The Nezperce herald. (Nezperce, Idaho) 1900-1957, 1908-12-17

Prof. n. Kammerlingh Onnes OF Ley
zen has sneceeded 10 ilquefying be-
lium.
Terrifying Ia Us destructive aspects
and appalling IN It's danger yet IN
iensely fascinating 10 rs possibilities
Tor hencniing the world. the iaiesi
explanation ~ chemical science has
placid mankind literally within hut
few degrees Of the frozen pole ~
snowledse
Heat l. life: cold i annihilation
The anal and absolute extremes o.
these are ~ yet heights - exquisite
sud depths 10 profound that they mock
Al once the lens and the piummei'lin
u human conception.
For the sake % conrenienoe. HOY
rrer. science hiss established a pure
" arbitrary starting point Tor the
measurement u hest and cold. This
l. called the absolute yero.- and -
axed AZ fs9 degrees below the fam.
llar zero mafk - The Fahrenheit
Thermometer point which chemists
have rainly sought to reach ever
since Prof. Dewnr most nearly APP
preached Il by bis astonishing feat OF
Ilauefying air and hydrogen.
But even Dcwar's greatest cold was
hundreds u degrees from absolute zero
That was some ten years ago. Now
somca news from the old town % ley
Sen IN Holland birthplace OF the elec-
sric batiery-thnt Prof II. Hammer
lingh onncs Of that city has succeeded
IN liqucfylng the rarest and most ro-
lailie 81 all gases. lie has reduced
hciium 20 \ visible i;uid. determined
is temperature and made the incrod-
lhic discovery that q Is hut frac-
ton over four degrees from supposed
" theoretical jumplng-on place Of Jack
Frost
In order to appreciate the vast six
nificancc Of Prof. onnes' achievement
Il Is only necessary 70 recall the means
By which the air Is kept at zero tenn
pcrnture IN a cold storage warehouse.
As everyone knows. evaporation causes
sold. u n the evaporation OF the wa
ter with which you battle your face
not the temperature uf,the water e
scif-which produces the sensation OF
soolners
According as the evaporation Is slow
Or rapid. the cold produced Is less or
greater. SO. IN cold storage plant
ammonia gas. which Is extremely vol
ptile. n allowed 20 cvapornte. either
directly into the air or II Is released
IN tho presence Of brine (which freezes
only nj less than zero tcmpcrature)
and the brine, taking the temperature
of the evaporatIng ammonia. Is then
distributed IN pipes throughout the c..
sabllshmcnt Thus the desired degree
Of cold IL Impaired 20 the storage
rooms
Now fancy. n you can. cold. COM
pared with which the deadly chill from
ammonia gns Is hotter than boiling
oil: call this the temperature OF liquid
hydrogen. Then. with this ms new
point OF departure. try to imagine a
cold so profound that beside Il liquid
hydrogen itself Is a. boiling oil, and
the frozen heart OF an ice plant Is
hotter than the bowels OF a smelling
furnace. and you have some conception
OF the temperature II can be calle I
temperature-of lIquefed helium.
Dr. II. T. Galpin. well known
authority on Refrigeration. member
Of the London Society OF Chemical In
iustry, the American Chemical Society
md the Society Of Electrical Engineers.
attempted to explain in non-technical
angunge what the now discovery means
no science and humanity.
"The liquefnction OF helium," he said,
is OF the most startling and far-reach-
ing slgnlnnnce II opens the door
to possibilities OF which students OF
refrigeration have long been aware,
but which thus far have been beyond
our reach IN actual practice. II Is
apparent, for example, that n we can
distribute ammonia chilled brine from