The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-06-12


fields of scientific investigation. We
| know so little of the air and its move
| ments that there Is much to discover.
1 have been charged with attempting
to invent q flying machine. There may
have been some reason for such
superstition, but the fact has no foun-
dation whatsoever am experiment.
ing to discover the properties of ae-
rial flight and the constituent elements
necessary to its success. When I have
ascertained these facts may be ready
to attempt to invent a flying machine,
but not until them"
What have you discoveredT ! ask
ed.
/ 81 think have found that there 10
q peculiar form in which all things
which are to be maintained in the air
should be made. ! have ascertained the
shape of the cell which, in combina-
ton with similarly shaped cells must
compose the flying body; the brick, as
it were, out of which the flying house
must be made, the unit of which it
seems to me all such machines must
be constructed"
Basis of Successful Flying Machines.
What is the unit. DR.. Bell?" I asked
81 call 1t the tetrahedral unit, be-
cause 1t has the form of a tetrahedron.
II you will place three matches end
|
then take three more, resting one end
Of each at a corner. so that the other
ends will meet over the center of the
triangle, you will have the skeleton of
q tetrahedron. Now tie the ends of the
matches together. and you will find
that the framework. as a whole. is
wonderfully strong in comparison with
its weight. In areial navigation we
find that the questions of strength and
| al d M
that new elements must be taken into
consideration which prior to this time
have not been appreciated. To support
a heavy body in the air a greater sur
face In proportion to the weight must
be had than is generally supposed. In
increasing the size we find that the
weight increases as tho cube of the
dimensions, whereas the surface in
cPeases only as the square of the di-
mansions. Simon Newcomb recently
brought this out In an article in at
tempting to show the futility of try
ing to make successful flying ma
chimes. In other words. as you increase
the size OF your machine you do not in
crease it's ability to sustain itself in
the air. The model may work per-
fectly. but the great machine made on
that model will for this reason not do
at all. This has been proven again and
|
with the weather bureau kites made
of box shape. Those of ordinary size
few very well. but the great kites
| constructed in exactly the same way.
with the hope that they would carry
meteorological recording instruments
high into the air. would not rise at
/. ALL"
This fact led me to experiment to
find a shape which when increased or
| -. Nrht ~
tanning surface and the weight equal
~ multiplied. have discovered this in
the tetrahedron, which / believe to be
the only unit of construction in the
flying machine of the future"
The TetFahedraI Kite.
'IIow could you test this?' asked.
"Only by actual experiments" was
the reply II have made kites of this
shape in various sizes and combinations
and have scientifically measured their
! flying capacity and strength. have
discovered that kites. large and small,
may be made of these units, and that
| they are stronger in proportion to their
size and weight than any kites ever
made.
But can show you models and pho
toEraphs OF my work in this line" said
'Dr. Bell. He thereupon left the room
and a little later returned bringing
several large scrap DOCKS nlleu Win
photographs and also some kites and
kite frames Of a peculiar shape.
This is the way / note down my
work" said he as he opened a scrap
book. IT find IL almost impossible 10
keep a record of Inventive progress
with pen or pencil Just at the time
one makes a discovery he Is so inter-
! ested in goirt; on with 1t that he fails
10 nut down the fact and the time. The
result is there is danger OF losing the
\ record and the possibility of estab-
fishing his priority of the discovery.
Now I have one man who does moth
4 ing else but make snap shots of every
, thing I do in the way OF experiments,
4 This Is one of the books showing our
Investigations in this particular line
! Kites which VIII Carry Men.
Dr.. Bell here handed me the vol
ume. 1t was filled with photographs
\ of kites of various shapes; in flight, al
4 rest and in construction. Some were
made of small tetrahedral units com
j bined together into a flying kite as bis
4 as a good-slzed cottage others were
boats made Of similar units and others
] had other shapes. There were large
single kites with framework OF alum
mum tubes and small kites flying from
4 the hands OF Mrs. Bell and other ladies
4 of the family; and kites so big that q
, steamer on the bay. or man upor