White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1931-08-20
Machines That Are
Almost Human
B y E. C. TAYLOR
Electric Fleas

~ trained fleas perform; see them
initiating human beings in their
stunts beneath microscope?
Science has trained electric "fleas"
to do much more. These electric
"heas'' are wonderful creatures; they
have been made to put out fires, guard
money, turn on street lights and per.
form other marvellous tasks.
These "feas" are cheap, too. For
nickel one can buy 100000 1000, 100000
of them and they are easily put to
work, according to DR.. Philips
Thomas, research engineer of the
Westinghouse Electric and Manufac.
turing company laboratories in Pitts.
burgh, Pa.
An ounce of these "feas" represents
100000 kilowatt hours Of energy. You
press button and 16O,OOO,OOO of them
a second pass along the wires of your
electric toaster at the breakfast table
each morning.
| Doctor Thomas christened them
'feas." These remarkably energetic
creatures of science are simply cleo
trons the building blocks of the uni
verse;" They are all exactly alike and
can be depended upon in their actions.
| Electric "fleas" made their public
| debut at the annual meeting Of the
American Institute in New York in
February, 1929. They watched the
guests at dinner, counted them and
| guarded them from a fire.
| Instead of speakers, pail Of mixed
| gasoline and kerosene was placed at
the head OF, the table. Beside it was
a device controlled by photo-elec-
trio eye. This is vacuum tube re
sembling an electric light bulb and it
is so sensitive that it registers the
most minute changes in light faster
than the human eye can perceive
them.
Doctor Thomas struck a match to
the pail of explosive mixture. 1t
famed, but just as the flames leaped
high, the new mechanical marvel went
to work. 1t promptly put out the fire.
The light Of the flames when it
reached the vacuum tube started ma
chinery that brought fire extinguish-
err into play, and blanket Of gas
poured over the flames quickly smoth-
cred them.
The instrument looked something
like a hooded camera 1t moved
around until 1t pointed at the flames,
and then released the streams Of fire.
eXtingulsher.
Doctor Thomas predicts that this
machine will eventually do away with
expensive fire-fighting apparatus.
ut is almost human" he said. II
! got too close to the fire while expert
menting one day and 1t squirted all
over me. I'll swear heard it chuckle.
It would be operated from ceilings,
with number Of photo cell units and
wide area lenses covering the floor.
The present sprinkler system needs
heat to turn it on. This will need
only the light from the fire, and 1t
would operate in the restricted sur
face Of the light"
AS another demonstration of what
his harnessed electric "feas" can do,
Doctor Thomas presented "Rastus,"
his head and re-enacted the William
Tell episode.
His bow and arrow were ultra-mod-
ern. 1t shot light rays instead Of ar
rows. The light flashed and the apple
fell Rastus stood up and bowed and
spoke few words to his audience,
then sat down again.
All this was done through the me-
dunn Of the new vacuum tubes, in
which the electric "feas" perform at
the bidding Of their scientist-trainer
Scientists are at work perfecting
this device for work in the industries
on large scale. New intimati0ns are
being given continually, said Doctor
Thomas, Of the vast scope Of the tasks
the electric "neas" may perform.
One demonstration showed that 1t
could be made to turn on and off the
street lights Of a city. The photo
electric tubes, highly sensitive to the
fading light Of day, turned on a Sc
ries Of street lights as dusk fell, and
when daylight approached the next
morning, 1t turned them off.
This highly sensitive device operat-
ed by slight variations in light Is now
at work in many branches of industry.
1t matches colors, sorts fruit and veg
etables and does many other tasks
that place it in the class of thinking
machines.
((G 1881. Western Newspaper Unon)