Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1884-12-24
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.
rFor the SPECTATOR I

DIX BRAINS EAR.-Ihe novel COM
putation has been made by German his
tologist that the human brain is composed
of no less than 800 1000, 600 nerve cells,
each an Independent body, organism and
microscopic brain so far as concerns its vital
relations. AS each nerve cell is estimated
to have about sixty days, 100000 must
die every day, about 1900, 600 every hour,
and nearly 800 every minute. The dying
cells are replaced by an equal number of
their progeny, and once in every sixty
days a mans brain is entirely renewed.
GUEssEs AT HUMAN ANTIQUITY. While
the great antiquity Of the human race has
been established beyond doubt, it is i'm
possible to assign any accurate date to
mau's first appearance on earth. SIN
making soundings in the Shiny soil of the
Nile valley" says Prof. n. Jolly, of the
Science Faculty Of Toulouse, ''two baked
bricks were discovered, one at depth of
twenty, the other Of twenty four yards. If
we estimate the thickness of the annual
deposit formed by the river at eight inches
century, we must assign to the first of
these bricks an age of $4,000 years, and to
the second that of 1000. By means of
analogous calculations, Burmeister sup
poses 70, 600 years to have elapsed since
the first appearance of a man upon the soil
of Egypt, and Draper attributes to the
European man who witnessed the last gla-
cial epoch an antiquity Of more than $780,
900 years."
Snails are possessed of remarkable vital
ity. Mr. r. E. G. SEearns has mentioned
one of the species Heli1 Veatchii-which
lived without food from 1859 to 1865; and
another-Bulinsus Pdllidior-which ap
peared to be in good health after lapse of
two years, two months, and sixteen days.
Both of these species inhabit nearly rain
less regions.
SIAMEsE MEDICAL SCIENCE.-The Sia-
mese, according to an account lately given
by DR.. E. A. Surge, regard all nature as
composed of four elements-earth, water
fire, and wind. These same elements are
supposed to make up the human body,
which is composed of twenty kinds of
earth, twelve kinds of water, six kinds of
wind, and four kinds of fire. The body
is divided into thirtytwo parts, such as
the skin, heart, lungs, etc. 1t is thought
to be subject to ninety-six diseases, due
to the disarrangement of its elements
Too much fire causes fevers, an excess
of water produces dropsies, earth gives
rise to disease by invisib Q and impal-
pable mists and vapors, and wind can
most everything is used as medicine, the
bones and skins of various animals, and
the ga Is Of snakes, tigers, lizards, etc., are
favorite remedies. Burnt human bones
powdered and mixed with alum, are used
on ulcers; the eye-teeth Of various animal
such as bears, tigers, and lions-ground
up together, form the favorite curative for
fevers; and the ashes of earth-wo and
human hair, mixed with cocoanut-oil, are
often employed for cuts. The Siamese
know little of anatomy. They are not
aware that the heart is connected with the
circulation, but suppose that organ to be
about the size of an almond, and to be a
cavity filled with fluid which changes
color and consistency with our passions.
1t has been asserted that the common
white lily (Lilium candidum> grows in Pal
estine only as cultivated flower and is not
native of the country, and that conse-
quently the lilies of Scripture must have
been derived from some other plant
French botanist, however, states that many
wild specimens of this lily have been OBJ
tanned from the Lebanon, one of which he
po ssessos.
So perfect are the incandescent electric
lamps now made that one of the Swan
type has sustained $500 hours of use.
Many have lasted 1000 hours.
THE SoIL's INHABITANTs.-Were the
human inhabitants Of the globe as numer-
GUS as are the humblesJ of our servants, the
earthworms, every acre of land would have
to sustain a great city. In his memoir
showing the Importance of the work done
by the worm in fitting the soil for the use
of plants, Darwin estimated that 26, 1856 of
the creatures existed in an acre of old pas
ture land, while Hensen, gave the number
for garden soil as So, 1877 per acre. r. cent
researches by Mr.. T. A. Urquhart indicate
that these figures are much too low for
some localities, as in pasture Eear Auck-
land, New Zealand, he has found 348, 48O
per acre, with an aggregate weight of
more than 900 pounds.
Hydrochlorate of cocaine a new local
an@sthetic discovered accidentally by
Vienna student, is now being tried in den-
tistry. 1t has already been very success
fully used in producing insensibility Of the
eye, rendering operations upon that organ
painless OF nearly SO.
Late Belgian experiments have had the
object of preserving wood by exhausting
the air from the pores and causing liquid
gutta percha to take its place. Tue gutta-
percha is liquifed by being heated with
paraffine, ami it hardens on cooling after
being introduced into the wood.
The plan of making charts of the stars
by Photographic means is rapidly gaining
favor among astronomers. A photograph |
exhibited the other day to the Royal Dub |
lin Society showed seventeen stars in a |
part of the heavens to which the best pub |
lished star maps assign but five
In France symptoms of poisoning have
followed the eating Of vegetables grown on
soil VIII Oh had been treated with chemical
.poiscrs to destroy the phyloxera insect of
s-vines.