The New York herald., 1921-08-07
More New Units.

More New Units.
The recent visit of Nine CURIE TO
| this country makes the more inter
esting the reminder that the Interna-
tionaI Congress of Radiology, held in
Brussels in 1910, of which Nine.
! CURE was president, agreed to be-
stow upon the unit of radioactivity
the appropriate name OF "curie." This
will commemorate for all the future
CT science the name and achievements
OF this illustrious pioneer in the
mysterious and battling field of radio
activity. We are further told that
''as in studying radium one works
with exceedingly small quantities,
it is the term 'millicurie' that is
in most frequent use" The adop-
tion Of discoyerer's name to desig-
nate unit in the particular branch
of scientific investigation involved
is in accordance with the custom
which has already familiarized us
with such titles as the watt, volt,
ampere, ohm, farad.
1t is far from showing jealousy of
the great, deserving woman discov-
erer to whom American women in
admiration and gratitude presented
an entire gram of the precious radium
during her visit, or of any other
scientists of foreign birth whose
names are now employed to desig-
/ nate units of activity, power, resis-
tance, and the like, to ask why our
own EDISON should not already have
received similar recognition. 1t is
not extravagant to credit as much
practical achievement in electricity
to EDISON as to any two others of his
predecessors. AS a unit Of light
producing capacity OF dynamos, gen.
orators, filaments, and the whole COM
pick apparatus of electric illumina-
tion, the edison" should be accept
able to the whole world of science,
and would approve itself to the uu-
counted multitudes OF non-scientific
but grateful users of our great in
ventor's discoveries in every land as
well.
And why not yet more new units?
The thought, to use verb somewhat
overworked Of late, intrigues the i'm
agination. For example, the "foch"
would commemorate superb strategic
intelleet--that all but superhuman
wisdom, clairvoyance and driving en-
ergy in military achievement which
challenges the ability OF NAPOLEON,
THLY, CESAR or ALEXANDER. Such
unit would signify the solution of
the ancient riddle as to what hap
pens when an irresistible force meets
an immovable obstacle, because
against the drive OF foch there can
absolutely exist no immovable mill
tsry obstacle whatsoever. For ordi-
nary attack millifoche, or at most
o few centifoches, would suffice.
\ Doubtless the enthusiasm of devo-
tees OF the greatest American sport
may make itself heard at this juno
ture with the plea of a ruth" as
the unit OF baseball energy. The ar
gumeut would be offered that major
league batters could be scaled with
scientific accuracy in terms Of cent?.
ruths, according to their several
/ measures Of prowess with the bat,
while batters in minor leagues and
those as yet inadequately recognized
training schools for future stars, the
boy teams OF vacant lots, could be
registered in milliruths and find the
incentive to improvement always de-
veloped by a correct rating.
Probably the position OF a flstic
heavyweight champion is too inse-
cure TO authorize naming a new unit
after him, although il would GER
tainly have its conveniences. For ex-
ample in designating the kind OF
punishment too frequently meted out
to wrongdoers at present character
lied by the cumbrous phrase "a slap
on the wrist" it would be said, with
an incisiveness appreciable by the
least imaginative, that they we're
receiving for their offences a mere
millidempsey.
4 Poetry ia any event need not lack
its unit Of punch and pep, for in the
"kipllng" it would avail itself 81 p
measuring standard not 70 Ne mis-
understood, and possessing besides