SORTING THE UNFIT

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 268, 8 August 1919, Page 7

SORTING THE UNFIT

REMARKABLE MACHINE. TO HELP MEDICAL EXPERTS. . A remarkable machine, which has so far been little used in England, is nowbeing employed in tho Research Department of tho Ministry of National Service to simplify the medical analysis o f tho 250,000 men who were found too unfit for tho Army and placed in Grado IV. It is a super-sorting machino, driven by electricity, and its surprising laboursaving quality makes possible what may turn out to be the most exhaustive analysis over mado of the ailments of 60 large a body of men. ' For each man there is a card on which a complete 'history of him appears, coded in numbers. i His occupation, height, tho reason for his rejection by tho Army, tho colour of his eyes and hair, and many other details' all appear as numbers. The colour of his eyes may bo represented. say, by tho figure 5 in a certain column. A hole is punched so that a small circle is left.. . Then the machine comes in. If it is desired, 6ay, to refer to tho cards of all men with blue eyes, it is necessary merely to drop all tho cards into llie-top of tho machine, press a button, and then tnko the "blue-eye" cards as they aro neatly and quickly sorted in a bundle at the bottom of the machine. II: will deliver the,cards in this way under any desired heading, and will even assist in tho co-relating of headings. It has been found, by tho by, that for tho important work at punching the cards, on which (he efficiency of the machine depends, girls under 10 are most suitable. I