The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1904-07-09
RADIUM.

The sum of knowledge respecting ra-
dunn as yet is virtually no more than
this-that radium is. The child who
looks into one of those scientific toys,
the spinthariscOpe, and sees the beau
tiful shower of sparks which proclaim
radium's presence is almost as know
ing as the scientific professor who
speculates upon the nature and prop
critics of Nine. Curie's surprising
twentieth century discovery. Until the
professors definitely settle and agree
upon what shall be accepted as truth
concerning radium the rest of us may
content ourselves with the spinthar-
iscope.
This is a little metal tube, not over
two inches long, closed at one end, and
In the blind end there are tiny yellow
crystals of zinz sulphide stuck on a
disk of paper, before which stands a
little pointer like the hand of a watch.
On the tip of this is several dollars
worth of radum-the minutest speck;
the size of a needle point. Holding the
spinthariscope close to the eye, you OBJ
serve a constant flow of points of light,
which come from the zinz- sulphide pa
per. We are told that something flies
out from the radium and that this lit
tie point of radium will keep zinz-sul-
phide paper shining like that for any
number of thousands of years-unless
the baby happens to smash the whole
thing to pieces in the interim.
Many things are told, rather tenta-
lively. about radium; that it is an EEL
ement," like gold; that it is constant
ly transmitting; that it is as radium
one of the heaviest substances known
and that it turns into a gaseous "ele-
ment," helium, which is very light. We
are told that it is composed of atoms,
like everything else, and that the
atoms are full of electrons, which are
supposed to be almost enthusiastically
unimaginable particles Of electricity.
1t requires either an exceptional imag-
ination or an excellent illustrator for
the proper notions of atoms and cleo
irons.
A very good illustrator is Mr.. c. w.
Saleeby, who talks most interestingly
of radium in Harpers. Citing Lord
Kelvin, he says that if a drop Of water
were magnified to the size Of the earth,
the atoms in it would be between the
Then, in order to get at the notion of
electrons he tells us to magnify an
atom to the size of St. Pauls cathedral
and in this vast space to scatter about
one hundred and fifty thousand parti-
cles the size of a period in punctuation.
Try to realize what an atom is, and
then remember that an electron is only
the minutest billionth or whatever it
may be, of that. And SO far away from
one another are the electrons in an
atom that the distance is comparable
to the distance between the planets of
the solar system. Relatively to their
size, the electrons are as far from one
another in this inconceivably tiny
atom as the earth is from Mars, which
is an average distance Of sixty millions
of miles
Elections are very important parts
of radium. They are expelled and
make rays, Beta rays, which travel at
great velocity and will pass through
such a thing as brass without even
hesitating. Radium gets it's energy
from within itself-from its electrons;
so we are told. Radium's practical
uses thus far are confined to curing
cancers and enabling suspecting per-
sons to distinguish real diamonds from
paste. But. the scientists say, radi-
am is in the earth as an enormous
source of energy. A scientist the other
| day asserted that it produced the
earth's heat. And it will be turned to
good commercial uses very soon
doubtless.