Megaphone Features “Mike”
OPERATED by batteries carried in a leather case slung over the shoulder by means of straps, as shown above, a new microphone-megaphone enables an announcer to speak in soft tones, yet have his voice heard by persons standing far away. Specially designed for use at stadiums and other places where crowds gather, the device has also proved valuable in helping policemen direct traffic.

I’m not sure I get the analogy here. I mean I appreciate the message they are trying to get across. However it seems that if he really didn’t want to plow that acre he could just use ddt or something and kill all those dang weeds. Which I guess represent black people, or jews. Or does the soil represent a minority and the weeds represent um… bad minorities? That want to infect the pristine, weed free majority?!?

Well at least the message in the second part is clear: Speak out whenever you hear someone say they are not going to plow a field. And don’t spread rumors about dirt that is different than what you are used to.

Weeds or Crops America?

The farmer looked at his untilled acre.
“Nope,” he said, “Won’t stick a plow in there. Don’t care if it is fertile—I just don’t like the color of the soil.”

So the weeds grew rank and spread their seeds to his other acres, fouling his cotton and stunting his corn. And his harvest was poor.
There are some who would do the same for America. They would neglect the cultivation of the minds of young growing Americans. They would set them apart, deny them equal advantages …
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I had no idea decalcomania was a real word. From wikipedia:
“Decalcomania, or décalcomanie, a decorative technique by which engravings and prints may be transferred to other materials, was invented in Russia and introduced into the United States at least as early as 1868.”

Device Labels Sausages
Indelible labels are printed on sausages and other meats packed in natural casings by an automatic machine operating on the decalcomania principle. The device is designed to protect housewives from the substitution of inferior products for well-known brands.

Launching Tomorrow’s Satellite
When the first man-made satellite is launched on its orbit around the earth, it will owe its existence to the thousands of missiles which have preceded it, and to the careful analysis of their patterns of flight. The Univac Scientific of Remington Rand has speeded this effort immeasurably, handling flight analyses for the nation’s guided missile program.
Each missile firing, each analysis, involves enormous amounts of in-flight data, with manual computations normally requiring from 250 to 500 hours. This staggering work load is accomplished by the Univac Scientific Electronic Computer in approximately 4 to 8 minutes. Read the rest of this entry »

Laser May Guide Space Ships
GREATLY amplified light beams may provide optical lane” navigation systems to guide planes or spaceships of the future, using a newly-developed material.
Scientists at the IBM Research Center, Yorktown, N. Y., have announced a laser (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) that gives the first continuous beam of amplified light. It uses uranium ions in a cylindrical 1-1/2-in. crystal instead of the ruby in a previously-announced laser (see p. 94, Nov. ‘60 S&M). The earlier amplifier could transmit light only in widely-spaced pulses of about .001 second and needed about 500 times as much power as the uranium type. IBM says future refinements now depend on improved optical design rather than advances in materials research.

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Delusions About Shaving

By J. G. Pratt

The author of this article has gained an international reputation for his remarkable work in high-powered microscopic photography, as Scientific Photographer for the Bureau of Entomology, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C. This article was prepared by special arrangement with the editors of this publication.

AMONG countless thousands of men who shave every morning before breakfast, probably few phases of the process equal in importance the factor of one’s own imagination.

In the following paragraphs it is not my intention to criticise any one’s personal habits, but merely to present a few scientific facts to help the man who does his own shaving, and perhaps guide him in the purchase of new razor accessories.
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They Harvest Seeds Of Death
The pictures on this page show Royal Engineers in North Africa engaged in a job in which, as their slogan goes. “Your first mistake is your last”— clearing away land mines. Loaded with high explosive, these mines are cunningly buried, are usually set to go off only when the weight of a truck or tank presses down on them. But some of them are “booby-traps”—set to go off if a man steps on them, or even if they are not picked up in precisely the right manner. Above, a “sapper” carries a magnetic detector, to locate mines. Right, a mine has been found. Top right, result of a morning’s work.

Chef Fashions Caricatures In Toast
FEW people would find an ambition for developing art talent in toast yet Louis Strakes, a New York restaurant chef, has developed striking cariactures from this common breakfast item. Using people prominent in the world news Mr. Strakes begins the caricatures by browning slices of bread to various shades. The bread is then cut into small pieces and assembled to form the character to be depicted. When the figure has been completed it is mounted on a base consisting of four pieces of toasted bread. Toothpicks are used to hold the caricatures together. In a few months Mr. Strakes has become world famous for his unusual craft.

Atomic Force Measured In Giant Electronic Test Tube
PENETRATING deeper into the mysteries of science Dr. M. A. Tuve and his assistant, Dr. L. R. Hafstad, of the Department of Terrestial Magnetism at the Carnegie Institute of Washington hope to measure atomic force on instruments developed by them through years of research.
Working in the institute’s laboratories the two scientists have set up elaborate equipment for making the measurements. One of the devices used by them is a huge static electricity instrument looking very much like a giant test tube and distiller. With this device and similar electronic devices they may find the answer to a problem which has for years puzzled scientists throughout the world. Similar research is being conducted in schools throughout the world.

Robot Bookkeeper Actually Thinks
ELIMINATING all possible chance of errors occuring in bookkeeping and accounting a new machine, recently introduced in New York City, is far more accurate than any human being in keeping records. Special automatic mechanisms operated by electric motors handle the various accounts giving both sub and grand totals.
The machine which operates as a combination typewriter, adding and bookkeeping machine is expected to save users thousands of dollars through its elimination of errors.

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When Your Invention Goes to Washington

Through the doors of the Patent Office in Washington has passed all of the progress of America. Here came the first telephone, locomotive, automobile, wireless. The inventors of today will create the progress of tomorrow. What comes next?

THIS article is addressed to the man with a new idea and who wishes to obtain a bullet-proof patent and who wishes to make money with that idea. It is to be borne in mind at the outset that a good idea covered by a weak patent will be practically worthless and that a poor idea covered by a strong patent will be equally worthless. It behooves the inventor, then, to make sure that these cardinal mistakes are avoided.
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This is a pretty cool looking vehicle.

Mobile Broadcasting Booth
Radio reporters and commentators view news events at firsthand from the weatherproof press box built on a truck chassis for the Columbia Broadcasting System. As many as four commentators can broadcast simultaneously from the observation platform at the rear of the truck. The Plexiglas windows provide full vision on three sides. A plastic bubble atop the truck gives full forward vision. The truck has a high-frequency transmitter powered by its own generator. It has a range of 35 miles from the home station and can tie into telephone cables for longer transmission.