SCIENCE SIFTINGS

New Zealand Tablet, 24 January 1918, Page 46

SCIENCE SIFTINGS

By “Volt/* .** -.' V > •>».,•. ■ -.,' ,-. .y, - -.., - _V.

A r New Leather. , The scarcity of leather has led to numerous experiments with shark s skins and the hides of other large fish. They have been tanned' quite successfully and there is reason to think that in a little while we shall be wearing shoes made out of this new material. It is said to , be soft, pliable, and extremely wear-resisting; added to which advantages' there 'is a ; practically unlimited supply of the material. Eleven thousand pounds of shark hide from Alaska were landed at Puget Sound recently, and Nicaragua has also a bountiful supply of the same skins', New Use for the Phonograph. , When one of the units of the Royal Flying Corps is scouting it usually carries two men. One is the pilot, who runs and steers the craft; the other is the observer, who marks the placing of the hostile troops, . the position of their guns, the movement of trains, and so on. ' . - The observer also makes many sketches of the ground over which he is —work that often interferes with his writing notes and memoranda. - In certain conditions of flight: it is often hard for him to use a pencil and paper. To obviate this difficulty, the military aeroplane now frequently carries a phonograph, with a speaking-tube running to the mouth of the observer, so that by talking into the machine at any time during the flight he can record his observations and still have his hands free for his field-glass or his sketching pencil. Blasting With Liquid Oxygen. It has been known that liquid oxygen mixed with substances like cotton wool forms a powerful explosive, but serious difficulties were encountered in its practical use. A new method has now been discovered for handling this oxygen that makes it practical for commercial use. Bags are filled with a special form of lampblack, which are soaked in the liquid oxygen for a few minutes just before they are required for use. If the bag is now lighted with a match it will burn quietly and very slowly, but if detonated it explodes with the force of dynamite, and , the cost is much less. Much less carbon monoxide is given off than by most other explosives, and there is no danger from a mis-fire, as the oxygen will evaporate in a short time. Honey as a Preventive of Influenza. . Writing to the American Farmer , Mr. Frank Benton, of Washington, points out that an effective remedy for influenza is contained in honey. If a teaspoonful of honey be taken daily, and permitted to dissolve slowly on the tongue, one can be tolerably sure of remaining exempt from this disease. Honey dissolved in water and snuffed up, through the nose hastens the cure, as I found in my own case two years ago. The cause of this lies, without doubt, ; in the fact that good honey contains formic acid as one of its constituents, which substance kills the ■ influenza bacillus that develops by preference in the mucous membrane. Of course, the honey must be genuine, for only such contains formic acid. The sweets produced from syrup and resembling honey, and offered on the markets under the name honey, . are no preventive against the disease. ; - ,r ; . ....... ' ’..