Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1889-07-04
SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY.

"A new agricultural machine dis
tributes manures aud insecticides. and
sows grain by means OF an air blast.
-Helmholtz has shown that if an
invisible Jet of steam be electrified or
heated it becomes visible, with bright
tints of different colors. according &c
the potential or the temperature.
1t has been proposed to secure
secrecy in telephone communication by
breaking the transmitting current up.
and sending one portion over one line
and the rest over another line.
"A new artificial silk has been pre-
pared from a pure celIulose octonitrate
having great elasticity and softness.
1t is more lustrous than the silk of
cocOons. and capable of being dyed by
the ordinary processes.
The installation of the electric
motor as a means for stationary power
is becoming more noticeable each wear.
and estimates carefully made rate the
number of those in use at the present
time for driving machinery in the
United States at between $500 and
1000.
satisfactory results are obtained
with the new locomotive in which the
periphery of the driving wheels, in
stead of being round. is composed of a
series of plain facets, connected with
each other by very obtuse angles.
These fiat surfaces are from one TO two
inches in length, and insure increased
traction.
The fact that the jOstling to which
storage battery cells are subjected
when in use on railroad trains not
only does not injure them, but, on the
contrary. prOlongs their life. is ac-
counted for on the ground that con-
tinuOus movement of the electrolytle is
kept up. thus keeping it uniform about
the cell and preventing injurious local
action.
DR.. Eisenmann. of Berlin, has in
vented a piano which. by the aid of
electrO-magnetism, can sustain, in
crease and diminish sound. This has
been attempted by other experts, no.
tably BOehm, the inventor of the metal
flute. Another novelty will be that by
moving the electromagnetic the timbre
of the tone is changed; for example,
from that of violoncellO to a piccolo.
"A century ago, it is stated, only
charcoal iron was produced. and of
that only about $4,000 tons year.
Even Great Britain produced, in 17SS,
only 6S,300 tons. To-day there are
several furnaces in this country, each
of which turns out annually as much
as that, and a single railway now buvs
yearly more iron than both Great
Britain and this country produced
century ago.
BY combining water, cane sugar.
white of egg. carbonate of soda and
gelatine, with the addition of about
twenty per cent. 81 the finest olive oil,
or other pure fat, a substance could be
produced almost Identical with cows
milk in its chemical constituents and
in its appearance. But in its flavor it
differs materially. and is but a poor
apology for cows milk prepared in the
of nature.
From an exhaustive study of the
large collection OF meteorites at Har- |
ward College, the conclusion has been |
arrived at that many of the masses of
meteOric iron now known are cleavage |
crystals, broken off. probably, by the |
impact of the mass against the atmos-
phere. 1t is found that these masses
show cleavings parallel to the planes
Of all the three fundamental forms OF
the isOmetric or reglhar~ystem. From
all that appears. the theory has come
to be entertained that the masses of
neteOrites were thrown off from a sun
among the fixed stars, and that they
we're slowly cooled while revolving in
A zone of intense heat.