Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-09-05
SCIENTIFIC GLEANINGS.

The death rate III the case OF brewers,
commercial travellers, and other classes
exposed to the temptations of frequent
alcoholic drinking, is six times greater
than in all other industries com bined.
The simplest way to lumigate room
is to heat az iron shovel very hot, and
then pour vinegar upon it, drop by drop.
The steam arising from this is a disin-
fectane. Doors and windows should be
opened that il may escape.
It appears from communication made
to the Regii Lincei, at Rome, that cells
and murene possess poison similar to
that of viters. In them it is not found
in the mouth, and they have no organ for
inoculating their enemies with 1t. So it
is usually without any effect upon man,
because in the eel eaten by him as food
the poison is destroyed by the heat of
cooking and also because, as is the case
with the venom of the viper, it has no
effect upon the digestive ways.
A race between bees and pigeons lately
took place in Westphalia. The bees
were marked by rolling In flour, and the
first reached home over the distance of
215 miles, twenty-five seconds before the
first pigeon, three other bees arrived be-
fore the second pigeon.
Many butterflies see but single spring.
The egg matches, the caterpillar develops,
the butterfly takes wings, couples, lays
egg, and dies. The egg passes through
the winter, and in the following year
gives new generation, which will live
neither longer nor shorter length of
time.
The average watch is composed of IT'S
different pieces, comprising upwards of
2, 400 separate and distinct operations in
it's manufacture. The balance has $4,000
beats or vibrations per hour, 100000
in thirty days, 157,6S0,000 in one year.
It travels 1 43100 inches with each vi
bration, which is equal to 81 miles in "a
hours, 1925 miles IN 80 days, or 1858 a
miles in one year.
In paper read before the Royal So
,iety (Englapd), Henry Henessay, E. R.
s., says the muximum, discharge of wa
ter through a pipe of circular section.
when the head is due only to the molina.
ton OF the pipe, is bot when the pipe is
full of water, but when filled to about
niGeteen-twentierh of its diameter.
At recent meeting of the Royal So
ciety IN Edinburg, Prof. Tab showed
theoretically that water could be com
pressed to about three-forths of it's ORR
ginal bulk. The oompressibility of sea
water is 1872 of that of fresh water. Ii
the water of the ocean were suddenly to
become oompressible, four per cent. OF
the inhabitable land of the globe would
behsUbmerged, because the main depth OF
water would be increased 116 feet.
The microscopic quality of table salt
and its tendency TO pack together IN
cruets AID containers, may be entirely
overc m h thoroughly drying the salt
and intimately mingling with it small
percentage of dry corn starch or arrow
root. From eight to ten per cent. is amp
ly sufficient for the most humid atmosp
here Gas Cd the sea eoast), while much
less percentage of the starch is snfhclent
for inland points.
When commenting On memoir pre-
scented to the Academy of Sciences, M
Cornu gave it as his opinion that the light
emmited by shooting stars is not due to
onfiagration or to the heat of impact
In those high regions our atmosphere Is
too uneubstantial to render the eXplana-
ton acceptable. It is more likely the
phenomo-un is one Of the static cleo
| tricity developed by simple friction, and
is is we'll knOwn that rarefied gases can
be made to glow intensely with but very
little electric fluid.
Prof. Angel, of Michigan university,
furnishes the following as test of the
| purity of water for drinking. "Dissoive
about half teaspooDfuI of the pures
white sugar in pint bottle full of the
water to be tested, and tightly stopped
expose it to daylight and temperature
up to 20 degrees F. After a day or two
examine, holding the bottle against some
thing black, for whitish floating specki
which will betray the presence of Or
ganio matter in considerable proportion