Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-26
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

The news comes that Prof. Einstein
has uttered another announcement
about scientific mysteries which has
set the sc. Ds." at loggerheads again.
If any reader is aghast at the fear
that this column is going to explain the
Einstein theory of relatively. be it
known absolutely that the panic is un-
founded. There are only. few of us
who can comprehend what it is all
about-proving that a straight line is
not the shortest. 1t would be unthink-
able betrayal of the others to make a
complete comprehension of relatively
popular.
But this new Einsteinism is simple;
it is declaration that the scientist has
discovered the identity of gravitation
and magnetism. Anybody who can
prove that may also answer the ques-
tions. What is life? or What is electric
ity, which may be used in producing
magnetism? or What really is gravita-
ton?
Didn't Newton say it was "apple-
sauce" when big green apple fell on
him from the tree? Science is really
wonderful when it can discard slang
and tell just what is the force of at
traction which holds the universe to-
gether and moves the ocean and tides.
A man visited a petrified forest of
our great Southwest. and grew excited
in describing its wonders.
why. everything there was peetre-
fed" he declared. There were trees
solid stone-an peetrefied, but standing
like a growing forest. There were
fellow-peetrefied- aiming his stone
gun at a bird a-f1ying over the stone
forest, and that-there bird-it was
peetrefied. but it jest KEEP on a-flying
and it got away"
oh" protested a listener-in, that's
nonsense, man! What's the use of
telling us that that-there bird was
peetrefied and yet KEEP on a-hying?"
WAL. guess I saw it; it was
peetrefied all right"
But how could it fly if 1t was
peetrefied? Gravitation would make
that impossible. The stone bird would
fall"
"Gravy-tation? What's that? Oh,
That gravytation, it was peetrefled,
too"
So Einstein is not the first to an
nounce how to petrify gravitation, as
this story demonstrates. But it remains
for a learned professor of science con-
nected with Princeton University, jump
ing at the Einstein bait ever before the
details reach America. to suggest that
probably this discovery will enable us
to so insulate gravitation with mag
netism. and thus to be able to fly
through infinite space. He illustrates
his suggestion by stating that he has
seen a bar of a certain light metal
suspended in air above magnet. with
no visible means OF support; hence
all we need is magnets on our shoes
strong enough and we may emulate
Jules Verne's journey to the moon.
Aviation is only in its Infancy, as is
also imagination.
X x X II
Connected with the United States
Bureau of Standards is DR.. Paul II.
Heyl. who has spent many years in
studying gravitation; he has scales on
which he weighs the world. as grocer
weighs sugar DR.. Heyl may never have
visited the petrified forest. but he takes
no stock in the petrified bird which got
away from the petrified gun, for he de-
clares that there is no material in the
earth nor in the heavens above. nor IN
the waters under the earth. which will
insulate gravitation. Nor any insulation
for centrifugal force.
x
An esteemed reader of Background OF
Events writes to express surprise at
recent statement contained therein-a
quotation from DR.. Abbot, secretary of
the Smithsonian Institution-to the ef-
feet that light is matter, and that after
it reaches, and Is absorbed by. infinite
space and darkness. 1t is still raw ma
terial for the recreation of univerSes.
The critic charges that Dr. Abbot chal-
lenges the "indestructibility of matter"
Here is the knockout, from our critic,
Mr. G.. H. Head:
Having received your delightful COM
ment on my criticism OF the Wilson,
Lansing affair. / feel emboldened 10
take up statement in this evenings
Star:
for matter never ceases to
exist. How did it begin?'
Perhaps you will be interested in
an article by DR.. Abbot which appeared
in the Annual Report of the Smith
sonian Institution for 1926. entitled
THE Evolution Of the Stars" begin
ming on page ITS.
Having been brought up on the VEN
cradle theory of the indestructibility
and permanency of matter. was shock
ed to read some Ito mel revolution
airy statements by DR.. Abbot. For in
stance, on page 176:
Consider a hydrogen atom. 1t Is
just one proton with one electron re-
yolving about 1t. comparable to the |
earth with its one moon. The two
units Of electricity attract one another