The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1907-02-02
Correspondence Baltimore County linton.
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.


Changing Flower Colors-Recent Earth
quake Study-A Lake OF Blood-Crop
Forecasting-Passing of Languagee-A
Padded Stomach The Fluid Lens
Aerial Distribution of Power-Automo-
bile Agriculture.
The colors of vegetation are intensified by
strong sunlight and a certain degree of GOODNESS.
as we see in the redness of northern apples and
the deep tints Of Alpine plants. and other con-
ditions-such as the composition of the soil
have an influence. A recent attempt to color
flowers artiicially by chemicals added to the
soil has been recorded by Henry Kraemner.
Aluminium sulphate and potassium sulphate
deepened the color Of yellow roses. and tended
to streak the petals of the white carnation with
red, and ammonium sulphate, aluminium sui
plate, iron citrate apd citric acid brought out
white streaks on scarlet carnations. The effects
were too slight. however, to promise CONNER
cial Importance.
-
The great earthquake catalogue of Comte de
Montessus de BalIore now records Ill 434 distinct
shocks. The list confirms the already formed
conclusions that earthquakes and volcanoes are
independent and that the former are most
abundant in recent elevations where the slopes
are steepest and longest. Nine-tenths of the
shocks have originated in one or two per cent.
of the earth's surface. Almost all have been
distributed along certain lines of which the
most important are the great girdle of the
Pacific. the line running from the Sunda Islands
through Arracan the Himalayas. Caucasus, and
Alps to the western Mediterranean, and another
running from the Caucasus through Central
Asia to Lake Baikal.
Superstitious people formerly regarded with
awe the turning red at long intervals of Lake
Moret in Switzerland. Botanists have now.
shown that the phenomenon is due to plant
which propagates every tenth year. and which,
though very minute, grows so rapidly that the
whole lake is soon turned crimson.
81
Strong evidence of periodicity in the cereal
crops of Eastern England has been found by
DR.. w. N. shaw, Director of the Royal Meteor
illogical Office, in the statistics for 1885 to 1905.
good year follows bad one in very regular
alienation, and a maximum average seems to
be reached once in eleven years, with mini
mum average at an intermediate period. I'M 1894,
1896 and 1885, for instance, the yield was abund-
ant, while in 1898. 1895 and 1897 it was deficient.
year of greatest average was 1885 and 1896
eleven years later was another; and in 1885 and
1897 low points were reached. DIR. Shaw has
noticed that there is an intimate relation be-
tween the rainfall of the aul umn months and
the wheat harvest of the following year. From
such considerations be computed that the east
ern counties of England would produce 3l.9
bushels of wheat per acre in 1905 and the returns
at the end of the season showed an actual yield
Of 81 bushels per acre.
Two languages have died out in modern Europe
according to Rev. w. s. Zach Szyrma. In
recent paper to British archaeologists, he doub-
ted whether anybody could Ak the time or place
when Prussian disappeared. for the death of
language may be lingering and obscure one,
but Cornish seems to have passed away in its
English home in quite recent times. The last
Cornish drama bears date of 1911. A consider
able Cornish literature is preserved in manu-
script and printed works. and the language has
lett its impression in the name of places and
families A few words. including the numerals.
are still used by the miners.
**&
A remarkable hair ball from the stomach of q
young girl has been brought to notice by Prof.
Won Bramann of Hole. She had a habit of
swallowing ends bitten from her long hair, form
ing in time bulky accumulation. though felt
only as slight pressure, aud when the mass
was Temov by an operation it found to
hav, shaped itself 10 he cavity, like a cast in
moha Iron tonics had changed the light color
to black
The glass lens has been brought to a diameter
of about five feet for astronomical purposes.
but when OF such size the cost is tens of thous-
ana Of d.lars and several years of time The
Hungarian chemist who has at last made q
successful hnid lens claims that it equals the
glass product in performance. 1t consists of
40.
glass. between which is her medically sealed the
fluid substance. and the retroactive power and
other properties are so adjusted that The usual
defects of lenses overcome. Time and tenn
perature 90 not affect the fluid, while the con-
traction and expansion are pra tically the same
as those OF the enclosing glass. A ten-inch lens
that has hitherto cost about $1,000 can be made
by the new process for $40 or less. The saving
is even greater with larger sizes. and it is be-
lieved that. instead of having reached the
highest possible limits. lenses can now be made
three times as large as any get produced.
Sc
In "Telekina," his new wireless method of
transmitting power, Senior Torres Quevado uses
Rranly coherer. which. when struck by the cleo
trio wave, causes an electromagnetic to oscilate,
aud the vibrations affect an escapement which
advances one tooth at each vibration. He has
net only steered a crewless boat from shore, but
has increased and sackened the speed at will.
The trials are claimed to have been perfectly
successful, and it is urged that the principle
should be valuable on life saving apparatus as
well as for directing torpedoes.
80
The motor cultivator of Prof. T. Hudson
Beare. a Scottish mechanician, is designed to do
all the work of preparing the ground for seed at
one operation. 1t can be driven at three times
the speed of the ordinary pillow and each trip
covers three times the breadth of the usual
furrow. and well pulverizes the ground. By
simple attachment the sowing also can be done
at the same time