The Delta independent., 1886-12-14
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.


Switzerland. seems to be meeting with
greater favor than has been accorded
other projects Of the kind. 1t is repor-
ted that Volapuk is already spoken
with facility by thousands of Europe
ans; knowledge of it is being dissent
mated by more than fifty societies scat
tered over England, Germany. Austria
Sweden, Holland. Asia Minor, and
other countries, Volapuk grammers
for the use of Huttentots and Chinese,
besides all the European nations. are
either in the market OF in course of
preparation; and TWO reviews. one ell
| tirely in Volapuk and the other with Il
translation on alternate pages. are reg
ularly Published. The special advan.
tage of the new language is the ease
with which it can be learned, eight
lessons having enabled Partisan class
to correspond readily with students in
foreign countries.
THE NERVES OF TAsTE.-The dis
covery that heat influences one set of
nerve-points in the skin while sensa-
tions of cold are received by another
set, has been followed by some interest
ing experiments, by two Italian physi-
ologists. which indicate that the vari-
GUS tastes result from the exciting Of
quite distinct nerve-fbers in the tongue.
The prolonged application of ice re-
moved the sensibility for all tastes
| destroyed - temporarily. of course
sensibility for bitter only. Other sub
stances. such as caffeine and morphia,
| reduced the power of discriminating
between different degrees of bitter
Dilute sulphuric acid had a peculiar
| effect, causing distilled water and even
| quinine to taste sweet at the tip of the
tongue, although the bitter of quinine
was elsewhere tasted us usual.
A LENGTHENING LIsT.-While the
number of chemical elements had not
reached seventy "a decade ago. Prof. II.
&. Bolton has prepared Il list naming
over forty elementary substances
whose discovery las been announced
since 1877. No less than nine of the
supposed new elements have been de-
tected this year by Crookes.
AMONG THE ELECTRICIANs.-Ap
cations Of electricity are daily becom-
ing more varied. Among recent ones
are telebarometers. teletherInometers.
telemanometers. telehydrobarometers
which respectfully record. at distant
points. air-pressure, heat. stelm-pres-
sure. and water stages.
SCIENCE IN AUsTRALIA.-The colo.
nies OF Australia and the neighboring
Islands have some twenty scientific So
cieties, with Il membership of between
$500 and 5000. These organizations
are TO meet in 1855 for the purpose of
forming an Australian Association for
the Advancement of Science, similar to
the important associations now exist
ing in England. France and the Unit
ted States.
SPEECH REcoRDING.-A promising
method Of recording and reproducing
speech is that of NJ. Leon Esquille, by
modification Of the pliotophone. The
speaking is done before a diaphragm
having u highly polished surface upon
which u ray of light is reflected. and
the record Of this speech is obtained
10y simply photographing the ray of
light upon a travelling band of sensi-
tized paper. After having been devel-
oped, the articulation may be reprodu-
ced by projecting the image of the
trace by means of strong light upon
u selcliuin receiver. the well known
apparatus for transforming light-im-
pulses into sound-vibrations, and the
speech if then heard through the tele-
phone connected.
SPANISH GEosRAPnY.-The field for
geographical exploration is not yet ex-
hausted even in Europe. Schrader
states that in the north of Spain sever
al ranges of mountains exist, some
reaching hight of 10000 feet, which
have no place Oh any geographical map.
In the Aran valley another discovery
has recently been made. Triangulaiion
showed u gap untitled between two
ranges of peaks which. approached
from different sides. had been supposed
to form u single range: and further ex-
ploration proved that the gap contain
ed "A large and hitherto unknown lake.
THE CAMERA IN MEDICINE.-A new
suggestion is that photography may
become u useful agent in medical dag
nosis. disclosing symptoms of disease
before they are otherwise percep,able.
In a recent negative of child the face
was shown as thickly covered with an
eruption, 10 trace of which could he
seen OH the child itself until three days
afterward, when its skin became COW
cred with spots due To prickly heat. In
another recorded case. invisible spots
were brought out OH II photograph TAX
eli u fortnight before an attack Of small
pOx.