The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-06-14
LIGHT WITHOUT HEAT.

Tho Next Problem for Science to Re-
New York Forum. 3N
Every living creature throughout the m
final kingdom 10 = machine which takes
into its internal furnace. or whatever 1t
may grove to be. its fuel, it, '9ood." COM
posed Of vegetable matter OF, like the body
receiving II, Itself directly derived from
vegetation; and by chemical process In
what The chemist calls the wet way" II
the food. the resulting products
of this chemical action being such 90, dis
solved In the blood. may be convertsd into
brain, nervs. muscle and fat; and by later
combustion and transformations at low
temperature IL may produos heat certainly.
electricity probably. often light, and always
mechanical power. The composition Of ~
minute proportions. Tho hydrocarbsns.
water and = little lime. phosphorous. sui
phur and other minerals. snch az iron. con-
stitute the food Of all living creatures.
Every PROCESS involved is carried on at
''blood heat" il the higher animals. and 81
blooded'. crsatures; and all parts Of the sys-
tenn are retained u substantially the same
Temperature a. oil times. All heat II thus
Tho result Of low temperature eOmbustion;
all light and electricity are evolved - .
sonss,n' 10y low o ooins % ~; me '' ~. 70: ,esa sse o.
into dynamic energy. and applied TO the
performnnos Of work without variation Of
that temperature. That heat 10 produced
10 . matter Of constant sxpsrisuco and OBJ
~ssYvation. md ws throw of more % W
work harder, whether with mind or body,
and as We move more rapidly. That this
heat, so far a. converted into other eAsr-
pies by the body. must be 10 inverted at
. sensibly 'constant temperature 10 obvious
from the fact that the change goes on in Il
mass of circulating fluids; that this proves
but 10 duo to some entirely different
and unknown method. 10 equally
evident to the engineer, who sundsrstands
that only 80 could the Flaw Of Carnot" be
evadcd. That this mass is possibly electro
dynamic 10 indiontcd by the fact that cleo.
trio currents traverse the system. and that
We may at any moment SONY gel the muaolss
TO do work by tho application Of \ current
from an external source. OF the methods of
production Of electrical energies in the body
We know as yet absolutely nothing; but We
do know that electricity may - produced
IN large quantity. and q high pIsssurs"
IA the electrician says. % illustrated By the
torpedo and the cymnotus. or electric eel;
and the anatemist knows the mechanical
structure of the organs from which IL IL
evolved, though he 10 ignorant Of the
processes therein conducted. We also
know that the best currents fer electro
dynamic operations are thoss OF low in-
.tcnsity, such ~ are easiest OF control and
Insulation in the body. BY analogy With
the other methods OF transformation, VS.
may presume that the source of this vital
fluid in the animal is low-tempsra-
tu,e combustion OF other chemical
conversion il there in operation.
Scientific men are somewhat more familiar
with the case Of the FREELY obviously enough;
that is to say. the production of light with
out heat, az we'll rs the Transformation Of
energies resulting in the economical pro.
duction of heat and power in tho animal
system. It has long bosn known that Ger
tain chemical compounds. notably fats
containing sulphur and p~hosphorous, may
be burned at exceedingly low Temperatures;
with an evolution Of mild light almost Or
quite entirely free from heat. some suoh
compounds are ouEd in nature. and the
chemist has artifoially produced others. ae
finds that he may at will produce, In some
GASES, slow and cold light production or
rnpid and he~at-producing oxidation. Nu-
merous experiments upon the FREELY and the
Rlowworm indicate that theirs 10 a light
thus obtained. b ao-callsd 'pbosphorss-
cnnce'' il seen in many ipsocts. worms. dshes
and moluscs, and even IN vegetable and
mineral mater; for a century this investi-
CATION has been in p,oertss, II Is we'll
established that the low-tsmperature com-
bustion OF q peculiar substance. given by
peculiar organs specially constituted for
that purpose. results in the production of
light without heat. This has been most
recently md most conolusivsly proved by
Nessrs. Langley and Very. tho distinguished
astronomer and his naval friend. who shov
by ACTUAL measut smens with the Langley
''bolometer," a n instrument capable o.
measuring even the boat received from tho
moon. that ''insect light" 10 accompanied
BY approximately one-four- huadredth Part
of the heat which il ordinarily associated
with tho radiation of f1amea Of tho lumin-
Gus quality of those familiar to all of us.
Thus mature produces this cheapest light
at about one-four-hundredsh part OF tie
cost of the energy which il expended in the
candle flame. and Int an insignificant frac.
ton of the cost OF the electric light or the
most economic light which has yet been de-
vised." Many deep sen fishes and number
less animaeules exhibit . solution Of this
problem.
E- II AhOuld hA In EvAHv Hama. N