The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-14
SCIENTIFIC.

A curiosity of the Stockholm exhibition Is
a pine tree section, four feet in diameter,
from sixty or seventy miles north of the
Arctic circle.
The worlds useful fbers number 1913 &C
cording to a catalogue by the Department
of Agriculture. about thirty being used in
the United States.
A lady inventors Iifeboat. which has been
approved by the British Admiralty, carries
three long cylinders, into which a million
cubic feet of air can be compressed. The
air will drive the boat fifteen miles an hour
for six hours.
The gradual cooling of France is proven
by it's vegetation. The Italian poplar, COM
mon in early French etchings, is now sell
dom seen in the country, while the lemon
has disappeared from Languedoc and the
orange from RouSSillon, and the northern
limit of many plant species has shifted far
to the southwark.
1t is predicted that a novel motor carriage
now being built by two French inventors
Captain DrauIette and M Catois-will be one
of the greatest automobile curiosities of
1888. 1t comprises two wheels five feet in
diameter, mounted on common axle, with
the body between. The motor-electric pc
troeum or Steam-reVoves at a high speed
round vertical axis and by its gyroscopi-
cal action tends to keep the seat horizontal
and the rider upright.
Many medical men now contend that the
full means of combating acute infectious
diseases. In support of the view two Can
adan physicians report series of expert
ments on rabbits, a high temperature having
been first induced by injury to ganglionic
cells at the base of the brain when the ami
mails were inoculated with the minimum
fatal dose of hog cholera and diphthera
The animals with the artificial fever lived
longer than others some even surviving the
infection.
Much has been written about the useful
ness of music in the treatment of disease.
That it has certain effect is undoubted,
and recent suggestion is that a pleasant
toned music box would probably prove as
effective as sleeping potions with a large
class of nervously deranged patients. The
use of music in the nightmare, or might
terrors," of children has been a subject of
experiment. Cases peculiarly obstinate to
all other treatement were at once bene-
fitted and after time apparently cured by
having pleasing airs played on an instru-
ment during the approach and first hour or
two of Slumber.
The liquefaction of fuorine, first an
nounced last May, Is an achievement of
great interest on account of the intense
activity of this element. Further study by
Professors Dewar and Moisson have shown
that the gas is easily liquefied at the tenn
perature of boiling air. that the boiling
point of liquid fiuorine is 1877 degrees below
zero cenugrade, that it does not soIidify
at 30 degrees below, and that it's density
is LA. 1t is soluble in LIQUID oxygen and
liquid air. At the lowest temperature
reached it had no action on dry oxygen
water or mercury, but combined violently
markable explosive substance produced
with moist oxygen seems to be a hydrate
OF f1uorine.
Reproductions in hard steel of objects in
low relief, such as medals and electrotypes,
are obtained by German electrician. Herr
To3zy
cess Plaster of paris is poured over the
object, forming a short column, which is
detached and fitted with an ebonite sleeve
leaving the top and bottim alone exposed
The cast is placed face upward in a vessel
containing an electrolyte. The piece OF
steel to be etched is laid on the face of the
cast-which projects above the surface of
the liquid-and made the anode of the cell,
the cathode being. wire spiral placed in
the liquid. moderate current of consid-
cradle voltage suffices. The current passes
through the high parts of the cast dis
solving the steel and allowing It to settle
until a complete COPY of the original sur
face is obtained. Difficulties are the soft
ness of the plaster and accumulation of
carbon from the dissolved steel
A curious device for propelling boats au-
tomatically against the waves is the fin
motor of II. Linden. of Naples which has
given to the little wooden boats of a Berlin
maker the name of "autonauts." The mo-
tor initiates the tail-flns OF dolphins, etc.
Each fin consists of steel bar, from which
fiat blades. tapering in thickness, project
backward ike the teeth of a comb, and
each end of the boat is fitted with one of
these fins, placed horizontally so as to rest
on the surface of the water at right angles
to the keel. The waves bend the steel
blades, which, reacting. press the water
backward and thus move the beat forward
against the waves. The fms have been
successfully tried on boats up to eighteen
feet in length boat fourteen feet long
having been found to require total active
fin surface of ten square feet. and a speed
of about three miles an hour has been OBJ
tanned In a sea stirred up by strong wind.
The one use thus far found for the auto
nauts' Is that Of distributing oil to calm
the water to windward Of fishing smacks.
The little boats are readily steercd by
changing the position OF the fms. and are
made to move backward BY reversing both