SCIENCE NOTES

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 241, 1 March 1913, Page 2 (Supplement)

SCIENCE NOTES

IMPORTANCE OF SLEEP. The amount of sleep required varies published by Messrs Eveleigh Nash). The -Before the Doctor Conies," recently published by Messrs Eveleigh Nash. The importance of sleep in relation to bodily growth is seen in the case of the infant, which for a considerable period after birth passes the most oi its time in sleep, only waking to take nourishment. Again, in the period of youth the amount of sleep (i'nouiil be considerable, for the i same reason that makes the sleep of the infant all-important—namely, that growth is favored by the absence or cessation of bodily work. For the average adult, doing a fair day's work, eight declared themselves in favor of exteudrepresenting a fitting period for rest. Certain persons, however, by reason of their constitution, may require a slight addition to this period, while others, again, are capable of maintaining health on a somewhat less liberal allowance. Medical officers of schools have recently deelahed themselves in favor of extending the hours of sleep for young and growing bodies, and a period of from nine to ten hours may be reckoned as probably being required for the health of iboth sexes during the period of adolescence.

GIANT BIRD FOUND. Mr. Walter Granger, a noted fossilhunter, who has just returned from an expedition through Wyoming and Xew Mexico in the interests of the Museum of Xatural History, reports the discovery in the Wasatch Mountains of parts of the skeleton of a monster bird which roamed through that region millions of years ago. It is known to scientists as the diatryma, having been described by Professor Cope in 1870. Mr. Granger declares that his find is unquestionably the largest specimen ever unearthed in North America, and it is the first specimen of the kind in the possession of the Museum of Xatural History. The fragments were found embedded in hard shale, and scientists say that the great bird thrived in Patagonia during the .Tertiary period. A year ago Mr. Granger found the famous four-toed horse, while more than 1000 specimens of mammal fragments and fossils were secured by him during the past season.

SPORTTNG DOCS IN SPECTACLES. A sporting dog at Leads Hill, Arkansas, has just been fitted with spectacles by an oculist, who discovered that she was suffering from astigmatism (says the New York correspondent of the Express). Minnesota Fanny, a thoroughbred English setter, owned by Mr. Troy Cantrell, was deemed the best sporting dog in Arkansas until the opening day of the quail-shooting this year, when her owner was puzzled to see her falling into ditches and running into trees. Examination showed that her eyes had become affected during the summer. Fanny's spectacles resemble motoring goggles, and are held in place by a strap, while metal rims protect the lenses from damage. She now hunts as well as ever.

HOW TO LIVE LONG. Consequent on the letter of Mr. L. F. Duncan to The Times, telling how, on two meals a day. he has attained the age of 02, and is still in good health, has come the. inevitable query from another veteran concerning smoking and alcoholic drinks. "I!. 12.531" "writes that Mr. Duncan's interesting letter confirms what has been practised in his family for three or four generations—viz., two meals a day. "That moderate eating has been conducive to health and long life," proceeds the writer, "is proved by my grandfather reaching bis 101st year and my father SS. "Both mv son and T are moderate eaters. Now for a shock for the teetotallers. AYe have never debarred ourselves from wine, but. spirit; have carefully been avoided. T fear I must give the anti-smokers a worse' shock. All of us have been heavy cigarsmokers. My grandfather smoked till within a year of his death, my father within a week of his death enjoyed a cigar, and lam still smoking from 10 to 12 cigars a day." A representative of the Globe recently paid a visit to Mr. Duncan, who declared that be only smoked for one year in his life, and that he bad only four glasses a year—champagne in each case—one on Christmas Day. one I on New Year's Day. one on his wife's j birthday, and one on bis own. IS TIIK CLIMATE OF EUROPE CHANGING? Mr.'D. \Y. Homer. F.R. Met Soc., asks this question in the Countryside for DeJ cember. The careful study of Grcenj wich records for the past 200 years would, he says, seem to give a reply in the negative, and yet M. Camille Flammarion, the Government Astronomer of France, some years since pointed out that there bad been a mean fall of about 4 degrees in the mean temperature of the whole of France during the last century. Now a similar divergence in the rainfall of Paris has been discovered, and, according to the same authority, there has been a persistent increase in the amount of rainfall in that city during the past century. The scientific evidence seems, according to Mr. Horner, to bear out Hie popular idea, mid that is that the climate of France is uot what it used to be. and Paris is at times as humid and foggy as London.

KLFX'TRTP MOTOR AS A KmiKTITFTR FOR THE BRAIN'. That the function of the human braiil can in certain eases be fulfilled by mechanical devices has long been understood, and has led. among other things, to the construction of various calculating machines, which are of the highest practical utility, to say nothing of such scientific curiosities as the "logical machine." But the ordinary calculating machine still requires a human agent to manipulate it. Tt is a rather obvious step to eliminate this feature and render the device entirely mechanical by working it with the aid of an electro-motor. This, indeed, is now a fairly common practice, though, of course, it still leaves it to the operator to perform the actual setting up of the figures to be added, multiplied, or (he like. The possible improvements do not, however, end here. Machines have been made which do a great deal more: upon being fed with the requisite data on the form of perforated bauds or cards, they will tabulate such data, total them up. and perform oilier operations. One such machine will add 30.000 sevenfigure numbers in one hour without any human assistance of anv kind. Machines' of this kind found extensive application during the last census in Herman.

rATfIIIXC VISIT f.V TtOLHPHOXK. A French inventor lias taken out a patent, for the catching of fish by means of the telephone. Kish when swimming emit certain sounds which can he detected by the telephone. The inventor's apparatus consists of a telephone receiver and detonator, which are sunk in the water and connected by wires to a post of observation <>u the river hank. When lish in any number pass the receiver a sound is heard by the watcher, who lias only to press a button to explode the. detonator. Fish killed by the detonator would float, and could be removed from the water with a net.