Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-07-08

Connecticut avenue and nearly opposite the
| bureau OF standards. and will offer I'M
| equaled opportunity for scientific research
| in the field of geophysics.
| The laboratory will be $50 feet In length
| with width Of sixty feet. The building
| will be two stories in height and have a
| basement. The style of architecture is Span
| ish renaissance, and the general design en-
| braces a series of arches; large arches
| the first story and smaller ones on the
| ond story. Red Spanish tile will be the
| material for the roof, the walls will be
| gray pebble dash. and in the arches stucco.
| The large arches will have small circular
| discs inlaid with colored marble, the domi-
mating colors being green and brown The
wide overhanging caves will be very elab-
| orately wrought in wood stained in brown
| iSh color.
The gray walls, brownish woodwork of
| the cornish and caves, and the red tile roof,
1t is explained, make a pleasing color COM
| bination which, when seen from dis
| lance will blend tremendously with the
| landscape. Construction will be fireproof
| throughout with stairways of brick, and
the exterior finish will be similar on all
| sides The laboratory will be finished by
July l. 1907. The designs were furnished
! by Architects Wood, Dom & Deming of
| this city. The builders are Richardson &
| Burgess
| Has an Unfamiliar Sound.
| Since the institution announced its inten-
I ton of building a laboratory here for the
| study of geophysics much curiosity has
| been exhibited as to what geophysics really
| is and why a special plant. different from
| existing laborator is necessary for the
proposed work. The word geophysics has an
| unfamiliar sound. although its meaning is
really very simple. 1t Is application
! of the science of physics to a great num-
| Der of problems relating to the earth which
have arisen in the natural development OF
the sciences of geology and mineralogy on
| the one side and meteorology on the other.
The first group of problems relates to
| the earths formation and includes the phys
ical structure and the chemical relation of
| the metals and minerals which go to make
/ up the known surface of the earth. The
| second group includes the phenomena found
| in the surrounding envelope-the problems
| of the atmosphere To this group are usu-
| ally added the earthquake phenomena and
| terrestrial magnetism. The study of this
| second group Is now well under way. Sys-
tematic observations are being made of the
winds. the weather. thermal and electrical
conditions in the atmosphere, the varia-
| tons in the earth's magnetism and earth
quakes at hundreds of stations throughout
the civilized world They are supported
partly by government aid and partly by
Independent enterprise. The first group, on
the other hand. the formation and relation
| of the metals and minerals found in the
earth, has been experimentally but little
studied in comparison with the other. al
| though 1t Is by no means secondary IN i'm
portance ana IL literally lies at our very
door
Studies Of Biologists.
| Biologists have studied the relation of the
| rocks as they are found In nature, and
| chemistry has solved many of the prob
| lens OF the pure chemical elements in the
| laboratory. But it yet remains for any one
| to reproduce rocks as such and find out
how and why they were formed. and the
enormous degrees of heat and pressure thar
| were required to produce them. This work
| may at first sight look to the layman like
| abstract scientific experiment with end
| In view but to satisfy the curiosity of sci
| entists. But II can easily be shown that
| there are problems of the greatest economic
| Importance that have been solved along
| similar lines and the work of the new geo
| physical laboratory will have a practical
side, the advantage OF which even the lay
| man can readily see.
| This Is the problem which the Carnegie
| Institution of Washington has now set for
| itself; To erect a laboratory in WHICH the
! high temperature and pressure of the ter
| restrial laboratory can be nearly as pos
| sibe reproduced, to develop methods and
| apparatus for measuring those conditions.
| and then to study the Formation OF actual
| rocks and minerals. No such laboratory Is
| In existence now, although Individual sci
| entistS have carried number OF such ex-
periments through successfully Neither is 1t
| regarded as creditable to a scientific ma
| ton that substantially all these expert
| ments have so far been done abroad. espe-
| cially IN view OF the fact that the United
| States is well at the head of the ma
lions of the world in other geological re-
| search.
Now. the practical question arises, what
| are these temperatures and pressures. and
can they be reached and controlled sufn-
| GENTLY to make such studies success
| fully? Naturally these very high temper
| atures are not met In everyday life A
| red-hot substance Is considered very hot;
but that is only perhaps 600 degrees F.
Stoves are lined with Kind of rock which
| will stand red. and almost white heat
| without any damage whatsoever; therefore
| red heat viii help but little with the rocks.
| Temperatures may even be Increased until
copper and gold melt; still there Is no diff
aculty In finding rocks which will serve
for smelling furnaces for them Hotter
Still Is the furnace In which glass Is made.
or In which iron Is melted, but 1t Is all
done in stone pots
Platinum Can Be Melted.
i Platinum was for long time regarded al
one of the highest melting metals, but plat
mum can be melted in quicklime vessels
without injury to the vessel. AT the tenn
perature of molten platinum. however.
nearly all Of the ordinary rocks win have