SCIENCE SIFTINGS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXV, Issue 217, 10 September 1904, Page 10

SCIENCE SIFTINGS.

ERRATIC MOVEMENT OF THE GULF STREAM.

A curious report about the Gulf stream emanates from New York. According to the geography books it should leave the Strait of Florida at a maximum speed of four or five knots, but it is now said to be going at 12 knots, with the result that ships from the north-east are arriving at Sandy Hook late, and ships from the Gulf ports before their time.

CLOVES. Cloves are the unopened flowers of : small evergreen tree that resembles ii appearance the laurel or the bay. It ii a native of Malacca, or Spice Islands but has been carried to all the warme; parts of the world. The llowers an s»all in size, and grow in large num bers, in clusters, to the yerv ends o the branches. The cloves we use. ar< the flowers gathered before they ar< opened and while they are still "green After being gathered, they are smokec by a wood lire and then dried in toi sun. ANIMALS' LMITAnTIVENESS. Some animals have wonderful powers of imitation. Dogs brought up in the company of cats have 'been known to acquire the trick of licking the paws and then washing the face. When a cat has been taught to sit up for her food her kittens have been known to imitate her action. Darwin tells of a cat tnai was in the habit of putting her paw into the mouth of a narrow milk pitcher every time she got the chance, and then licking the cream off her paw. Her kitten soon learned the same trick. * A lady tells of a rabbit that she keeps in a cage with a monkey, and says that Bunnie has caught many of the monkey's ways. It is said that starving pigeons that have been brought up on grain will not eat peas to save their lives, but that if pea-eating pigeons are put witli them they follow their example and eat peas. tapping a volcano. A strange occurrence was reported at Milan fronv the small town of Messana, near Pica. Workmen were engaged in driving an artesian well, when a huge col•umn of gas rose up from the boring made in the ground, followed by an eruption of warm water, sand and mud. Frightened at this unexpected turn of events, the men ran away. Then the engineers came up, and were investigating the great phenomenon when a workman approached with a lighted match. This ignited the escaping gas. and a column of fire rose very high, which lit up the neighbourhood throughout the whole night. In ancient times a volcano existed on a neighbouring hill, but has long been inactive. The inhabitants are greatly disturbed, fearing that the eruption indicates the appearance of the old volcano. SKULL DRUMS OF TIBET. Some of the most curious drums in the world are those used by the Lamas of Tibet when they practice their religious ceremonies. They are manufactured from skulls, preferably the small ones of children, two of whrch arc placed together, and the dried skin of a snake stretched over the concave side of each. The vertices of the two skulls are next cemented to either side of a wooden disc, covered with cloth, the sides with the skins, of course, being outermost, and to complete the ghastly appearance of these musical instruments the heads of devils and hor-. rible imaginary creatures are painted on them in gaudy colours. CHAMELEON ROSES. The Chinese, Japanese and Siamese are peculiarly skilful at botanical feats. One of their wonderful achievements is known as the "changeable rose." This bloom is white in the shade and red in the sunlight. After night, or in a dark room, this curiosity of the rose family i.s a pure, waxy-white blossom. When transferred to the open air the transformation immediately steps in, the time of the entire change of the flower from white to red depending on the degree of sunlight and warmth. First the petals take on a kind of washed or faded blue colour, and rapidly change to a faint blush of pink. The pink gradually deepens in hue until you Gnd that your lily-white rose of an. hour before is as red as the reddest peony that ever bloomed. RADIUM AND DIAMONDS. Sir William Crookes, in the course of some experiments on the influence of radium on the constitution of matter, made some interesting discoveries with regard to the effects caused by the exposure of diamonds to radio-emanations. If diamonds be placed in the path of these emanations they are converted from the carbon crystal to the less attractive and commoner form of graphite. Sir W. Crookes suggests, however, that this discovery may possibly prove of commercial importance to the jeweller, for not only is the surface converted into graphite, but the colour of the stone is entirely changed. This being so, an "off-colour" stone may be lightened and its value thus increased.

RADIUM A DELUSION. Two Germans, Yon Leugyell and Winkler. insist that radium does not exist—that it is not a simple undecomposable element like iron, gold, or the diamond; it is an amalgam, which some day or other will dissipate itself into its primary elements. M. Curie admits that he has not yet isolated any pure radium like an ordinary lump of iron or gold, not because it is impossible. but because it is too expensive. On the other hand, he adds, we need not be alarmed; it is easy to say radium is not a simple substance. That remains to be proved. Perhaps there are no simple elements, and radium will transform itself into some other substance—after a few milium years.

ANOTHER SIGN OF INHABITANTS IN MARS. Mr Percival Lowell concludes from his recent observations and study of the surface of the planet Mars and of its canal system that there is no constant supply of moisture on the surface of Mars, and, therefore, although the sun have reached the summer solstice, it i= not until the snoweap melts and t'-oses the water supply that the vegetation appears. Further, his curves indicate that when loosed the water moves southward at a remarkably steady rate of 53 miles per day, and, as the figure of the planet is shown by its spheroidity to be in a state of fluid equilibrium, he contends that the water must of necessity be conveyed southwards by artificial means. That is to say that, since Mars is shaped similarly to the earth, and its" Surface at "the equator is some eight or ten miles further from its centre (or higher) than it is at the pole, the water which flows south into the canals in summer must run uphill! Professor Lowells inference is that it isk propelled mechanically by some intelligent agency.