Evening star., 1932-04-25
SCIENCE WONDERS
TOLD At SESSION OF.
NATIONAL ACADEMY
Successful Measuring of
Energy of "Cosmic Rays"
Is Announced.
CURE FOR MORPHINE
ADDICTS DISCOVERED
Infantile Paralysis Germ Is De-
clared to Enter Body
Through Nose.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

With accounts of scientific discoveries
in fields ranging from the disintegra-
ton of atomic nucelii by radiation par
ticles from outer space to the relief of
morphine craving in human derelicts,
the annual Spring meeting Of the Ma
tional Academy of Sciences opened here
today.
The outstanding development was the
announcement this afternoon by DR..
Robert A. Millikan of the California
Institute of Technology of the first sue
ceSSful measurements of the energy OF
the mysterious "cosmic rays" which are
perpetually bombarding the earth from
outer space with sufficient energy to
smash up the nuclei of atoms.
Enormous Energy.
Measurements of this energy, DR.. Mil
likan said, give the enormous range
from 27,000 900 to 500 900 900 volts, the
greatest energies yet known to science.
These rays, DR.. Millikan said can be
definitely demonstrated to be protons,
minute radiation particles. He an
nounced for the first time before
scientific body that atomic nuclei had
been demonstrably disintegrated by
being hit by these particles from outer
space, with the result that protonS had
been knocked loose from them. The
proton is the positively charged par
ticle which corresponds to the mega
lively charged particle, the electron.
All the protons are packed in the nu-
cleus of the atom, while half the elec-
irons move around it in orbits.
DIR. Millikan also presented addi-
tional evidence that these rays resulted
from the building up of elements in
outer space.
Reports on InfantiIe PARALYSIS,
The dreaded infantile paralysis, which
swept over New York and parts of New
England in great epidemic last Sum-
mer, apparently is a smelling disease"
according to the report made to the
national academy by DR.. Simon F1exner
of the Rockefeller Institute.
1t is due, he said, to one Of the fl
terable viruses. supposedly ultra-micro-
scopic organisms which are responsible
for great number of human and ami
NAL diseases. The observations indi-
cate, DR.. Flexner said, that this or
ganism gets into the human body
through the nose and that the virus
escapes from the body also through the
nose.
This view, DR.. F1exner said, is based
on the presence of the virus in the nasal
secretions of both patients and healthy
carriers and the ready infection of
branes. He declared other modes of
infection may exist.
Tells Of Western Atlantis.
The geological story of Western At
lantis, the present area of the Bahama
Islands, was reported to the academy
by DR.. Richard M. Field of Princeton
University, who organized the interna-
tional expedition to explore the West
Indian sea bottoms from submarine
this Winter.
Observations indicated, he said, that
geologically the region is very old, with
similar history to that of some parts
OF the continental Appalachian range
The observations, he reported, point to
the conclusion that in the beginning
a great land mass was formed from
sedimentary deposits washed down into
the ocean from the continent. Then
the geological process of folding" set
in, due to the increased weight of the
earth's crust at this point.
Lifted to 1900 Feet.
The next step was an uplifting of
the whole area and the development of
a river system characterized by parallel
mountains and valleys. The uplifting
continued until parts of the land
reached an elevation of as much as
l2000 feet above sea level As COM
pensatlon for the high mountains there
We're very deep valleys and canyons.
These still exist in the very deep ocean
troughs Of this part of the sea
Following this, for some unknown
reason, the whole area appears to have
sunk rather rapidly into the sea. with
the result that the highest, mountain
peaks only now are above water. These
are the present islands.
The great Bartlett Trough. in the
Caribbean north of Haiti and Porto
RICO, DR.. Field said, was found to ston
abruptly east OF Cuba. He described it
as region OF "buckltng of the earth's
crust"
virus Organisms Found Tough.
The almost infinitely small ilterable
virus organizations, responsible for
some OF the most dreaded diseases of
ooth animals and plants, appear to be
tougner creatures than the relatively
gigantic bacteria.
~, b. M. Duggar of the University of
Wisconsin told of experiments to deter
iIgnC ana ultraviolet radiation on these
Two types OF invisible organisms. They
worked with the virus responsible for
the tobacco mosaid disease.
1ney found that far greater In
tensltles were required to inactivate the
virus so that 1t would not produce tbe
IoDacco disease than to kill the bacteria
Wnlle the latter could be killed with
strong concentrations of visible light of
tne Shorter wave lengths. the virus ap-
parentfy was affected only by the in
visible ultraviolet light. A direct
method OF .irradiating leaves has been
devised, it was reported.
Cure for Morphine Addicts.
Cure of morphine addiction through
the use OF sodium rhodanate a chem
lcal substance which thins the alblImen
OF the central nervous system, now is an
accomplished fact, Prof. Wilder d. Ban
croft of Cornell University told the
academy.
From experiments on six patients"
he said, I'VE believe it is possible to cure
any drug addict who is not tuberculous.
who does not have a weak heart, who
does not suffer from a ain-producing
disease, and who really wants to be
cured
Since sodium rhodanate is said to
increase the activity of the tubercu-
losis bacillus, it should not be given
to tuberculous patient. If he has
taken morphine to minimize the pain
from such a disease as cancer, there
is nothing permanent to be gained by
curing the drug habit unless one can
alleviate the pain.
I'VE believe We have proved that 1t
is not necessary for anybody without
special complications, to remain q drug
addict, but the details Of the treat
ment are not vet standardized. Our
patients all have some delirium. Since