SCIENCE AND INVENTIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 14566, 31 December 1910, Page 4 (Supplement)

SCIENCE AND INVENTIONS.

UNSINKABLE BOATS. To make a useful and efficient airlock for boats, take a board about oft long, nail ends and one side to it, and fit- it to the side of the boat.. Make two of them, one for each side of the boat, and fasten them a little above the watcrline. Fasten them securely, and caulk with tar. With these attached, the. air caught in the lock will prevent a boat from upsetting. Practice llv it is better to have the air lock run. from end to end of the boat.

ELECTRICAL SIGNS. A very striking electrical sign has been set up in Denver (U.S.A.). The sign represents a skyrocket shooting from the ground to a height of 150 feet, where it exulodes into hundreds of sparks that fail in it shower to the ground. This effect is produced by successively illuminating a string of lamps running up on the side of the building to tho top of a tall framework on the roof. Over a thousand lamps arc used to produce the effect.

BTRENGT HENI NO M ASO NRY. An injection of cement was the novel method lately adopted to make strong and serviceable two crumbling stone railway bridges at Hamburg, Germany. The, archesslft in span—were cracked in all directions, and small holes were bored partly through the masonry at the sides of the cracks, and thin masonry cmfwyp was forced in at a pressure of five atmospheres. When this had hardened, tho store-work was found to be thoroughly consolidated.

TENSION STRAPS FOR NOSEBAGS. The horse feeding from a common nosebag must toss his head to get all the grain. This causes considerable waste, as some of the grain is thrown out. A new invention is intended to adjust tho bag to the nose of the horso as the grain is eaten away. It- consists of brass tubes, one of which telescopes into the other. An. open coil spring is placed in such a way as to draw the tubes together. One of these devices is placed in the strap of the nosebag on each side of the horse's head. The tension of the springs is adjusted so as to keep the level of the grain against the horse's mouth at all times.

SOLID WOOD FROM SAWDUST. A machine, has been invented that turns sawdust, shavings and chips into solid pieces of wood. The material is carried on a votary belt to the machine's hopper, thence to" a plunger or compressor. Through the centre" of the 'mould into which the shavings and sawdust are forced is a small hempen rope. A pressure of 20 tons per square inch is exerted and the solid body is driven out of the machine in a shape similar to a round stick of wood of 4in diameter. The machine is said to turn out about six tons of sticks per day.

MOTORS FOR FARMERS. A scheme which, if successful, may revolutionise methods of irming transport in England and help the British "agriculturist in his fight against foreign competitors. is shortly to bo tested in Kent. It is nothing less than an attempt on a large scale to place Kentish farms, villages, and towns in direct touch with London by means of rapid motor traction. In order to secure tho necessary capital a. company to be known as trfc Kent-London Motor Transport. Ltd., is to be formed with a capital of £75.000. Operations will be begun by establishing a service between the. Maidstone.- Tunbridgo Wells, and Rochester districts and London. SPECIAL 3-WHEELED MOTOR CAR The roads of Costa Rica, notorious for deep ruts which make touring with the usual type of motor car almost impossible, are responsible for a peculiar type of car. The car might prove just as useful, however, in other countries afflicted with deeply-rutted roads. It is well-nigh a mechanical impossibility to get , out of many of these ruts with the four-wheeled car without, assistance. With the newlydesigned car, however, the front wheel runs between the ruts, and makes if., possible to steer out of the track. With the exception of the single wheel in front, and the slight alterations of the frame to suit it, the chassis follows the usual design.

COLOUR DESIGNS IN GLASS. A new form and method of making stained glass, f.iirl to be far superior to th.» ordinary stained article with heavy lead and metal lines, has been adopted by an American concern. The glass itself first receives the pattern in mineral colours, and it is then " fired into the glass by heat so intense that glass and colour become fused into an impervious whole. At the same time the face of the glass receives a curiously pebbled surface which gives the colours a softened, mellow character. Each panel is bent separately into shone bv the application of heat and is comnleto in itself, requiring only to be assembled in a metal frame to form the complete picture. Every part of the pattern is said to be transparent, no matter how intricate the design.

CONCRETE POLES AND PIPES. Concrete tube!-, posts, etc., arc produced by centrifugal whirling action at a factory in Saxony. A steel skeleton may be t";ed to give strength to the pipe, and this is inserted in a. mould, with a suitable cement mixture, and this mould— which is in two sections —is given 500 to 1000 revolutions per minute for 10 to 15 minutes, in a series *of special machines. Asbestos fibre is introduced to prevent the separation of sand. etc.. from the concrete. The pipes formed are given uniform thickness by keeping the moulds in a. horizontal nnsition. and the shape may be varied by inclining the moulds. The centrifugal force, i.e., a force which impels a body to fly outwards, moulds, presses and dries the plastic mass. BATTLESHIP FITNESS. There is no doubt that grave doubt is felt in some minds as to the fitness of our fleet, quite apart from its size, for such doubt has been freely expressed of late. We commend to our authorities a plan adopted by the U.S.A. We learn that the battleship Nebraska has won the competition for tho 12 . months ending June 30 for the best condition of machinery among battleships and cruisers, and, therefore, will receive the trophy, which is a bronze tablet measuring about three feet by one and a half feet. The last session of Congress appropriated money for encouraging engineers in keeping the. machinery of the ships in the best possible condition. It is estimated that already the- competition has saved the Government one million dollars (about £200,000) in coal and oil-fuel bills.

FIRE-ALARM HANDCUFFS. For a person to be presented with a handcuff every time an alarm of fire is •sent in over the wires from a street box, and to receive it in such manner that to refuse the gift is. impossible, seems a rather extraordinary proceeding. Yet such a gift is one inventor's idea of the only way to provide effectually against false alarms. The special handcuff firebox in provided with a, cover, which the operator must raise. . He is then required to push a button to send in the alarm, which action also causes, a handcuff to fasten itself about the wrist. _ The handcuff, merely being for identification, is not. chained to the box, so the person sending in the alarm carries it away with him. It is a handcuff difficult to conceal, being quite large, and must be unlocked at the fire station. If there is a fire the wearer of the handcuff is to be thanked, but if the alarm is false he is 4o be dealt accordingly. J