St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1884-03-08
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.


and other consequences Of sleeping in
rooms containing flowers do not arise
from any special properties of the flow
ers themselves, but are due to strain
ing of the nerves of smell in the pres
ence Of perfumes for an unwonted
length Of time. The effect is analogous
to that produced upon the eyes by an
unusual exposure to light or on the
ears by iong-continued sounds.
A comparison of skinned with I'M
skinned milk has shown Herr J. KONG
that the former is by far the cheaper
aud more nutritious food for adults. 1t
also appears that, in German markets,
the price paid for the albuminoids in
SKINNED milk is lower than that paid
for them in any other common food eX-
cept stockfsh. For example, a certain
amount of nutritive matter from
skinned milk costs iii pfennigs;
while in pork it would cost I'D in
butter, 81.7; and in eggs, 201.2.
Mons. Timiriazeff informs the French
Academy that he has found the leaves
Of plants to be capable of transforming
into chemical work as much as forty
per cent of the energy absorbed by
them from the suns rays. This chemi-
cal work is the locking up in plant It's
sue of a great quantity of solar energy,
which remains ready to serve whomso
ever shall libeTate it, the leaf being the
wonderful storage battery of nature
which bottles the snnbeams so securely
that we are able to apply them at pleas
ure to heating our furnaces, driving our
engines and sustaining our bodies,
Herr Jensen afirms that potato-dis-
ease, which is caused by fungus, first
attacks the tops of the plants, and is
conveyed to the tubers by means of
spores washed into the soil by rain.
To prevent the infection of the tubers
he recommends running d pillow be-
tween the rows so as to turn up a fur
row on the top of the hills, and then
This causes the water which washes
the tops to run away from the hills.
The furrowing should be done on the
first appearance of the disease, and, as
further precaution, the potatoes
should not be dug for at least two or
three weeks after the tops are entirely
wilted. A trial of this method has given
very good results.
Sir John Lubbock states that more
than thousand species of ants are
known, and that is certainly far short
of the number actually in existence.
The solar eclipse of May II, 1901, will
exceed that Of the present year III its
total phase by about half q minute.
The sun will be entirely covered for a
period Of six minutes and tWenty-four
seconds at the most favorable point of
observation.
It is considered remarkable that lep-
rosy, which the progress of civilization
has driven from most parts of Europe,
should still flourish in Norway. Late
returns show that such is the case, al
though the number of lepers in that
country has decreased from 1905 at the
end of 1875 to 1852 at the end of 1880.
The disease is attributed to the use of
food-particularly fish in an unwhole-
some condition, and also to uncleanli-
ness.
"A Partisan has announced new ex-
plosive "panclastiten-which he claims
to be more powerful than dynamite.
For lighting, mines Mons. Mangin
has proposed the use of incandescent
electric lamps immersed in water con-
tanned in glass globes. The safety of
such an apparatus has been demonstra-
ted by placing it in the middle Of a
balloon filed with hydrogen.
The idea has become current that
submarine telegraphic cables do not
last more than ten years, but according
to Sir Daniel Gooch, M. r, repairs on
one of the Atlantic lines last year
showed the cable to be still in good or
der after a submergence of thirteen
years.
Some curious stones are found ia /,
many parts Of Switzerland. They are
fiat, evidently hand polished,
and are covered with dots, lines, cir
cles and half-circles. In the opinion Of
Herr Rodiger, these stones are charts
Of thecountry made by prehistoric in
habitants, and he claims to possess a
of stone s picked up in Solo