St. Landry democrat., 1893-06-17
POPULAR SCIENCE NOTES.

| A GIANT BIRD.-A member of thu
Berlin pathological Society has secured
living specimen of all almost extinct
species of bird, about twice the size OF
an ostrich. The scientific name of thu
creature is ApterYr HoSselti, and it come!
from the northern island of New Zealand
Efforts are to be made to prevent thes,
giant birds becoming extinct.
To EXPLORE THE ANTARCTIC CONT
NENr.--The probability of more thor
ough exploration Of the Antarctic cont
hent has directed special attention ir
scientific circles at the present time tc
that vast and remarkable region. It is
an ice cap, nearly circular in form, and
about 5000 miles In diameter. Its
thickness Is still problematlcal matter,
and has been the subject of much theor-
izing by scientific men, who argue that,
If there could be assigned to it thick
ness of Is, 600 feet, 1t would present a
mass of ice large enough to displacc the
earth's centre Of gravity nearly mile to
the southwark of its centre, gradua
displacement of this sort, caused by the
slow accumulation of ice, would, as
asserted by some, produce an impercepti-
bic drainage of the oceans from the
north to the south, and the gradual
emergence of northern and submergence
Of southern continents. In fact, geo.
logists claim that an examination of our
globe exhibits an actual result of this
sort. Thus the greatest mass of the
ocean is gathered about the south pole
the northern hemisphere includes about
tive-sixths of the land surface of the
globe-and it is affirmed that this in
equality is Increasing, as evidenced in
the slow rising of the northern CONT
nents and the sinking of the islands of
the Pacific. 1t Is, however, considered
more probable by some that the water Is
slowly draining away from the northern
hemisphere and accommodating In the
southern.
soLID1F1ED ArR.-Another marvellous
transformation has been effected by
means of the new scientific agency. By
means of inconceivable cold, air has been
reduced not only to liquid but to a
solid. Prof Dewar, an English chemist,
has succeeded In producing in his labora-
tory piece of solid air. He has not
yet tested the nature or the new solid,
which is almost as clear as crystal. It
may be jelly of solid nitrogen contain
ing liquid oxygen, much as calves foot
jelly contains water diffused in gelatine.
Or it may be true ice or liquid air in
which both nitrogen and oxygen exist In
solid form Doubt arises from the
fact that Professor Dewar has not
been able by his utmost efforts
to solidify pure oxygen, which unlike
other gases, resists' the cold produced by
It's own evaporation Under the air pumps.
Nitrogen, ON the other hand, can be
frozen with comparative ease. It has al
ready been proved that In the evaporation
of liquid air, nitrogen boils of first.
Consequently, the liquid is continually
becoming richer in that constituent which
has hitherto resisted qualification. It
thus becomes question whether the cold
produced is sufficiently great to solidify
oxygen, or whether its mixture with nj
trogen raises its freezing point, or whether
it is really not frozen at all, but merely
entanged among particles of solid nitro
gen.
LIFE ON THE PLANErs-Rev. DIR. DIAL
linger delivered a lecture at Bristol,
England, recently, on the planets around
US and their possible habitability. Speak
ing of Mercury, DR.. Dallinger pointed
out its chief features and showed that
they approximated to those of the earth.
Although the heat from the sun there
was more intense, it might be tempered
by the character of the atmosphere.
Venus was vet more akin to our world in
every respect, so that life there, as we
know it, was yet more possible. The
conditions of the atmosphere indeed
were such that the whole globe might be
habitable. Mars came next under re-
view, the lecturer explaining its char
acter, substance, atmosphere and other
features. which he said made the existence
of creatures, if not man, quite possible.
People were slowly losing their former
notions that there were nothing and no.
body in the universe except the world and
man. There were other worlds, how
ever, which as far as human intelligence
could judge were not yet suitable for
but were gradually assuming
conditions which might ultimately make
life possible. The lecturer held the opin-
ion that many years hence some means of
mental communication with the denizens
Of the other planets might be established.
In the present days of marvellous discov-
cries in science all things seemed posi-
Die, and the establishment of intercom-
nunication of some kind between this
earth and the beings of the planets did
not seem more improbable or impossible
han the sending Of telegraph message
rom England to New York seemed 100
7ears ago.-[Pall Mall Budget.