PIPE SHOOTS THROUGH ITS STEM
Though innocent enough in outward appearance, a novel type of firearm disguised as a smoking pipe serves as a formidable weapon when it is needed. The gun fires a .25 caliber cartridge. Its stem unscrews for loading, while the bowl of the pipe serves as a magazine for five extra rounds of ammunition. A knurled screw near the center serves as a trigger, and fires the pipe pistol when it is pulled back as illustrated in the photograph above, the user sighting meanwhile along the length of the stem. A German inventor is responsible for the unusual weapon.

MUSIC IS USED BY SURGEONS TO EASE OPERATIONS

Music has been found of value in surgical operations to ease patients during and after the administration of ether. Melodies are supplied by a phonograph, or instrumental selections are rendered by an artist. Several demonstrations have been made at a Brooklyn, N. Y., hospital.

Danish Furniture Knocks Down for Moving

DESIGNED chiefly for sale in Europe’s war-devastated countries, this new line of Danish furniture sacrifices little in visual appeal. Modern in appearance, the simple, functional pieces are well suited to mass production methods. They can be quickly set up or taken apart, thus easing the moving problem on the unsettled continent. Shipping and storing difficulties are correspondingly lessened, since in a knocked-down condition the furniture occupies less than a quarter of its’ normal volume. Stacking also allows for considerable saving of space.

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Revising the Map of America to Save a Nation

By William Dyce

DISASTER threatens the United States. Productive farm lands are becoming desolate deserts. Cleared lands, where once stood thick forests, are being ravaged by destructive floods. Uncle Sam is in danger of losing hundreds of thousands of acres that are now helping to feed his 125,000,000 citizens.

To avert the threatened calamity the government is in effect revising the geography of the country. Where waste land now exists, happy farmers are expected to till a productive soil. Where flat prairies sweep to horizons on all sides, great forests will arise. Where rivers never existed, water will flow. Shallow, sluggish streams will become principal arteries of commerce. And, in some cases, where civilization rules today, a wilderness will exist tomorrow.
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Whoops, I apparently cut off the article when I scanned it, but it was a cool looking vehicle so I thought I’d post it anyway.

Longest Auto Paints Road Lines

CONSIDERED the longest of motor vehicles actually in use on highways, a fleet of 288-inch wheelbase trucks were recently built for the State of Indiana. These elongated trucks are used to paint the white or yellow center lines on highways and to cover the shoulders of concrete roads with boiling asphalt. In building the machines …

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Test Your Coordination

By Luis Hochman

IS YOUR party growing dull? Are your guests looking at their watches, yawning, and searching for the nearest exit? Then it is time to bring out some new fun in the form of a contest of skill with paper and pencil. The props are simple, just plain writing paper and a couple of pencils …. the stunts, well suppose you try them.
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Hairline Air Line
This Paris, France, youngster pilots a realistic model airplane through the perils of his first haircut. Less air-minded small fry can he snipped while riding a merry-go-round or mounting a roarless lion.

English Car’s Trunk Opens by Push Button
Touching a button at the front side of the rear seat opens the trunk compartment of the new Vauxhall Velox, an English automobile.

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What ever happened to the Manned Space Stations?

By Dr. Wernher von Braun

Director of NASA’s George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.

DURING the years before Sputnik, several writers, including myself, predicted that one of the first objectives of manned space flight would be to establish one or more orbiting space stations.

Today we’re busy building rockets and spacecraft to take men to the moon. We have been fabulously successful with Project Mercury, and our Saturn I rockets have shown that they can reliably haul more than 10 tons of payload into orbit. Yet little is heard of manned space stations. Why is that so?
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Earrings Aid Identification
Metal earrings are now being worn by English fishermen for identification in case of accident or death at sea. The metal pendants are stamped with the names and addresses of the wearers.

Body Sway Drives Eccentric Bicycle 15 Miles Per Hour

CALLED the simplest self-propelled vehicle in the world, a radically new type of bicycle, entirely without pedals, is driven by body motion alone.

The rear wheel of this “x-ercycle,” as it is called, is eccentric; the rider stands on a springy footboard and swings his body in rhythm with the up and down movement of the frame to produce forward motion.
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These are actually kind of cool looking.

Photographic Cut-Outs Appear to Prop Up Book Ends

To make novel photographic book ends of the type illustrated, first take pictures of the subjects pushing against a wall or the side of a car and enlarge to 5″ by 7″. These enlargements are mounted on 1/4″ thick plywood with glue or dry mounting tissue.

The outlines are then cut on a jig saw with a rather fine blade. Read the rest of this entry »