converted into fertile plains. while
10 increase Of sickness among the In
iabitants has followed, as was appre- 1
lended.
Whereas previous investigations have
Indicated a height OF about $50 miles as
he greatest extent of the earth's atmos.
there, M. joss j. Landcur in d recent
'aper places it At not less than $4,000
niles.
DIR. Werner Sisnens has applied
lectricity to the operation of elevators.
iis system. which operates through the.l
transmission of power by the dynamo
lectric machine. is as safe as the hY-
raulic system. and is claimaa to be far I
ess costly and incon renient. g
Trials with the electric light in navi-
alton at night have lately been made i
Q the Rhine. It is hoped that the re- t
aits OF these trials viii lend to new, Z
base In riyer navigation. @ :