SCIENCE OF THE DAY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20372, 28 September 1929, Page 5 (Supplement)

SCIENCE OF THE DAY.

DEEP-SEA WONDERS. .Astonishing discoveries liavo been made at Nonesuch Island, where the Beebe deepsea expedition, under tho auspices of the New York Zoological Socity, has been at work for several months. " There is a big field here," said Dr. Beebe. " And every day \ve find new material of vast scientific value. Only a day or two ago wo noticed a dark streak of water. Wo netted a quantity of tho floating life and discovered it to bo millions oi young jellyfish. Beyond tho reefs there is a vast field for exploration. Nonesuch Island, in tho words of I)r. Beebe, is an ideal centre in an island already admirably adapted to the work of studying niarino life. Already 125 specimens of fish have been found and properly classified. A very delicate fish was caught at a depth of one mile, a fish so delicate that it defied dissection or the examination necessary for classification and record. Using a chemical solution tho amazing result of decolonisation of the flesh was obtained and a clear view of the bono revealed. There are fish in tho Beebe collection all stomach and all mouth some with eves that seemed unnecessary for their outlook on life. Some queer creatures have tentacles longer than their bodies. Fish within fish were found, and in one case fish devouring each other. While in his diving helmet Dr. Beebe has found many now fish which ho has been unable to capture. The expedition will remain at work there until November, when the Beebe party will return to New York with the largest and most remarkable collection of deep-sea life ever found by a modern scientist. AN OLD VEXED QUESTION. A fellow of tho Royal Horticultural Society has resolved doubts whether a tomato is a vegetable or a fruit. It .is generally considered a matter of opinion, but ho says that it is definitely a fruit, because it comes from tho flower of the tomato plant. Everything which fertilises from tho flower of a plant is classified as fruit. Thus cucumbers and marrows are both, botanically, fruits. Despite this tho Royal Horticultural Society's book savs that a tomato is both fruit and vegetable, and in shows tomatoes are always exhibited among vegetables.

THE KEAL ADAM AND EVE. Palaeontologists aro claiming that the real Adam and Evo were Chinese, whoso Eden was situated in a pleasant corner of what has since " gone sour " and turned into the Gobi Desert. Peking considers that tlio local discovery last year of the jaws, skull and teeth of Sinanthropus Man indicates that Adam was a Chinese who lived half a million years ago.

OARBON DIOXIDE VERSUS FIRE. American firo brigades aro experimenting with a new kind of firo extinguisher in the form of high-pressure cylinders containing carbon dioxide. When tho carbon dioxido is released it pours out a cloud of white flakes like snow which reduces the temperaturo of the air as it molts and absorbs tho oxygen from tho air, thus smothering the fire. It is expected that this method of fire-fighting will be very valuable in combating oil, paint, ana chemical fires where water is of little use.

SHOCK FROM HUMAN MUSCLE. An illustration of the discovery that overy musclo of tho human body is a sort of electric battery, sending out minute currents as tho muscle works, was given by Professor E. 1). Adrian, of Trinity College. Cambridge, and Professor Joseph Barcroft, Professor of Physiology at Cambridge University, at a recent demonstration in London. Professor Adrian pierced tho muscle of his upper arm with a long needle, from which a wire was connected to an amplifying apparatus. From this apparatus ran a cable leading to recording macliinory, and a wire returned from tho recording machinery to a loud-speaker in tho studio. As the professor moved his arms and exercised the muscles there c ame from tho loud-speaker a series of darkling noises like the Morso code. Tho sound varied in intensity according to tho amount of muscular effort exerted. It is expected that the apparatus will bo useful in diagnosis of certain nervous disoascs. It is being used now for investigating the effects of sleepy sickness.