The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-05-19
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.


Washing Smoke and Aria Measure
For the Hearing-The New Gem
tury Railway-How High Speed
Telsgraphy is Accomplishments
Big Bruin Era-London's Hot Sum
msrs-Electrieity In Chemical In
dustries-our Future Power.
To prevent the pollution of the afr
from the chimneys Of factories or the
smoke-stacks of locomotives, it is nee
essary to arrest all the solid particles
held in suspension in the smoke. to
condense the tar. and to dissolve the
ammoniacal vapor. NJ. Alexandra
Lions plan for accomplishing this Is to
pass the smoke through fine spray of
water. A locomotive apparatus en-
braces a spraying cylinder on an up
right shaft, provided with screw blades,
the whole being kept in rapid rotation
in the smoke-stack by one or more Jets
of water or steam, and yielding fine
mist with which the entire volume of
smoke must come in contact. The black
substances are completely washed out,
escaping In the condensed water flow
ing from the bottom OF the apparatus,
A modification of the idea is Intended
for altering the air of rooms, and is
found to free the air supply from all
bacteria.
An improved acouometer, or appnrat-
us for testing the hearing, has been de-
vised by +. Toulouse and n. Naschide'
two French physicists. II consists OF u
flask OF distilled water, with n special
faucet for adjusting the weight of the
drop to one and one-hGlf grains. and o
small vibrating plate OF aluminium, and
the test is made by dropping the winter
upon the aluminium disc at varying
heights until the blindfolded subject
can Just hear the sound with his ear
eight inches away. Much more accu-
rate comparative measurements can be
made than by the usual tuning fork.
The extraordinary Veitmever contest
Of the German Society Of Mechanical
Engineers will close October 8. The
prize is 1900 marks and a gold medal.
and II Is to be awarded for the best
plan and specifications for an electric
railroad, between two distant cities, de-
signed exclusively for n rapid success
ion OF through trains having speed OF
1875 miles an hour each train with
capacity Of $50 passengers.
The successful attempts Of NJ. Paul
sen to photograph the spectrum OF the
aurora bOrealIs were made in Iceland,
where the displays in January were
very vivid. or the twenty-five lines
distinctly photographed, sixteen are
new.
The rapid telegraph system Of Pol
lax and Virag, by which n short mes
sage was lately transmitted Of the
rate Of $1,000 words an hour Is thus de-
scribed: PerfOrntlOps are made on
strip OF tape In two rows. the one
above n central unpcrfornted line cor
responding TO the dashes OF the Morse
alphabet and the row balow the center
10 the dots. As the tape Is passed
around n wheel electrically connected
with the telegraph line, metal brush
causes positive current to pass
through the perforntions on one side OF
the line and a like brush transmits
negative current as contact In made
with the wheel through the other row
OF nOlsHs ~ IllTIoI VI tAC IHNHlNiHh N''N
is swung by mn electromaEnet to one
side by the positive current and to the
other side by the negative current
point Of light reflected by the mirror
through a lens falls upon strip OF
sensitive paper, and the tracing Ia de-
veloped IN n few minutes. when the
message, In n wnvy line crossing n CEN
trial line to correspond with the perfor-
ntlons Of the sending tape, IS easily
read.
In recent animal evolution biologists
find that development Of the brain has
taken the place OF Increase In size OF
body. A rhinoccros Of Tertiary times
mad cerebrum not more than NTH as
large MS that Of the modern rhlnoceroB'
white other creatures show even grcnt-
or difference. and It Is concluded that
tho change Inns been general In all
classes Of yertebrntes and oven IN many
invertebrates. Prof. n. Ray Lankestei,
poinung out these facts to the Pnrls
Biological Society, has raised the prop