A NEW fire brick, one-third the weight of a standard brick of the same size, and light enough to float on water, is expected to revolutionize the brick industry. Robert F. Martin of Philadelphia is the inventor.
Smaller foundations will be possible in brick buildings, since the dead weight of the walls is cut in three. Handling costs will be much less.
Chops Wood With Steel Hands DELICATE but powerful are the steel hands made by Andrew A. Gawley and his blind father. Though both arms were amputated thirty-two years ago in an accident, Gawley has learned to use his artificial arms to such an extent that today he earns his own living as a machinist. He […]
A MACHINE gun hardly heavier than an air rifle, yet capable of firing 700 shots a minute with almost no recoil and no possibility of overheating, was recently 'announced by its inventor, Clyde Farrell of San Francisco.
Special bullets receive only an initial impetus from the firing pin, and generate their own energy in flight, just as do rockets. All remaining energy is released when contact is made with the target.
A CRIPPLED inventor of Akron, Ohio, has recently completed what he believes is the world's most wonderful clock. The remarkable instrument gives the comparative time in 27 different cities. In addition, it sings, talks and plays a reedless pipe organ every hour.
ARDENT anglers who have too often conic out second best in their battles with the tricky denizens of the trout streams might take lessons in fish taming from Herbert Hyde of Salt Lake City, Utah. One of Mr. Hyde's most prized possessions is "Jumbo," a four pound rainbow trout that not only didn't get away, but doesn't want to.
Reminds me of Hurra Torpedo. Musicians Present Beethoven in Dishpan Symphony CLASSIC musicians yielded to the influence of Tin Pan Alley in a novel concert recently staged by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra to celebrate the raising of a deficit fund. Under the direction of Dr. Frederick Stock, leader of the orchestra, all of the members […]
See-Saw Rocks Dead Back to Life PERSONS apparently drowned can be “rocked” back to life by a new artificial resuscitation apparatus being installed in hospitals all over England. The machine produces 10 to 15 see-saw motions a minute to induce an exact imitation of natural breathing. It work automatically once the patient is balanced on […]
Fan Builds Stovepipe Telescope USING a section of stovepipe for a tube, Arnold Oswald, Los Angeles amateur astronomer, has constructed a remarkably efficient reflecting telescope at a surprisingly low construction cost. The total expense of constructing the stovepipe instrument, including the pipe, lens, reflector, tripod, counterbalance and other accessories, was slightly more than ten dollars, […]
Machine Knits Socks by the Yard SOCKS by the yard for the English foot are being turned out by a new machine whose finished product is not unlike a length of link sausage. Speedy in operation, the knitting machine turns out the hose in a continuous length. The socks only require cutting apart before being […]
An artist's drawing of the proposed coast-to-coast super highway on which automobiles may travel at speeds of 100 miles an hour, making the trip between New York and California in forty-eight hours. Road builders are now working on plans for a four-lane highway with all grade crossings eliminated.
Punctured Auto Tube Seals Itself A NEW tire tube contains specially compounded plastic rubber which flows into a puncture, quickly closing it and preventing loss of air. Unlike previous devices of this nature, the new tube gives unusual comfort in use and is light in weight. It can be used on the smallest car without […]
Novel Door Lock Stops Gangsters AN AUTOMATIC electric clock built for revolving doors such as are used in banks and department stores was designed by three Minneapolis inventors to thwart gangster attempts at wholesale robbery. The device is concealed in the wall just above the axis of the door. In case of a holdup any […]
ONE would expect to find a Du Pont in a Washington drawing room or on the sands at Newport; but young Richard Du Pont, son of the industrial magnate, reverses the procedure by spending a great part of his time in a workshop.
Out in the San Fernando valley, a short distance from Los Angeles, stands a small laboratory. There young Du Pont and his co-workers are daily experimenting to make the air currents safer for glider-conscious America.
Largest Dial Thermometer Built THE world’s largest dial thermometer has recently been installed at Atlantic City. The diameter of the dial is 22 feet; the pointer measures 9-1/2′. The control element is a small helix of bronze tubing filled with a liquid which expands or contracts with each change in temperature.
EQUIPPED with gas guns effective at 150 yards, a scientific expedition in search of new specimens will give battle to the animals abounding on the Galapagos Islands. Located about 500 miles west of Ecuador, these islands have been a magnet for scientists since Charles Darwin first obtained valuable data for his "Origin of Species" from study of its animal inhabitants.
PHOTOGRAPHS of a man flying through the air by his own power, the dream of scientists for centuries, completely fooled outstanding U. S. newspapers recently.
Captions on the photographs, coming from Germany, explained that Pilot Erich Kocher took off with a pair of rotor wings strapped to his chest. Kocher supposedly blew into a box which converted the carbon dioxide of his breath into fuel to operate the rotors. The turning rotors developed a vacuum ahead pulling the man through the air.
THE famous German sculptor Antes has developed a radically new type of airplane which promises to come closer to the ideal flying wing than any other type of aircraft.
The Antes plane has absolutely no fuselage or tail structure. The single wing structure is stream-lined in such a way that the craft is stable under all flying conditions.
Penny Brush Has Powder, Too THE penny toothbrush is here. A Hollywood dentist has designed a new type of brush to be put up in packets of five in a sealed glassine container. The compressed cotton top, with ridges to simulate bristles, is covered with a film of dental powder. Brush is ready to use.
Water Golf Is Played From Rafts THERE are no water hazards on a certain golf course in Pasadena, California—the entire course is laid out on the water. Caddies paddle the golfers about the course on tiny rafts. The holes are floating cups, anchored in position.
Homes Reflect Owners’ Curious Whims TAKING their cue from the celebrated old woman who lived in a shoe, modern home builders, moved by whims or necessity, have fashioned strange dwellings which outrival the most fantastic nursery rhyme. Perched on the sands of a southern California beach, for instance, is an ocean-going yacht which has never […]
MAN'S greatest problem is the weather. It destroys crops; it kills thousands of persons annually; it causes disastrous Hoods, tornadoes and cloudbursts; in the form of a drought it brings starvation, disease and suffering.
In three weeks of August, 1896, a "heat wave" caused 2,036 deaths from sunstroke in the United States alone. Two years earlier a hot spell destroyed $50,000,000 worth of crops in the single state of Iowa.
Light Beams Guide Blind Thru Building Without Escort BEAMS of light now guide the sightless through building corridors and up and down stairways. The subject is equipped with a portable photronic cell unit which sounds a buzzer as long as the operator travels along the light beam. The buzzing ceases when the course is changed. […]
A RADICALLY new type of landing gear is now being used on a German low-wing monoplane, permitting the ship to land with equal ease and safety on land or water.
Two large rubber balls, resembling nothing more than huge basketballs, spin freely inside cup-shaped boots. On land the balls turn just as wheels do on the ordinary land airplane. On water, however, the balls act as pontoons, skidding over the waves.
DOWN among the coral reefs off the Florida coast lies the world's strangest college laboratory—the under sea classroom of the marine zoology department of the University of Miami.
Clad in bathing suits, the class sails to the laboratory site, dons diving helmets and sinks into the sea, as assistants on the boat above send fresh supplies of oxygen pulsing through the air tubes.
Burner Using Any Fuel Oil Perfected by Blind Inventor DESPITE the fact that he has been blind for sixteen years, a persevering inventor has recently completed a successful oil burner which uses all types of fuel oil. The burner is a vertical type with an air blade for every oil outlet. The device is controlled […]
A CAMERA so small that it can be swallowed without discomfort takes sixteen pictures of the inside of the stomach.
A two inch long metal cylinder contains the camera, a roll of film, and a tiny flash bulb capable of 20,000 candle-power illumination. The control plunger runs through a two-foot rubber tube attached to the cylinder.
British Invent Midget Camera ANSWERING the demands of photographic fans for even more compact equipment, a London manufacturer has perfected a tiny camera which takes pictures the size of a postage stamp. The midget device takes eight photographs on a roll of film and is to sell for about a dollar.
FLUFF-O MFG. CO. sounds like the name of some present day ultra-hip animation studio. GO INTO BUSINESS for YOURSELF MAKING MAGIC CHEESE CHIPS NO HOUSE-TO-HOUSE NO COSTLY MACHINE TO BUY EXPERIENCE UNNECESSARY
Speeding Auto Tows Aquaplane DOWN in Florida, where good roads often parallel the water for miles at a stretch, aquaplane enthusiasts have invented a new sports thrill. Selecting a stretch of water whose banks are not lined with trees, the thrill-seekers hitch an aquaplane to a speeding automobile with a long tow rope. In the […]
by PAUL PADDOCK
SCIENTISTS, turned showmen, are displaying an amazing $44,000,000 spectacle at this year's version of the Century of Progress in Chicago. Actually the World's Fair is depicting 101 years of progress. In that brief period of twelve months man has moved forward rapidly.
The marvels of his achievements are recorded in more than 100 new attractions in the second act of this great show. Except for a few outstanding buildings, the visitor will scarcely be able to recognize last year's fair. A new panorama of color, new buildings, a resplendent lighting system, original, thrilling, and amusing attractions, and a dramatic review of the world's latest accomplishments—all are combined in this mammoth exhibition on the shores of Lake Michigan.
Driver Rides High in New Bus THE driver of a new German stream-lined bus sits high above the motor, in a little compartment located between the two floors. Steering rods and controls are all lengthened. Long tiers of windows give passengers on both floors a clear view. The unusually high windshield gives the driver a […]
Tin Clad Knight Stands Guard Duty Over Parking Lot COMPLETELY encased in glittering armor from his helmeted head to his tin clad toes, an English car park attendant is furnishing a quaintly medieval note to a distinctly modern scene. Daily he stands guard over the automobiles parked at the Tudor House in the Kentish town […]
Big Bee-hive Gets Water From Air AN ODD “drinking water fountain” in Europe acts as a giant artificial spring, condensing the moisture of the air. The thick brick walls keep the inside of the stone structure at a lower temperature than the outside, so that moisture condenses on the thousands of stone slates.
by WILLIAM JENNINGS
SAFE from bomb attacks—free from disease and changing temperatures—living in cities a mile beneath the surface of the earth—such is the dream of science for the man of the future, a not impractical dream which may doom the towers of Manhattan and every other large city to destruction.
Despite its towering skyline, the trend of building construction in New York City has been ever downward. Today the island of Manhattan and its surroundings are honeycombed with a vast network of underground facilities. There are more than 130 tunnels and underground areas in the metropolitan district; more than 2800 miles in the subterranean sewage system, and about GOO miles of subway trackage carrying 5,000,000 passengers every day.
Man, I bet that thing moves fast! Pencil Sharpener Is Stream-Lined THIS stream-lined pencil sharpener is a novel addition to any office, home, or workroom. It was designed by Raymond Loewy, well-known designer of automobiles and office equipment. Even though the sharpener is much smaller than conventional units, the inventor asserts it is just as […]
by DOUGLAS ROLFE
Automatic airplanes, steered and flown by special photo cell equipment invented by the Englishman, Mr. Sidney G. Brown, may revolutionize war air raids.
WINGING their way with deadly precision towards the apparently unsuspecting city which is their objective the enemy bombers are alive with bustling activity as the bombing crews take station and prepare for the impending attack.
Cyclists Maneuver Galloping Bikes in Novel Polo Match A POLO game is seldom dull, but when galloping bicycles are substituted for the traditional steeds, the fun begins. A polo match on bicycles was a feature of a recent cycling meet at Heme Hill, London, England. Spills were frequent as riders literally tossed their cycles about […]
Diagonal Bathtub Is Revolutionary THE introduction of a new diagonal bathtub marks the first major change in bathtub design since the first installation in 1841. Though the new tub is but four feet square, it has just as much room for bathing as the rectangular tubs. The bathing recess extends diagonally across the corners, with […]
Faced with problems that would have staggered a superman. President Roosevelt has come through his first year in better physical shape than when he took office. This story reveals the secret of his amazing vitality and what he does to maintain it.
by JAMES NEVIN MILLER
EVERY day of his official life President Roosevelt is faced with momentous decisions affecting our national life; yet his greatest problem is not the settling of affairs of state but the safeguarding of his personal health.
The White House pressure is terrific. Once officially saddled with the destinies of more than a hundred million people, our chief executive faces a task which leads, almost inevitably, to shattered nerves, premature old age, physical breakdown and sometimes loss of life itself.
Radio Calls Movie Star to Work HERBERT MUNDIN, movie star, recently had to work in four different pictures at the same time. Finding it rather difficult to keep track of his working day schedule, and to know just where he was wanted next, he had to use a portable radio set. With radio communication the […]
by NIKOLA TESLA As told to ALFRED ALBELLI
Tesla's World of Tomorrow
"We are on the threshold of a gigantic revolution, based on the commercialization of the wireless transmission of power.
"Motion pictures will be flashed across limitless spaces . . .
"The same energy (wireless transmission of power) will drive airplanes and dirigibles from one central base.
"... In rocket-propelled machines . . . it will be practicable to attain speeds of nearly a mile a second (3600 m.p.h.) through the rarefied medium above the stratosphere.
". . . We will be enabled to illuminate the whole sky at night . . . Eventually we will flash power in virtually unlimited amounts to planets."
—Nikola Tesla.
Balloon-Rocket to Soar 43 Miles A balloon-rocket conceived by a Wyoming inventor is expected to roar 43 miles into the stratosphere. Carried 11 miles by the balloon, the operator cuts loose, ignites two opposed rockets and soars 33 miles higher. One mile is lost cutting away from the balloon. When the rocket power is expended, […]
Giant Shoe Is Built Over Auto A FOREIGN shoe manufacturer, desiring to advertise his business, built a giant shoe 10 feet high and more than 16 feet long. The metal shoe is mounted on a lengthened automobile chassis, with a windshield above the instep. The canvas luces flap in the wind as the car races […]
Guard Prevents Lipstick Smears A TINY device which slips between the lips effectively prevents lipstick from making smears while actresses try on gowns. Studio wardrobe departments are finding the guard especially valuable in protecting expensive costumes. The device is pressed out of heavy paper.