Columbia courier. [volume] (Kennewick, Wash.) 1902-1905, 1904-12-02
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Inc cinematosraph is being put to
aevel use by Paris surgeons in teach
ING students how to perform various
surgical operations.
10 show the shadows cast by some
Of the brightest atars, NJ u. Touchet
places come object in long box black
ened inside, and closed by ground
glass. The shadow cast by Sirius on
The glass has been photographed.
Its hand and its wonderful intelli.
gence give the monkey advantage over
all other lower animals. 1t cannot well
endure cold and temperate climates,
and this fact, it is suggested, has pre-
vented the close association with man
that would have made the monkey the
most useful of domestic animals.
In the experiments Of Prof. John
TrowbridSe, powerful electric current
Is passed between terminals OF wood
and cotton wool saturated with dis
tiled water. and gap Of four inches
Is bridged by torrent Of bright
sparks, with deafening noise. This is
thought to prove that thunder is large
ly due to explosions Of hydrogen and
oxygen from dissociated water vapor.
In his scientific ptarl farming, Pro-
lessor Dubois has tansplanted COL
ony of pearl oysters from the coast
Of Tunis to point near Toulon. OF
these oysters, one in 1900 yielded a
pearl. Acting on the theory that the
pearl disease Of the shell ia due to
the accretion Of mother Of pearl under
the action Of parasite, the expert
menter has tried to transmit the
disease to other oysters, and has sue
ceeded in producing one or more pearls
from every ten oysters.
An ancient Chinese tomb Of the Han
Dynasty, b. @. go, was recently open
ed and was found to contain bronze
mirror decorated with raised animal
figures. These figures, which were of
an astrological character, represented
the twenty-eight mansions of constel-
lations of the moon, and although the
signs were nearly defaced. the serpent
coIled around the tortoise was distinct.
ly visible. In addition to the mirror,
some small red glazed bowls were
found of considerable beauty and finish
and bearing glaze Of great smooth
ness and uniformity Of coloring.
The farmers OF Germany are noted
for their adoption Of scientific methods,
particularly in the cultivation of po-
tatoes, which Is their great specially.
To avoid the effects Of inbreeding, the
scientific German farmer rarely plants
seed potatoes from his own fields. He
either gets new varieties from the ex-
pertinent stations, or exchanges with
his neighbors whose farms possess soil
differing from that Of his own farm.
An interesting fact Ii that potatoes
grown on high hill slopes produce best
when planted in valleys, and that po-
tatoes from the heavy, wet land make
the best seed for use In light, dry
soils.
Curious Effect Of Tornudoes.-One or
two remarkable examples Of the effect
of the sudden expansion Of air inside
buildings when the partial vacuum
produced by a tornado passes over
them was noticed In the storm that
devastated Gainesville, Georgia, last
June. The walls Of mill were blown
outward and the roof was lifted into
the air and suspended there for several
seconds. A stand-pipe 40 feet in diam
eter and so feet high, placed 80 feet
above the ground, lost its sheet-iron
cover, which weighed several tons. 1t
was lifted bodily off, carried high into
the air, and dropped 100 feet away.
In its fall 1t killed several persons.
Prof, Hans Molisch, of Prague, has
reported to the Vienna Academy Of
Sciences the discovery Of lamp light
ed by means Of bacteria, which he
claims will give a powerful light and
he free from danger, thus being valu-
able for work In mines and powder
magazines. The lamp consists OF
glass Jar, in which a lining of salt
meter and gelatine, inoculated with
bacteria, is placed. Two days after
incubation the jar becomes illuminated
with wonderful blulsh-green light caus.
od Inv the innumerabla bacteria which
have developed In the time. The light
will burn brilliantly for from two to
three weeks afterwards, diminishing
In brightness. It renders faces recog-
n,zable at a distance of two yards and
large type is easily legible by it Pro-
fessor Molisch asserts that the lamp
Yields q cold light which is entirely