Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-05

best years of your life feeding
- sandwiches" to insects, studying
AZ the queer antics of "daylight-sav-
ing BIRDS" using vacuum clean
er" on a cows back or building robots like
stalking hem?
No this isn't anything fantastic or imagna-
tive but simply partial list Of some OF the
freak Jobs which occupy the attention OF Uncle
Sans scientists in the Governments vast re-
search laboratories in washington.
Strange as these everyday occupations may
seem to You and me, to the scientists involved
they are of the utmost seriousness, for every one
of them is of Importance in the course OF the
Governments widespread efforts TO promote
happier, healthier and more comfortable LIE
for the Nation.
TAKE the case of DR.. r. L. Campbell, known
Familiarity as the "insect sandwich man."
Al a famous entomologist In the Department OF
Agriculture, his job is to feed certain insects
delectable Sandwiches" composed of two juicy
bits OF leaves DE-. Campbell is trying to de-
termine the exact quantity Of various poisons
required to kill different kinds Of insects. The
reason for using the sandwich bait is that
very exact method for measuring the quantity
OF poison on circular bit Of leaf has been
worked out The top layer Of the sandwich Is
put on to prevent the insect from crawling over
the poison and removing part of it. $ The in
sects used for the first experiments were silk
worms, and, naturally the sandwich was made
Of mulberry leaves
The insects are allowed to feed on the sand
witches until observers think they have eaten
about enough to prove fatal. BY carefully. meas
uring the surface of the remaining part of the
sandwich, 1t is possible to calculate the amount
Of poison gobbled up by each insect. The in
sects are given 4s hours to die or recover. DR..
Campbell expects to continue bis experiments,
using as mnay insects as the nature Of the work
win permit.
CERTAINLY one of the most unique jobs in
~ the entire Government falls to the lot of
Frederick c. Lincoln of the Biological Survey.
He is an expert on 'daylight-saving birds" and
he has lately made these interesting discoveries:
The graceful Arctic birds known as terms,
some of which breed close to the North Pole,
are without doubt the champion globe trotters
and daylight savers" of the bird world Some
individuals make an annual round trip of about
~ 600 miles from their breeding grounds to
their Winter quarters and return. They also
probably enjoy more hours Of daylight than any
other creature living today. Before they reach
their breeding grounds in the Arctic the mid
night sun has already appeared, while during
their soiourn in the Antarctic daylight is con-
tinuous. ,s
Individual birds of this species, according to
Mr. Lincoln make the longest flights known to
science An Arctic tern banded as a chick on
the coast of Labrador was found about three
months later near La Rochelle, France. An
other hedgling banded at the same point was
found on the beach at Margate, about is miles
southwest of Port Shepstone, Natal, South
Africa, about three months after being banded.
And during this time it had flown not less than
5000 miles,
Close friends jokingly refer to E. K. Nelson
and H. H Mottern as the nut workers." be-
cause their main job as chemists Of the United