The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1906-11-01
ssNature Must Yield'' Saws
Carne6ie Institute.
BY George Robert Agnews.

IL Ouly q ltdGllOL VI liS WIN utN
under way by the Carnegie institution
of Washington brings the results that
are hoped for the world will be aston.
ished and delighted by the announce
ment of scientific discoveries that will
seem stranger than fiction. An emu,
meratiOn of the variety of work under
taken in many parts OF the world by
the 400 experts supported by the ins,i.
tuition would weary and confuse the
reader, since it would comprise 4 liSi
of studies in nearly every branch oi
scientific research. \ glance at tbs
more novel and important undertake
ings in hand may. however. give q hint
of the audacious hopes OF sctace III
solving problems that have mystifieG
the ages.
For Illustration. it is confidently eN.
pected that within 4 year the world
will be electrified by official announce.
ment of the discovery of the cause
and nature of sun spots. which. per-
haps, may disclose the true nature oi
the sun itself. This discovery will nat
urally lead to an explanation OF the
kind and extent OF the suns int!u-
ence upon the earth. in the forms OF
light, heat, and magnetism. With this
information in its possession. science
hopes to be able to predict changes in
the sun, which are supposed 10 exert
momentous influence upon the earth.
Thus the time when weather predic-
tions may be made year in advance
Is believed to be measurablv nearer
Times of flood, drought. and pes,ilerce.
it is thought. may ultimately be fore
told to nicely.
To Map the Southern Sky.
Among other projects now in hand
by the Carnegie institution are the es-
tablishment of an observatory in South
America for the mapping OF the south
ern sky: the manufacture Of glass
from quartz, which will withstand heat
better than steel; the creation of new
fruits. vegetables, and grasses: the
crossing of fishes. birds, and animals
for the study of heredity. and the evo-
luton of improved types; study Of
the human body as affected by foods.
with corresponding study of the
nutritive and chemical qualities OF
foods, in the hope of perfecting a sys-
restore them to normal conditions: the
manufacture of rocks. with the OBJ
ject of discovering the secret of ma
lures creation of the precious metals;
a magnetic survey of the oceans. which
will disclose the mystery of the mag
netic pole and incidentally enable
steamships to cross the oceans in much
shorter time than at present. and a
study Of the desert, from sea-level TO
5000 feet above, in the confidence that
forests may be established and nutri-
tious forage be made to cover the pres
ent wastes.
These projects seem at first glance
to be questions for the distant future.
but the progress already made en-
courages the belief that some of them.
lt least, will be realized within short
lime. Quartz glass has already been
made which meets the requirements of
the arts. Certain rocks have also been
manufactured by the young alchemist
who Is to study the genealcgy of gold.
At Mount Wilson the anxious watchers
hre trembling over the discovery of the
constitution of the sun.
Luther Burbank's Work.
At Santa Rosa, Luther Burbank is
creating new potatoes, plums, plum
cots," berries and flowers in bewild-
ering variety. The stout brig Galilee
now out between Honolulu and
danila, making magnetic survey of
he Pacific. Secretary Root, while in
south America, will make arrange
nents for the site of the observatory
rom which the position of stars Wis
BILE from that hemisphere will be fixed
md mapped-a work that will stand
or centuries. At Cold Harbor, n. Y,
ovel experiments in animal hybridi-
alton are being conducted. and at
Ortugas, Fla, the secrets of the life
t the ocean are being revealed to
cience.
In the suburbs of Washington the
,arnegie institution is building a phys
eal laboratory from which remarkable
iscoveries are expected to be report
4. There Arthur L. Day, young
xpert employed by the United States
geographical survey, will continue his
experiments in the manufacture of
pcks and quartz glass. Regarding the
rst, which hints of alchemy, little is
} be said at present beyond the fact
Pat rocks have actually been made
Mr.. Day which are identical with
atural rcca. His quartz glass, how
yer. is already of practical benefit.
he CT .neg.e institution astronomers
Mount Wilson, in California, found
(at their great rejecting mirror was
hbject to great expansion by the heat
the sun, which tended to destroy
focus or distort its images, thus
reventing the taking of accurate pho
graphs Of the sun. Electric fans
ere turned upon the mirror, with
light effect. The astronomers sug-
ested that a glass made of quartz in
cad OF sand should be manufactured,
partz glass being less responsive to
e influence Of heat. The difficulty,
pwover, was in producing quartz
a temperature of about 1000 degrees
ahrenheit. and pressure Of 500
funds to the square inch he pro-
iced glass entirely free from flaws
ID practically unaffected by heat
Has Commercial Value.
This glass, scientists say, will soon
ID its way into the arts and manu-
ctures. 1t does not expand nor con-
act, and its melting point is as high
that of steel. Indeed, steel safes
BY be constructed with doors Of
artz glass, permitting view of the
ntents The material will also prob
ly be employed in building as soon
the cost of manufacture is reduced.
The world has heard much of Luther
lrbank, but 1t is not generally known
ut the earn t;ie institution is his
incipal supporter. An allowance OF
1000 year for ten years has been
lde for him, in addition to which an
otment of $4,000 has been made for
scientific study of his marvellous
Icoveries. Burbank is not scien.
In the accented sense and Is