SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN SUPPLEMENT NO. 595
NEW YORK, MAY 28, 1887
Scientific American Supplement. Vol. XXIII, No. 595.
Scientific American established 1845
Scientific American Supplement, $5 a year.
Scientific American and Supplement, $7 a year.
| TABLE OF CONTENTS. |
| I. |
BOTANY.—The Relation of Tabasheer to Mineral Substances.—The composition of this curious secretion of the bamboo.—Analyses and properties of the material, according to various observers.—Its appearance under the microscope. 1 illustration. |
| II. |
CHEMISTRY.—Apparatus for Drying Flour.—An apparatus for determining the moisture in flour. 1 illustration. |
| III. |
ELECTRICITY.—Automatic Commutator for Incandescent Lamps.—An apparatus for lighting automatically a new lamp to replace one that has failed. 1 illustration. |
|
Definitions and Designations in Electro-Technics.—Mr. Jamieson's proposed code of electric symbols—literal and graphic. 4 illustrations. |
| IV. |
ENGINEERING.—New Dredging Machinery.—The dredger Ajax, recently built in California.—Its dimensions and capacity. 1 illustration. |
|
Reservoir Dams.—By DAVID GRAVELL.—The engineering details of dams.—Typical masonry and earthwork dams of the world. 23 illustrations. |
|
The Flexible Girder Tramway.—A new type of suspended railway—a modification of the wire tramway system. 21 illustrations. |
| V. |
HYGIENE.—Climate in its Relation to Health.—By G.V. POORE, M.D.—The third lecture of this series.—Consideration of the floating matter of the air and diseases caused thereby.—Causation of hay fever. |
| VI. |
MATHEMATICS.—Radii of Curvature Geometrically Determined.—By Prof. C.W. MACCORD, Sc.D.—No. VII. Path of a point on a connecting rod. 3 illustrations. |
| VII. |
MICROSCOPY.—Improved Microscopical Settling Tube.—By F. VANDERPOEL.—New tubes for use in urinary analysis. 4 illustrations. |
| VIII. |
MISCELLANEOUS.—Apparatus for Manufacturing Bouquets.—An ingenious machine for facilitating the construction of bouquets. 1 illustration. |
|
Bozerian's Refrigerant Punkas.—A fan worked by the feet, a substitute for the Indian punka. 2 illustrations. |
|
How to Make a Kite without a Tail.—An improved form of kite described and illustrated. 1 illustration. |
|
Punkas.—By J. WALLACE, C.E.—The mechanics of punkas; experiments on their rate of swing. |
|
The Edible Earth of Java.—An account of this curious substance, its taste and appearance. |
| IX. |
NAVAL ENGINEERING.—Another Remarkable Torpedo Boat.—Over twenty-eight miles an hour.—Full particulars of the trial of one of the new Italian torpedo boats, built by Yarrow & Co. |
|
Copeman & Pinhey's Life Rafts.—A new life raft for use on steamers, folding into deck settees. 3 illustrations. |
| X. |
PHYSICS.—Sunlight Colors—By Capt. W. DE W. ABNEY.—A valuable lecture on the cause of the colors of the sun, and their relative intensities. 3 illustrations. |
|
The Wave Theory of Sound Considered.—By HENRY A. MOTT, Ph.D., LL.D.—Arguments against the generally accepted theory of sound. |
COPEMAN & PINHEY'S LIFE RAFTS.
The experiments with life saving appliances which Mr. Copeman brought before the delegates of the Colonial Conference, on the 13th April, at the Westminster Aquarium, had a particular interest, due to the late and lamentable accident which befell the Newhaven-Dieppe passenger steamer Victoria. In many cases of this nature, loss of life must rather be attributed to panic than to a want of life saving appliances; but, as a general rule, an abundant supply of such apparatus will tend to give passengers confidence, and prevent the outbreak of such discreditable scenes on the part of passengers as took place on the Victoria.
FIG. 1.—COPEMAN & PINHEY'S LIFE RAFTS.
Messrs. Copeman & Pinhey have, for some years past, done good work in this direction, and at the recent meeting of the Institution of Naval Architects, Mr. Copeman showed several models of the latest types of their life saving apparatus, both for use on torpedo boats and passenger steamers. Our illustration (Fig. 1) represents the kind of rafts supplied to her Majesty's troop ships, while Figs. 2 and 3 show deck
