Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

War/dafthe r < .- ------ =--=^ —l-"f •' j Sc/E/IEE UpE/75/Yew Dnmm/ff in Hmeie/j ’ a Seeeee By JOHN DICKINSON SHERMAN will admit without I question that a person 1 I entirely deaf is badly IjTliL-jyj handicapped. You pre sumably can figure out. ’O' putting your imagina tlon at work with your experience, what a very different world tlds would be if ail its inhabi tants had always been unable to hear sound. The importance of sound in the manifold activities of human life is inestimable. Sound, for us, consists of air vibra tions plus the human ear. Is the human ear any more perfect than the human eye? The microscope, to say nothing of the telescope, Ims revealed "to us an entirely new world beyond .man's unaided vision—and a world of .inestimable importance. JS'ow comes the “Ultra-Audible Microphone’’ to reveal to us the new world of sound that is beyond the power of tlie human ear. Its possible disclosures aie purely guesswork. They may be as important to man as the disclosures of the microscope. 'Science owes most of its knowledge of the mechanism of the human ear to the telephone industry, which, in its search for a perfect telephone, was forced to study the mysteries of human speech and hearing. And here Is the way the human ear works: The ear that we see is merely the sound catcher. Entering, the sound tirst en counters the ear-drum, which it vi brates. Next are three little hones which magnify these vibrations. To the last bone is attached a smnll -liquid-tilled sack In the form of a spiral. Inside this sack is the true organ of hearing. Take this organ out and uncoil it and you have a little ladder about an inch and a quarter long, with several thousand separate rungs set closely together and longer at one end >f the ladder than at the other. Each rung Is a separate, living fiber and each has its tiny nerve through which it sends its message to the brain. Shrill sounds affect the short rungs of the ladder; deep sounds the other end. If the ladder Is Imperfect, hear ing Is imperfect. Deep sounds are produced by slow vibrations of the air; shrill sounds by rapid vibrations. There are persons who cannot hoar high notes at all: others hear low notes imperfectly. Incidentally, some day we shall see people wearing “ear spectacles,” just ns people wear glasses for defective vision. Study of the radio broadcasting problem brought about the Invention of the ultra-audible microphone. Dr. Phillips Thomas of the research staff of the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing company is the in ventor-lie is shown here listening in on a tuolh. Practically all radio trans mitters depend for their operation upon a thin disk of metal called a diaphragm. No diaphragm to date responds perfectly to musical sounds that have a very high number of vibra tions. Dr. Thomas was working to remedy this defect. Says S. M. Kint ner, director of the company's research laboratories: “The best way to gain some con ception of the possible importance of X-isrp7/zy&2?r cwaavopaa-- Q& p -f v>r „ - v• ti trj y-.-'-pp/' BSbI y da 1 ■/ISA J \ U'J 1 \ ‘ultra-audible sounds’ is to realize that the normal person is in the same re lation to these sounds as the stone deaf person is to audible sounds. Above tlie range of the human ear there is possibly a vastly greater va riety of sounds which ought to be just as useful to us as are audible sounds. The ultra-audible microphone should be to the ear what the micro scope Is to the eye. Just what it will bring 11s, no one can say. But every invention that has extended the range of our senses has revolutionized our ideas, and this one is likely to do the same. “Sound, of course, consists of air vibrations. When the rate of these vibrations is slow, say around 40 times a second, we hear a deep bass note. When the vibrations number 250 we hear the note tve call ‘middle C.’ At 12,000 vibrations per second we reach the upper limit of musical sound for most ears. At 20,000 vibra tions per second the sound passes be yond the reach of ordinary human hearing. The air can, however, vibrate at rates up to a million or more times a second, and it is highly probable that it is constantly doing so. Hence, there is a range of sounds, from 20,000 vibrations per second upwards to an unknown limit, of which we have hith erto lived in complete ignorance but which can now be studied by us. “The instrument Invented by Dr. Thomas consists essentially of a ring of insulating material in which two small electrodes are inserted diamet rically opposite to each other. A high voltage is applied to these electrodes and there forms between them a ‘glow discharge,’ which is neither a spark nor an arc, but a streak of soft, purplish light. Tills glow-discharge was found by Dr. Thomas to have the peculiar property of being affected by sound waves as conveyed by the air. When the sound waves strike it, it vi brates in sympathy with them and in doing so causes exactly correspond ! ing changes in the flow of current to the electrodes. “Telephone and radio transmitters are vibrated by sound. This makes the electric transmission of speech possible. Unfortunately, however, no diaphragm that lias so far been de signed responds perfectly to sounds having vibrations above 4.(XX> times a second. Since many musical sounds have vibrations higher than this rate, uiusie broadcast by such transmit ters is not perfect. I'r. Thomas was given the task of remedying this de fect and discovered the fact that the glow-discharge would vibrate in per fect sympathy with every possible i sound and hence was able to transmit THE DANIELSVILLE MONITOR, DANIELSVILLE, GEORGIA. i | fl, been removed, however, and the next instrument can now be made availabh for scientific purposes. The Westing house engineers will pursue studies ol the ultra-audible field, but in all like lihood will confine their attention tc subjects of immediate practical im portance. “The potential value of such an in vestigation is evident if we considei an allied field, namely, ether vibra tions. For a long time men knew only two kinds of ether vibrations— heat and visible light. Since tlier scientific research lias added othei forms of ether vibrations,- such as the X-rays, electric waves, ultra-violet ot actinic rays, and radio waves. The great usefulness of all of these dif ferent forms of vibrations is common knowledge. Ultra-audible sound vibra tions may prove to be equally valu able in many ways.” Col. George Fabyan may find his sound experiments facilitated by the use of the ultra-audible microphone. Colonel Fubyan’s 550-acre estate neai Geneva, 111., contains world-famous laboratories devoted in part to the study of sound. There he is devot ing his fortune to the solving of sci entific enigmas. He is working on a big scale. There are 35 buildings on his int erbank estate, as all the scien tific workers live in special houses under a colony system. Colonel Fabyan himself has achieved fame as a cryptologist, an expert in the cipher ing and deciphering of codes. Uncle Sam turned to him for aid in the World war and at one time more than 200 student officers were quartered there. Laboratory activities in codes, trench warfare and munitions cost this patriotic American at least a quarter of a million during the World war. The sound laboratory—one of a dozen —contains a building within a building. This inside building has special foundations and walls and is sound-proof, both front the outside and on the inside. In it is a collection of 73 organ pipes that range in size and tone. A piano, chimes and the largest collection of tuning forks in the world are also available. The transmission, reflection and absorption of sound are here studied perhaps more compre hensively than anywhere else on cart it. In addition to the study ol sound mechanics the experts are at work on the functions and peculiari ties of the human ear. Colonel Fabyan is not much more communicative about certain unusual researches in sound than the “silent Sphinx” mentioned by Senator Pat Harrison in his keynote speech at the Democratic convention. But it is known that some extraordinary dis eoverles will be made public soonc or later by the Riverbank labora tories. music perfectly foi broadcasting pur poses. “But its greatei possibilities soon be came evident. As far as can be deter mined, the glow-dis charge will respond to any vibration up to the uttermost limit, whatever that may be. Hence by its use, all sounds in the ultra-audible region can be identi fied and studied witl ease. “Until recently the Thomas micro phone was in an ex perimental state and Dr. Thomas himsell was the only persor able to make it per form properly. The imperfections have *. s jp! mm 'Pl|pf **£i .till! Bungalow Most Convenient and Practical of All Small Homes By WILLIAM A. RADFORD Mr. William A. Radford will answer questions and give advice FREE OF COST on all subjects pertaining to the subject of building, for the readers of this paper. On account of his wide experience as Editor, Author and Manufacturer, he is, without doubt, tlie highest authority on all these sub jects. Address all inquiries to William A. Radford, No. 1527 Prairie avenue. Chicago, 111., and only inclose two-cent stamp for reply. For the smaller homes where the housewife does her own work the building experience of years has sug gested nothing more convenient and r* 4-b-u r-fiK-r — t-4 ii r T toBL B toM 1 11-OxlhG \ Cl I 11-Ox JJ-6 | 15-0" I I m 1 * Dining Km. pnf |l— M !i j|| H '5-o\ i*o- /||Kitchen,. | M M tj J K l| II ' l| 'I *' u u b u v U practical than the bungalow. And, happily, this type of building lias been developed until it may be built with an attractiveness exceeded by few, if any, other types of homes. The house illustrated here is an excellent example of hotv a small home may be built to have the com fort and advantage usually associated with more pretentious residences. The exterior of this home finds much of its charm in the fact that it is not burdened with superfluous ornamenta tion. The porch, with its arched en trance, is inviting and the adjoining terrace with its trellis will be most Waxing Floors A good method of treating oak floors, and one which permits of a very high gloss tvaxed finish, is as follows: After thoroughly cleaning ttie floors, taking care that no dust is present, give the floor a coat of high-grade floor var nish, and when thoroughly dry rub smooth with mineral wool, then apply second coat. After tlds is thoroughly drv, again rub smooth with mineral wool and tire floor is ready to be waxed and polished. The greatest care should be taken that the floors are thoroughly free from dust or dirt in order that the fin ish may not be marred hy dust spots or lumps, which will be the case if dirt and dust is not thoroughly removed. Crushed Stone Driveway Crushed stone makes a very satis factory driveway and can be built at i less cost than concrete and is an item of considerable importance to the home owner, who must arrange an outlet from his garage especially Pi suburban districts where no allej ■*d joins. Crushed stone rfineed to a dCDth attractive when proper planting in closes it in a living wall of green. The front entrance from the porch goes directly into the living room, 19 by 15 feet. The charm of this room is insured by the fireplace and the excellent lighting and ventilation. To the right of the living room, as yon enter, is the dining room, 15 l.y 13! feet, with its wall spaces arranged nicely to accommodate the required pieces of furniture. The kitchen will be found to be especially well arranged and of a she to permit the most convenient and Floor Plan. efficient working arrangement. The built-in cases are on either side of t a* sink and working space, which is di rectly in front of a window, assures the worker an abundance of fight aD “ a cheerful outlook. A service porch to the rear adds Its quota of con venience. The bedrooms and the bath a reached through a hall opening from the living room. The bedrooms are well lighted ana ventilated and well provided " ,ta closet space. The bath has ooen placed in a suitable place in the t oo plan. of aboijt four inches will be sufficien and should be of a nrtxed size, so that the spaces can be quickly filled, an will require a smaller amount ‘ e screenings, which are applied and a lowed to fill in the cavities. These screenings act much in the natun < cement and form a very close bonu the larger-sized stones. It is well for one to keep on a—l a couple of barrels of the sertvninfS for redressing the surface in 1 - '' which, from time to time, return e a ditlonal filling. Mirror Is Valuable A mirror In a lovel y fra me act eristic period design Is s of intrinsic value. It w;h ■ bring beauty into a room, but •• confirm the period atmosp. e is essayed. For example, then Chippendale type modeled m art with its delicate and eh>. sign; the Hepplewhite, w;r details, shield-shaped or oval , n ‘ the motif in the chair backs. ," n _ ty Sheraton, or the more ou stitution style.