Science Notes & News

Horowhenua Chronicle, 31 May 1911, Page 4

Science Notes & News

KOH SAK.KTY ON THK RATL"WAYS. Tliciv has been installed on one of the l'Jijili:;li railways a Jiew system ui signaling whi:-h, it is claimed, is the most perfect .yet devised. The apparatus is coniiccti-'d to the signal, and consists of -a magazine for lidding detonators au:l a long arm which is emit rolled by the .same lneciiaiii-.'al agency as that whkh works the signal. Should a fog desi-P'iid any one of the railway men can pull (.he lever which .sets niacliiito in operation. When the signal stands at danger as n train enters a section, the arm picks a jletonator i'roin the magazine and lays it on t!u v line. As soon as the signal is lowered and the train passes, the arm lifts the used detonator from the line, drops it into the magazine, and plnr-ex another live one in position. The magazine, holds fifty detonators, and when the number falls to ten a shrill whistle is set up until the stock is renlen-islip-l.

HKfGHT OF CLOUDS

Many varying answers have been returned k> this q>:rstirni of how high the clouds are, and, in fact, it may ho stated that there is no (ixed height for any kind of cloud. Swino remarkably interesting -measures of the height of clouds have bren made at Vienna by an ingenious method. Advantage was taken of the extremely brilliant light furnished for the grent illuminated fountain erected not long ago in that city. By means of a projector it was foiMid that a beam of light could be sent up to the clouds, producing upon them a luminous spot capable of being observed simultaneously from points on the earth two or tliree miles apart. ' My such observations the height of certain clouds of the cirrus variety was found to ibe as much as 10.000 meters, or nearly 33,000 feet. '

RARE DUCTALS IX EVERYDAY USE. Many rare metals have up to tillo present 'oeen put to commercial use. Thorium, employed for incandescent gas l)ii mors, cliiefly comes from Brazil. The tantalum minerals, tantalito and columinte, .supplying lilaments for elivtric lamps, an , obtained in the United Slates and Australia. Zirconium, in zireonia ami ga.loliiiito, is abo used in the Xe.rpsfc and Wedding lnmps. Vanadium, from the United States and Mexico, •enh'i'fi into the st?:>.rfr:niv; v s of moLoi'-c'iS. IJraminni ovch, vielcli !il»; ra'lium, are doitvocl from •foaehiinsthal in lJoh'?.min. MolyIneiuun, from Queensland and Canadi.; is used in a fine stoeil foi- tow!s or arms and for alloyin.q; \villi nickel. Tungsten. <;f importance in certain steels, is furnisli-ed by Queensland in. wolframite, a mineral found also in Connvall. .