Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1883-11-10
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

Successful experiments in tea-cul-
ture at Soukhoum have led Il ST. Peters
burg society to advocate the general
cultivation of the tea-plant in Caucas-
Us. The society believes that Russia
might soon compete with China and
India i'll supplying western countries
with tea.
Late observations prove that the
great red spot on the planet Jupiter Is
Still to he seen, although it is very
faint and its color has faded away.
The total disappearance of the remark
able object which Jupiter has exposed
several months is undoubtedly near at
hand.
In lecture just published. A von
LasaulX, a well-knOwn geolOgist,
draws an ingenious parallel between
Ireland and Sicily, and attempts t.
explain the backward state of the in
habitants of those two islands and the
disorders of which they have beer:
the theatre by the nature of their ge-
illogical strata, the formation of their
coasts, and their geographical pos
itions.
Mr.. Ralph Copeland has proposed
the establishment Of an astronomical
observatory on some lofty point in
the Andes. He believes that an OBJ
servatory might be readily maintained
at height of 5000 or 1900 feet and
that an experimental station might
be established during a few weeks in
summer at m altitude Of Is, 900 or 49,
600 feet. The clear atmosphere of
elevated places offeres great advan-
tages for astromical work.
Prof. Edward Hull considers that
throughout the early geological epochs
known as Archaean, Silurian and
Carboniferous, the sea covered North
America, the British Isles and Wes-
| tern Europe, while large part of the
North Atlantic area existed as drv
land. He urges that his conclusions
prove to be well grounded the doctrine
| of the premanency of oceans and con-
tinents, as tested by the case of the
North Atlantic, must be discarded.
The London International Fisheries
Exhibition of this year has drawn at
tention to that very little is known of
the habits Of British fishes in their
native waters. Such knowledge is of
! great Importance from both CONNER
cial and semitic points of view, and
it is therefore sugge sted that the pro-
fits of the exhibition. amounting to
some thousands of pounds, be invested
in seaside laboratory for studying
the marine animals of the British
coast.
For considerable time glucose has
been made in Germany from old rags
Sulphuric acid converts the rags into
deXtrine, which is treated with a
milk of lime, and is then subjected
to new bath of sulphuric acid, when
it becomes converted into glucose.
The glucose is identical with that of
commerce, and may be used in the
same way for CONNECTIONS, ices, etc.
A large number of substances are capa-
BILE of similar transformations into
glucose.
| After repeating with water some Of
the experiments by which Prof.
Tyndall has proven that the air always
contains floating dust particles, Mons.
| Marchand asserts that really clear
wafer does not exist. He covered
with black paper bottle filled with
liquid, and pierced two holes in the
paper at opposite points, when, on
looking through the holes at the light
the minute bits of dust were plainly
seen. This interesting experiment is
so simple that any person may readily
test the accuracy of Mons. Marchand's
conclusion.
To test the hypothesis of Herr Keep
yen that the increase of the winds
force towards midday is due to the
ascending currents occasioned by the
heating of the surface of the soil, DIR.
Woeikof has made comparisons of the
wind records for morning, midday
and evening at fifty stations of Russia
and Siberia. The results show that
in the northern ATTITUDES the wind in
creases but slowly as the sun rises
above the horizon in winter the beet
ing Of the earths surface being slight
and the ascending current feeble.
In spring and summer the increase is
much more, the average velocity of
the wind being in some places twice
as great at midday as in the morning
or in the evening In southern Russia
the force of the wind is noticeably
greatest in the middle OF the day even
winter, owing to the greater heat
ing ofthe steppes In those lower lati-
tudes.