Science Siftings

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXIV, Issue 6, 8 February 1906, Page 29

Science Siftings

By 'Volt'

A Cheap Safety Lamp. Aboil I I've lues per a\ eek were caused in London last year by Kerosene lamps. This gives importance to the problem of producing a cheap salety lamp, and an association ot the leading English grocers has offered a handsome prize for a lamp, costing not more than 50 cents., that shall be as safe as a common candle under all conditions of ignorance or carelessness. Though this is the fifth time the prue has been oflered, no satisfactory invention has been found. Wonderful Flight of Birds. Dr. F. 11. Knowlton, of the United States National Museum, says that perhaps the longest straightaway flight made by buds m their migrations is accomplished by some of the shore and Avater birds that nest in the islands of Ben ring Sea, and spend the winter at'llawan and Fanning Island, 2:21)0 miles away. As some of these birds live entirely on the .shore, and are probably unable to rest on the surface ot water, they must, says Dr. Knowlton, accomplish the whole distance in a single flight. Yet, although thete are no landmarks for them upon their long journey over a waste of waters, they make their way to their destination with the precision of a rille bullet. Sunlight and Cancer. Artificial light is to find a powerful ri\al in sunlight lor coming sanatoria Preparing for an operation for cancer on the external ear, Dr. llirschberg, a H'rankfort surgeon, visited C'au\ les Terntet, on, Lake Geneva, where he was exposed to the sun's rays for many hours a day, and the eflect was so unexpected and surprising that he extended his stay to several weeks, when his ear became completely healed without the operation. Other cases — including throat treatment by passing sunlight through the open mouth — have given similar lemarkablc results. It is explained that cells of cancer and other diseased tissue, being unable to , protect themselves by absoibing coloring; matter from the blood and becoming pigmented, are killed by the sunlight ; and that mountain resoits are especially favorable because the intensity of the light i.s greater, there is less vapor, and the air is free from germs. The Development of Mining. Perhaps in no line of human eflort have modern developments brought more striking results than in mining. Lecturing the other day on modern and ancient methods, an English engineer, Bennett 11. Brough, pointed out the progress that has made it profitable to mine copper oio m the Lake Superior district at a depth of 5U0(l feet, gold oio at the New Chum Railway Mine m Victoria at a depth of 4226 feet, and coal at the Pendleton Mine, near Manchester, at a depth of 3000 feet , to work with profit at Kimberley rock yielding one-tenth of a carat of diamonds per load ; to work with profit at the Atlantic Mine, Lake Superior, rock containing seven-tenths of one per cent, of copper ore ; and for a gold mine at Bendigo to pay a dividend on a yield of two pennyweights to the ton of ore. An Invisible Wire. Invisible platinum wire is stated to have been drawn by the late Henry F. Head a third of a century ago. Several yards weie made, in lengths of three feet or less, and when wound upon a white card it could be felt but ordinarily could not be seen, although its shadow was visible. The wire was drawn through as fine a hole as could be conveniently drilled. When the platinum was reduced to this size, it was coated with silver and again drawn through the die. This was repeated as many times as necessary, when the silver was dissolved away, leaving the fine platinum wire. The product was intended for the cross-threads of optical instruments. The animal hairs employed were affected by dampness, but the brightness of the metal proved an even more serious disadvantage, so it never came into use.