Evening star., 1932-05-01
Delicate Method of Chemical
Analysis Described to
Physical Society.
SCIENTISTS IN CLASH
OVER ELEMENT NUMBER
Believe Substances Can Be De-
tected in Solution Constituting
Hundred-Billionth of Whole.

/
| ton If they constitute as much as a
| hundred -billionth of the whole, was
| described before the American Physi-
| cal Society yesterday by DR.. Fred Alli-
son of the Alabama Polytechnic Insti-
| tute.
The description was followed by
clash between DR.. Allison and DIR. D. R.
Morey OF Cornell Univernity, who criti-
cized his device.
BY the use of his method-by far
the most delicate means of chemical
analysis known to science-Allison and
his associates within the past few
| months have discovered two new ele-
| ments, completely closing the atomic
table, and have secured evidence Of
new forms Of old elments.
Based on Old Observation.
The magneto-optic method of analy-
sis is based on an effect observed by
| the English physicist, Michael Faraday.
nearly century ago. Faraday found
| that q beam of polarized light was ro-
tated when passed through transpar-
| ent medium which was traversed by
magnetic field of force parallel to the
| direction of the beam For many years
it has been debated whether this power
! Of the medium to rotate the light was
| acquird instantaneously when the mag
! netic force was applied or whether
| there might not be small time lag.
! Failure OF many experiments indi-
| Gated that If such an interval actually
| existed 1t must be extremely small and
| that a timing device must be found
| capable of measuring almost infinitely
| small intervals. Allison made the veloc
| ity of light itself serve as this timing
| device. Light travels about 80 cent?
| meters in a billionth of second. He
| constructed a device which would de-
| tect a hundredth part Of this.
BY means of this extremely delicate
| device it was possible to detect an ac-
| tual time lag between turning on Of
a magnetic field and the requirement
Of the power of rotating light beams by
a cell filled with liquid.
Different Effects.
| Then 1t was found that If other sub
| stances were placed in solution the
1 effect was altered, and differed for each
| compound tried, even in the most
minute possible dillutions. This was
| true of organic as well as inorganic
| compounds A great number OF analyses
| were carried out in this way and these
| led directly to the discovery OF the
| two new elements. The new elements.
Allison said, have since been demon
strated clearly to exist, since compounds
| have been eliminated as possibly re-
sponsible for the effect.
| The first Is the long-sought elemenS
81, very close to radium In the atomic
| table, for which he proposed the name
yirQinium, He has found new sources
| Of it in sea water, brine and various
minerals, including pitchblende. which
Is also the source Of radium. the dis
| coyery of the second unknown element,
IS, soon followed, since 1t was possible
! to predict exactly where its effects could
be found on the light scale. 1t was
located in sea water with a concentra-
| ton Of only about l part in l0O,OoU,-
100000. In the atomic table IT is close
| to iodine, which also comes from sea
water. He proposes the name ala
bamine for this element, after the state
where 1t was discovered.
Exacting Work Required.
| Although the magneto-optical analy-
sis method exceeds all other IN It's
| extreme delicacy, Allison stressed that
| its application requires intensive train
| ing and is extremely exacting work
which many persons engaged in SCI
entific research probably never will be
able to carry on. A great deal depends
on delicacy of visual discrimination.
1t can be done with photo-electric cells,
| but thus far these extraordinary deli
cate devices have proved less salts
factory than the eye alone.
The method he stressed, not only
detects the presence of minute am
mounts of the various elements, but
gives information concerning the atomic
structure.
Clash Over Discovery.
| The question Of who discovered "ele-
ment No. 87' lay in the background OF
the brisk exchange Of words between
DR.. Allison and DR.. Morey OF Cornell
/ University at the closing session OF the
society yesterday.
| While the audience leaned forward
! in their chairs to listen, DR.. Morey
sharply criticized the device invented by
DR.. Allison and drew from the latter
an equally spirited reply.
| Element 81 was not mentioned, but
the device in question was used by DR..
| Allison in his purported discovery OF
element 81 in 1880. Later, in 1881, DR..
Jacob Papish of Cornell claimed discov-
cry of element 81 with the aid Of an
other device, the spectroscope. Scien-
fists have disagreed as to which man
! deserved credit for the actual discov-
| ery. Element 81 was the next to the
/
matter Is composed, to be discovered.
Launches Criticism.
As DR.. Allison finished describing the
apparatus, DR.. Morey, young and red
headed, jumped to his feet and launch
ed into his criticism. Using dupli-
cate Of Allison's apparatus at Cornell,
he said he had not been able to dupli-
cate Allison's results, and said he be-
lieved Allisons method allowed too
many human errors for its results to
| be correct.
Allison said allowance was made for
| such errors.
| Morey then said he would like to
| publicly request" DR.. Allison to allow
him to visit Allison'S laboratory and
test his apparatus. He would like only
too well to prove Allison was right, he
said, and If so 1t would be "a feather
in DIR. Allison's cap"
Allison refused to accede to Morey's
request. He said he believed such q
request should come from DR.. Papish,
with whom he had dealt In the past.
"I would be delighted to convince the
gentleman" he said, but I am more
interested In convincing the world"
Applause greeted this remark.
Morey made it plain he was speaking
for himself, and not for DR.. Papish, in
criticizing Allison's work.
The physicists ended their annual
Spring meeting here by symposium
on the structure Of matter.
Among the theories advanced was one
that the strength of metals may be de-
termined by peculiar sort of radiation
within the masses themselves. Atoms