The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1904-07-11
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY
INFLUENCE OF
MAGNETISM.


Dwarfs.
The experiments OF c. Gutton, q
French physicist, have shown that
phosphorescence Is increased by the
action of a magnetic field. Phosphores-
cent substances prove very sensitive
to magnetism, but only when the field
is not uniform. and an intense but
uniform field has no effect. The mag
net has even been made to act upon
the eye. Objects In an obscure cham
Der were dimly seen. and they appear
ed to become brighter when the mag
net was brought near the eve. The
| xrays, which also have this effect.
were carefully screened off by lead
| foil. Earlier attempts to find out
whether a strong magnetic field affects
the human body have given only neg
alive results. and even a magnet large
| enough to admit the head between the
poles showed no influence.
A simple and beautiful method of
| showing vortex rings Is described by
Robert f. Doran of Cork. A bulb Is
blown at one end of q glass tube, and
| the open end Is contracted to the
| thirtieth or fortieth of an inch In bore
Both bulb and tube are then COM
pletely filled with / per cent solu-
ton of common salt to which fiuores-
cein has been added. The tube Is
clamped vertically over the center of
tall cylinder filled with water, and
when the water is at rest the tube is
lowered until 1t just touches the sur
face. The vortex rings begin at once
to descend.
crystalline theory OF structure Is
offered by G. T. Beilby. a British ex-
perimenter, to explain the hard and soft
states of metals. The ordinary con-
dition is crystalline, when the metal
| Is soft, but In sudden cooling there Is
no time for the molecules to fall into
regular formation. and the resulting
SOLID Is anonymous and hard. The CO.
existence of crystalline and amor
phous layers accounts for the variety
OF structure in malleable and ductile
metals.
Germany's latest great national in
dustry, now In its infancy is the produce
ton of alcohol for technical purposes.
In the worlds total production of
spirit In 1908. DR.. A. Wiesler of Prague
finds that Germany led with 20 per
cent. the shares Of Russia and Austria
Hungary being slightly less. while
France and the United States togeth-
er furnished 16 per cent. While tech
nical applications. however, absorbed
3s per cent or Germany's product, they
used but 16 per cent in France, and
less than per cent in Great Britain.
Germanys technical consumption
reached 127.0o0.000 liters. of which
SS.oO0.000 liters were applied for pow
er. light and heat. and 21.000,000 liters
were used in the chemical industries,
and the demand Is increasing at an ex-
frn M. ri Hmm IN h..& 4. t~f.-
In Berlin supplies spirits for 1870 mo-
tors. The chief raw material Is pota-
toes In Germany. Austria and Russia:
rvs In Great Britain, Italy and Spain;
and fruit and grapes In France: while
molasses is of some Importance In
France. Austria and Hungary.
Petroleum cars are being tested on
portions of the state railways of
Wurttemburg. having a light traffic.
The latest model las four cylinders.
developing 80 horse power. and can
take a load Of AZ passengers up grades
of ! per cent at n speed of16 miles
an hour. 1t carries 100 kilogrammes
Of petroleum. which is sufficient for a
run of 220 miles. The car weighs 1875
tons. and Its first cost Is $500. the
running expenses being 5.s cents per
car mile.
An attempt to calculate the probable
actual distances between stars OF
knowup arallax has been made by Mr.
]. E. Gore. Eta and Mu Cassie Pliae
for example. appear to be separated by |
about one fifteenth of their distance
from the sun, increasing their appaS
rent briIllancies 225 times; while the
components of the double star. 81 Cyg-
nj are so near together--about %
times the distance of the sun from
the earth--that they are IS million
times as bright to each other as to US.
Soft and malleable zinc, 80 per cent
pure, is produced in France through a
succession of alloys OF zinc and alum
mum and bismuth.
Old age Is an infectious disease,
which we may expect soon to be treat
ed by a preventive serum. proionging
life. Such was the view expressed In
the late Paris lecture Of d.. Mench-
nikofr Senility. he explained, is pro-
duced by certain physiological states
which cause the 'macrophages. which |
are, a peneBcent species OF mi >robes, to
increase too rapidly. when they become |
inJLrious. These parasites flourish in |
the large intestine, which is POSSESSED |
by mammals but is almost completely |
lacking in birds. The result was illus |
tratcd In the doctors own dog and |
parrot, the former being decrepit at |
eighteen, which the latter was hale |
and lively at seventy. While the |
serum is being awaited, we are advised |
to eat curdled milk
Extinct pigmy elephants and hippo |
tami have been found in several large |
islands of the Mediterranean, remains |
lately discovered seeming to be those |
of an elephant hardly three feet high |
Dwarfing of these animals appears to |
have come from a restriction of the
area over which they could range.
Clothes washing by electricity. with !
out soap. is the idea of a Hungarian.
The stream of electrified water Is
claimed to remove all spots and dirt
and the 800 garments held by the ma