SCIENCE SIFTINGS

New Zealand Tablet, Volume L, Issue 28, 19 July 1923, Page 54

SCIENCE SIFTINGS

By "VOLT

Are Continents Adrift? i /" We often speak of, the solid earth, but scientists are ; ; beginning to wonder whether all the land portions of our globe are not in a state of movement. It was discovered some'years ago that part of Green- "J land was slowly changing its position. It is not exactly f a. rapid- movement—a yard or two a year—still it is move-' * ment. Observations made recently seem to show that all continents may be drifting like sticks on the surface of a \- lake. V One scientist believes that thousands of years ago America was joined to the Old World, and certainly if you ' cut out the countries from a map of the world, like pieces - . in a jigsaw puzzle, you will find that North America fits quite nicely into -jagged coastline of Britain, France, and Spain, and that South America seems made to be joined to Africa Solving Nature's'Secrets. The aid of pilots on Europe's growing network of airways is to be enlisted to solve some of the secrets of bird life. The work will be done unofficially, but the airmen are to lie encouraged to set down any observations of bird life that they may encounter. It is hoped that in this way some light may be shed on migration and similar problems. Observations have hitherto been made casually, but no steps have been taken.to collate them. When the late Sir Ross Smith was flying from England to Australia he ran. into a flight of hawks. It was a common practice at one time at Royal Air Force stations to race swallows and swift, and although the machines usually outpaced the birds, some extraordinary speeds have been observed among swifts. These birds, curiously enough, have shown little resentment of man's intrusion in the air, although British pilots have reported attacks by eagles when crossing the Pyrenees. On the Bridge of a Liner. \ A captain of a large passenger liner (says Captain C. f A. Smith, of the Berengaria, in the Weekly Dispatch) is ■• always on duty, so to speak, from the time he leaves port until he reaches the other side. The only time he relaxes is when he hands his giant ship over to the marine superintendent. -Port, to port" is the captain's spell of duty. Obviously he must sleep at sea, but metaphorically he does so with oue leg out of the bunk. Before I leave the bridge, I make sure of the ship's position and record it I prepare my "captain's night orders," wherein are noted any alteration of course and directions when I am to be called. 'There are always some, cautionary remarks to the officer on watch—e.g., as to open ports and fog. If near land the precise position of the ship must be marked on the chart. The compass must be corrected for any deviation, and steps must be taken to ensure that the ship is held:properly on her course. The junior officer on watch must be made equally conversant with everything. Even he must be prepared to deal with all emergencies. On every Cunard liner a special officer is detailed to supervise the actual steering of the ship. When fog descends, or even threatens, the captain instantly goes on the Berengaria's bridge. This is the universal rule for a master during a fog. Under my feet are 52,000 tons and 4000 people, who have implicit trust in me. Whole families are sleeping with the same sense of security as in London. My officers and I are dim shadows silhouetted against the driving fog, which writhes and twists like some gigantic ghost. Every nerve is taut, the engines at stand-by or eased down. At Y % regular intervals our whistle—sounding hoarse and scarify- ft ing in the black night-splits the dead silence. Far away f i hear an answering signal. I know exactly what I am going to do, but the. skipper's anxiety' in a fog is "Does S the other fellow know?" That's the fog problem. There is Jno room for imagination on a bridge. - >