Evening star., 1940-04-09
Feats Of Inventive
Minds on Display.
Al Patent Show
Commerce Department
Auditorium Alive
With Interest

An impressive display of the con-
tributions of American inventors to
world industrial and scientific ad-
vancement and the conveniences of
modern living went on display last
night with the opening of a parade
of inventions at the Commerce De-
partment auditorium.
There is interest for everybody in
the wide variety of inventions and
developments on display at the ex-
hibit. The show, which is to re-
main open through Sunday, April
IA, is sponsored by the Patent Law
Sesquicentennial Committee in CO.
operation with the United States
Patent Office and the Bureau of
Foreign and Domestic Commerce,
and commentaries the 150th ami
versary of the establishment of the
Patent Office. ,...
Inventions which make life easy
and comfortable vie for interest
with implements of warfare which
permitted killing to develop on
scientific basis. In the lobby are
set up the latest anti-aircraft ma
chine gun beside q deadly anti-tank
gun and the new Garand rifle.
De Forest Relic Shown.
Nearby is the battered Bunsen
burner-a familiar object to science
students-with which DR.. Lee De
Forest discovered the principle
which led to the development of the
modern radio tube and thereby
helped to furnish entertainment and
instruction to millions of people.
With the germ of an idea, DR.. De
Forest labored until he had devel-
oped a workable tube, a small,
fragile piece of glass that is
dwarfed by the huge television tube
that is it logical descendant.
Youngsters will find the invention
models displayed in numerous cases
of particular interest. Several ex-
hibits of the development of rail-
road trains have scale models and
there are several scale model Army
pldIlCS OIl OlSpldy.
Eye appeal is not neglected. A
rubber manufacturer presents rub
ber latex bathing suits complete
with pretty girl model-as we'll as
giant tires for airplanes and huge
earth movers. One tire made by
the company stands more than 8
feet high and costs more than 5000.
Phone Dialing Mysteries Shown.
One of the most popular exhibits
shows exactly what happens when
the dial on the telephone goes
around. Arms 60 up, arms 60 down
and bewildering succession of
things happen to an infinite variety
of mechanical parts before the
phone at the other end rings. Also
of great interest is the device which
records the voice, and a fortunate
few may even hear a recording Of
their own voices played back.
Lined up in the same exhibit are
telephone from the germ of the
idea through the crank handle and
wall-box era to the swanky colored
handsets of today.
A display of flbers and cloth woven
from glass presents an exhibit of
unusual interest in another booth.
In the same exhibit is q model of the
200-inch telescope lens to be placed
at Mount Palomar in California.
Beside this item is a new develop
ment for America, bright colored
Christmas tree ornaments, made in
this country only since war in
Europe stopped their importation.
Another display SHOWS methods of
lighting from the pottery lamp Of
100 B. c., which burned olive and
nut oils, to Edison's first lamp, made
in 1870, and to the modern incan-
descent and f1uorescent lamps.
Almost every industry in the Ma
tion is represented IN some way In
the exhibit, and included are
working model Of an electric furnace
and steel samples from the steel
industry, machinery and products
in the textile industry and numerous
other displays.