Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1909-1915, 1910-04-01
CELLS
70 FIR CANNON \
Novel Use Proposed Fo SUI
p[lhuTle Acid {! 'B!llyIplIOduet.
SPARK PRODUCED BY LIGHT.
Thefsfores y. sannnser. All Electrical
81 Engineer. Declares ssarchlls 81.
u Hostile varships Could Get on
n Charge That Would Destroy Hui 6


5s Tilliam Hammer, consulting
electrical engineer off lew y on city,
explained the stud ents 81 Stevens
institute, Of Hobo KEN N. D the ofher
day an interesting theory as & to the
value doS selenium. Is bypro duct ofS sui
phuric acid, ID lime st war
ttis' U.s. ls u this parttosd act, he de-
clared, tie mesnlaent The seatchIights of
enefny's VA hipa felf pon il u shot
would heshresi nnltonat icaIly down the
path of light flashed by the approach.
ing warahip.
Il, s Possssses Rsmlasf lsable Property VI
II selenf III was first discovered
IN 1917 by Berzilitis, who obtained At
from crystals formed ia tie lead cham
bers of SUP uric acid works, possesses
1.-THE remarkable property MI. Hammer
said, Of being an exec client tnsaiator
"a the DARK, bnt Of becoming adj *
cellent conductor ia ( an electric eur
rent when exposed; to lig lit Nj. Ham
Emer used Newark, NJ J., as an exam
Eples of d city whic b migh be defended
tos advantage BY cannon cont oiled by
selenium cell s L
Cannon.' he sale, equipped with d
box on the carriage cont tanning a s:!se-
lenium cell could be mounted on prom
|inent earth forks. with their muzzles
pointed down the bay Of New York.
In the dark or the dim light from
small refe ctors the selenium cell would
not conduct a spark from a battery ii
the box to the powder, but this would
take place the: instant q a powerful
Esearchlig 1t from q battl eship fell upon
the cell,, changing 1t from being Ia poor
I'd an excellent condu ctor The gums
aim Would probab bly, be- correct, as the
straight beam from the ship shone on
It, with the result that the hostile war
vessel would itself set OF the charge
which would sink e. 4 81
Possibilities 81 S eIeniuf,.
Ill. TANNER then told the stud nts
that If any of Their: ever had any idea
IofS going Into the burg larry business 1t
would beSWell to ascer tain IL the bank
Fsafes had any selenium cells concealed
about them tor an /. alar ns might he
given lies AVA the moment tile in:
ttruder's bullse fell on zone ofes the
Ice1ls. showed how BY means gof
Iseienium cells appar titus could be sim.
ply, construeted & for assuring light,
K rays, rad llme ia Us, and IA control
ling electric and other MAJ chimes, soper-
lating boats turning on and of lights,
automati cally ighting and exiting uish;
Ing b,loys and street III hts, losing
Ebuil dings auto ma teal IN the event
Iofs fire and doing many other wonder
fuls things which the seienfit1c world
|'is just ginning to realize dimly
Mr. Hammer said he could not help
Ithinking OF the possibilifi Ties OF sele.
MUM when seeing an a tendant In d
tskyscraper buildi ing laborio usly closing
1.-THE shutters at the end OF the; da y BY
means Of d selenium cell an apparatus
could be deyised he said which would
Instantly and ssaut onaat ically close SSall
the shut efss at once las soon as dark
mess came. He also shoWed how dis
lsttants lights III a so lage could he slight.
led without the use Sof wires simply BY
the fading day ito and ax uished
when the sun rose the the next day.