SEEING THROUGH THE IMPENETRABLE.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3468, 23 April 1920, Page 3

SEEING THROUGH THE IMPENETRABLE.

\VONI)ERb' OF '.1.‘.11.E Nl:1\-\' ."x"-.';::\ 'l' Just, t\vcnty~fom' years -.14.}, I‘-w----.fessur K0111"-g'c1n.—-u Dutch .stc.imltist, by the way—~dlscovcl'ed the value mf rh-.3 X—ra.y.~s and 'l]luir power of "~.;.‘<i.'.-g through” ihc lluman body. His rctirexneutv has recently been :umou:lr:cd; he has accepted. no honom'-.s'~—hc has always mokcd upon hls own work as 1:5 mm rcwul‘d.

In 1896 it was <:<)xl-.~"ul01'ml m:ll'\‘eHous to phot.ogl'aph the bones of the hand with half an hour‘s exposure to the X.—:':\§'s. ’l_‘“o-(lay the heart: is ".~'u:tpslmttcd” in huxxdrmith of u .<cc()nd_, the entire contents of it \\':ltCh man be pllot.ogl'apllod witholri opmling the case even, and the interior é(nlstruction of ex throc—inch shell of 501110 unknown puttcnl t:.-an be p}mtogr:lphcd in fl._ few minutes. -

Twenty years ago ‘lhe X-r:l_v apparatus W 215 \\'ol'kud by a few electric cells, such as are used for lighting‘ a top lamp; to-day irlslullzttimls are being worked with ('l_Vll2'lllloS taking 20 h.p. to drive ‘them’, and :1 ‘ton of lead or more is Vrequircd to shield the operato'r from the dangerous effects of the rays. The l1l(‘.(_llC{l1 side of ){~l'ay‘work is, in t'acl‘, beginning to look like taking :1 secondary place, (lOS])il‘€ i'rs vast? value, and in(lus1:1'i:1l X—l':ly work thl‘c:zllcns to :l:5.“.lllll(.‘. the lJl'(‘llli(‘l‘ posi-

rion. TllO illllllcllsoly po\\'el'ful :1m1:11‘z1lL'1.s" 111z1(le to-day is b()i11g applied fo Hll3‘ ox:1111i_11a‘:1'o11 of 111ct:1'1 czlHl'illgs, of! motor Iyl'o.x', of wcldoii joilll'.<. 211111 of‘ I':':lulty 11101-.llallism. 6 A. 'fl'eqllolli‘ fault" in :1 ml-st‘illg is lhci pl'csollc.e of “blow-l1olo.~‘,” small hol-E low spzxm.‘-s in the 11191111 wllic.ll mztyi (‘.:1l1S0 «l1's:1.~'1‘:o11.s' I'o-slllt.°. if i'a, be \\'ol'kod 5 up into solllc part’ of lligll—spoed’ 111c(-l1:.111‘is:111. All I\'—l‘zly phot.og'l':lpll 19,-‘ vcals tho;~'0 f:lull'.s and locates tllcm,| :11111. 11111:-.11 r~.\'pcllsiV(~. labour can be: saved by “.<cl'appi.llg” Hm castillg bcvl fore it is workod up. i Of special value, ‘too. are the rays in I'cVea.lillg flaws in the timber used: for the vital parts of aeroplalles. ‘ Now following on “the ro'pol't of Rolat'goll’s I'otil7elllcnt comes news of‘ the death of Dr. Cecil Lyster, of the‘ I\Iid(lle-sex Hospilfal~—«allol'ller ,vict.inl' of the cruel efieelé of the X-rays} L 1-Ipml the llumall body. ‘ 1 ‘The question fO-day giving :111xi0LV to physicists is how to protect 0111'sclvos against ‘the o'fi’eo.t;< of these new rays, which will polletrzlte .<eV'e:':ll inches of hard steal.

The X-rays tube, gellel':xti:xg the rays is sometimes enclo-sled inn prcrg tnctivc box lined with’ lead woig'hing Two tons or nlorel The cll"'ocl‘s of the rays can be obscl'\"e(l ‘.t'ort.y feel away; yef such is l'll(‘.il' disclrilnin:lting power ‘that they will rexv-‘cal ‘:1 (l'lf'f.el'once of a thousandth of "an inch in a shoot of lmit-:1. ‘ F

An o]lH“(?i}’ new field has been opened up by thin) new X-rzlys, which will show us ‘the contents of a tadpolo’s si‘mna(-h or :i, flaw in :2 stool al'moul' piafo. or the age‘ of’ an ancient: ’n‘o(‘.' _‘ ' L 'l.‘hoy are on:l_bling tjié radiologist to 2:00 HH‘01lg1)'?i1(‘. _illipcile_%tl'abie, and will in ‘the near fiitu_l'o sdlye many riddles which foi"v..eli‘rul'i(!s have hafflod science. '