New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-02-11
TO INTENSITY THE RAYS.
PROFESSOR PUPIN's LATEST COURSE OF
INVESTIGATION.

INVESTIGATION.
HIS CHANGE IN THE VACUUM TUBE. IN ORDER TO
SECURE CONCENTRATION - EXPERIMENTS
WHICH MAY PROVE OF VALUE TO
THE MEDICAL PROFESSION
r.o r,,r,hor of exnerimenters in the field opened
hv Professor RUntgen's discovery Of the unseen
radiance Is increasing daily but, notwithstand-
ing this very little. If anything. has occurred III
the shape of new developments In the last TWO
days much has been SAID and published regard
,nr ros,,lts obtained Sv various scientists in
this city. Particular attention has been drawn
n the fact that photographs have been obtained
from brush sparks and By other ordinary elec-
trical DISCHARGES i'm the air But in these results
there is nothing new and nothing that mas hot
been known TO scientists for many years. Ihese
brush and other forms Of eicctrica-dischaESe
IMPRESSIONS upon sensitive plates have long shcc
been successfully demonstrated. and they pre-
sent no novel features Cathode rays ana Roh'-
gen. or the so-caed y. rays are TWO to'@is
djssilnilar things but in many instances thi'
difference has apparently been lost sigh' Oh os
the majority of experimenters with the re" 20"
dance. SO long ago - 1891 the l',e -roie7so'
Hertz discovered that cathode rays we've capa"'c
Of nosenr through thin sheets of metal If these
sheets were placed within the vacuum III '"e
uath OF the rays This discovery Dr. bela'"
extended two years ago by showing u'a'
the athode rays could he made to pass OUT Oh
the vacuum tube into the external space, Ii tAc
tube were provided with a small aluminium VIII
dow
PECTLIARITIES or THE RONTGEN RAYS.
R0ntgen's rays. however. 1t must be rernenl-
bered go far beyond the properties. ana II Wouid
seem also the possibilities, of the effects III the
cathode ravs They show that in addition to
the heat and nuorescent light which the cathode
rays generate In the glass Of the vacuum TUBE
wherever they strike it there is also another
form of radiant energy generated there wAlch
Rontgen calls the X rays. These-and the fact
should be emphasized-are not cathode rays ana
although they are capable Of producing huor-
escence just Ike the cathode rays, they are not
acted upon by magnetic force. and not only are
they not absorbed by gases at ordinary pressure
but even the most Opaque substances are more
or less transparent to the new rays. But seem-
ingly a large number Of the experimenters have
been devotlng their energies to operations with
the old cathode rays, which have been developed
again and again. and, a prominent electrician
said Yesterday can never have the same density
az the new radiance
Professor Michael /. Pupn, Of Columbia Col
leGe who during the last two weeks has DIS
played remarkable energy in experimenting with
the y rays and who introduced the use OF the
nuorescent plate with satisfactory results in
the work Of obtaining photographs with the new
power has JUS resolved upon the employment oil
some fresh methods. Although d.. Pupln in
the course of his operations has succeeded in OBJ
tanning some useful demonstrations OF the power
~ the R6ntgen rays. ana has found several valu-
able modinca lions of the original methohs OF
producing the rays. he clearly realizes that great
d.vo,opuents are necessary before the discovery
can be put To any very practical uses IN the
fold Of medicine. for instance II Is essential 70
secure greater intensity # the rays before they
can be employed - any valuable purpose. Inc
question as TO whether the rays Will ever ne
sufficiently intensified 10 pcnetrat" the bones OF
The human body. and for instance. present
picture OF the interior Of the Skull. IS one 'hat
il agitating the members OF the scientific ana
medical professions. anl Il Is generally accepted
that until this hypothesis Is determined the
uractlcahility Of the new light must remain IN
allowance To the solution Of this problem ipr
punin is now dcvoting himself ard II cOncentra-
hon ~ tho rays is likely 10 induce the desired
Intensity II would seem probable that he Is on
the straight path to success.
DR. PUPIN's NEW APPARATUS.
For the next few days Or. Papin will occupy
himself with the erection Ct a new apparatus. by
Tho aid 81 which he confidently hopes - obtain
greater intensity Of radiance. While he intends
:, substitute static machine in place Of the
methods he has hitherto used for Obtcining the
necessary electric currents. the most important
change he will introduce will be in the vacuum
tube the form of which is shown In the accom-
panving Illustration AS will be seen, the wires