THE SOUND OF EIGHT.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 482, 21 June 1890, Page 6

THE SOUND OF EIGHT.

A Remarkable Discovery With Great Possibilities, One of the most wonderfui discoveries in science that have been made within the last y.iar or two is the fact that a beam of light produces sound. A beam of sunlight is thrown through a lens °n a glass vessel that contains lampblack, coloured silk or worsted, or other substance. A disk having slits or openings cub in it is made to revolve swiftly in this beam of light so as to cut it .up, thus making alternate flashes of light and shadow. On putting the ear to the glass vessel strange sounds are heard so long as the flashing beam is falling on the Recently, a more wonderful discovery has been made. A beam of sunlight is made to pass through a prism, so as to produce what is called the solar spectrum, or rainbow. This disc is turned, and the coloured light of the rainbow is made to break through it. Now, place the ear to the vessel containing the silk, wool, or other material. As the coloured lights of the spectrum fall upon it sounds will be given by different parts of the spectrum and there will be silence in other parts. For instance, if the vessel contains red worsted, and the green light flashes upon it, loud sounds will be given. Only feeble sounds will be heard when the red and blue parts of the rainbow fall upon the vessel, and other colours make no sound at all. Green silk gives sound best in red lighb. Every kind of material gives moro or less sound, in different colours, and utters no Bound in others. The discovery is a strange one, and it is thought more wonderful things will come of it.