Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-09-28

stfn daFkened hair neatly trimmed and brushed
his conservative clothes expeFtly eut-the very
sort OF man you see everywhere Of whom YOU
take no notice-the living thing as remote from
the preconception OF genius rs could be inn
agined.
At the end he snapped me from these refiec-
tions with invitation to view his paintings
In his cottage, and walked along beside him.
barely hearing the commonplace remarks ne
made-out of polteneSs, Of couree-upon the
vista Of the Sierras Madres that stretched far
and away He tottered a little as he walked I
noticed He showed me his paintings with a
transparent attempt at professional nom
chalance. II think it isn't bad" he said as he
held one OF them to the light
1t was difficult to draw him out on everyday
topics. ASK me anything" he said graciously
trying to put me at ease. But on most topics
he was unwilling to talk, nevertheless. On only
one current controversy did he express himself
7 think prohibition is very bad thing" he
said But he would not add to this. In fact
he veritably is a man of few words and of
an obvious disdain for all men who pontifcate
on matters upon which others more informed
are themselves loatl 10 speak
IN the course Of the interview I asked DR..
Nicholson if the light measurements would
conclude his labors
Oh, mol" he said offhandedly, ct NAV re-
peat the work done on the ether-drift experi
naents"
He declined to amplify that announcement
but its Importance to the world of science is
immense. The lay world win better understand
when 1T is made plain that it was Michelsons
INST work on the ether drift which provided
the basis Of Einstein's theory of RELATIVELY,
that, as some say, Einstein used his genius TO
generalize particular established by Nicholson
1hat came about in this way:
When Nicholson was young scientist he and
other physicists were interested in knowing
whether the earth passed through a stationary
ether or whether it dragged ether along with II
10 settle this question Nicholson invented the
mterferometer, the instrument that is regarded
as ms most valuable contribution to science
and which, in its last analysis is the most ner
Iect ever devised for making minute measure
mentS-another evidence of the Nicholson
passion for accuracy.
The interferomeaer divides beam of Heht
INTO two parts and sends them In directions at
right angles to each other then reflects them
back from two mirrors and recombines them.
causing light and dark bands to appear. The
bands are called interference bands-a term
which Nicholson, incidentally, disapproves.
Now, II one beam of light travels little longer
tnan the other, the bands are moved, and.
OBVIOUSLY the instrument by recording this
provides the most delicate way of measuring
minute diSplacements
After prolonged study Nicholson concluded
that motion of the earth through the ether
would produce the same effect as a lengthening
OF one OF the beams, and so would cause shift
IN the fringes, depending on the direction of
Inc light paths IN relation to the eartln's motion.
he nrst rugged up the instrument in Ber-
nm when he was working with Helmholtz, but
various circumstances made this particular
labor impracticable, and his great experiment
was not made until later, when he was a pro-
lessor at the Case School Of Applied Science