Part 44

Why Does the Scenery Appear to Move When We Are Riding in a Train?

When you sit in a moving train looking out of the window it appears as though the fields, the telegraph poles and everything else outside were moving, instead of you. This is because our only ideas of motion are arrived at by comparison, and the fact that neither you nor the seats of the car or any other part of the inside of the car is changing its position, leads you to the delusion that the things outside the car are moving and not you. If you were to pull down all the curtains and the train were making no noise at all, you would not think that anything was moving. It would appear as though you were motionless just as everything in the car appears so. When you turn then to the window, and lift the curtain you carry in the back of your mind the idea of being at rest and that is what makes it appear as though the fields and everything outside were moving in an opposite direction.

This is particularly noticeable when you are in a train in a station with another train on the next track. There is a sense of motion if one of the trains only is moving and you feel that it is the other train, because you are surrounded by objects in the car which are at rest, and when you look out at the other train with this half consciousness of rest in your mind, it appears as though the other train were moving when as a matter of fact it is your train. If the delusion happens to be turned the other way, it will appear as though you are moving and the other is still. It depends upon what cause the impression starts with.

Why Don’t the Scenery Appear to Move When I am in a Street Car?

If you are in a street car in the country and moving along fast you will receive the same impression, especially in a closed car, because you are looking out of one hole or one window. In an open car you do not receive the same impression because your range of vision is broader. You can and do, although perhaps unconsciously, look out on both sides and the impression your mind gets through the eyes is not the same. If you were to pull down all the storm curtains in a moving open street car, and then look out of one little crack, you would think the outside was moving. But if you stop to remember that you are moving and not the things outside the car, then the impression vanishes. In the city, of course, your brain is so thoroughly impressed with the fact that houses and pavements do not move, and the cars move so much more slowly, that it is difficult to make yourself believe otherwise. The impression is more difficult always when you are moving through or past objects with which you are perfectly familiar. It is all, of course, a question of impressions.

Why Does the Moon Travel With Us When We Walk or Ride?

The moon does not really travel with us. It only seems to do so. The moon is so far away that when we walk a block or two or a hundred, we cannot notice any relative difference in the relative positions of the moon and ourselves. When a thing is close at hand we can notice every change in our position toward it, but when it is far away the change of our position toward it is so slight that it is hardly perceptible. A very good way to illustrate this is to ask you to recall the last time you were in a railroad train looking out at the scenery in the country. The telegraph poles rush past you so fast you cannot count them. The cows in the pasture beside the railroad do not seem to go by so fast. You can count them easily. The tree farther over in the next field does not appear to be moving but slightly, while the church steeple which you can see far in the distance, does not go out of sight for a long time--in fact, seems almost to be moving along with you. The moon is just like the church steeple in this case, except that it is so much farther away that it seems to travel right with you. It is all due to the fact as stated at the beginning of this answer, that the relative positions of yourself and the moon are only slightly changed as you move from place to place, so slight in fact as to appear imperceptible.

Is There a Man in the Moon?

The markings which we see on the face of the moon when it is full can by a stretch of the imagination be said to form the face of a man. On some nights this face appears to be quite distinct. If, however, we look at the moon through a telescope, we see distinctly that it is not the face of a man. Through a very large telescope we can see very plainly that the marks are mountains and craters of extinct volcanoes. It just happens that these marks on the moon, aided by the reflections of the light from the sun, which gives the moon all the light it has, make a combination that looks like a face.

Does the Air Surrounding the Earth Move With It?

This is one of the old puzzling questions which many a high-school student has had to struggle with to the great amusement of the teacher who asks for the information and such other scholars who have already had the experience of trying to solve it.

To get at the right answer you have merely to ask one other question. If the air does not revolve with the earth, why can’t I go up in a balloon at New York, and stay up long enough for the earth to revolve on its axis beneath me, and come down again when the city of San Francisco appears under the balloon, which should be in about four hours? If that were possible, travel would be both rapid and comfortable, for then we could sit quietly in a balloon while the earth traveling beneath us would get all the bumps.

No, the atmosphere surrounding the earth moves right along with the earth on its axis. If it were not so, the earth would probably burn up--at least no living thing could remain on it--since the friction of the surface of the air against the surface of the earth would develop such a heat that nothing could live in it.

Why Does Oiling the Axle Make the Wheel Turn More Easily?

If you look at what appears to be a perfectly smooth axle on a bicycle or motor car through a powerful magnifying glass, you will find that the surface of the axle is not smooth at all, as you may have thought, but covered with what appear to be quite large bumps or irregularities in the surface. If you were to examine the inside of the hub of the wheel in the same way, you would find that it also is like that. Now, when you attempt to turn a wheel on the axle without oil, these little irregularities or bumps grind against each other, producing what we call friction. As friction develops heat, the metal of the axle and the hub expand and the wheel gets stuck.

What Made the Mountains?

There is no question but that at one time the surface of the earth was smooth, i. e., there were no big hills and no deep valleys. That was before the mountains were made. The earth was a hot molten mass that began to cool off from the outside inward. It is still a hot molten mass inside today. The outside crust became cooler and cooler and the crust became deeper and deeper all the time. Then when there would be an eruption of the red-hot mass inside, the earth’s crust would be bulged out in some places and sucked in in others and would stay that way. The bulged out place became a range of mountains and the sucked in place became a valley. This process went on happening over and over again until the crust of the earth became firmly set. Volcanos caused some of these eruptions, as also did earthquakes. There are today gradual changes occurring which to a certain extent change the outside surface of the earth, and it is possible that new mountain ranges will be produced in this way.

What Makes the Sea Roar?

The roar of the sea is a movement of the sea which causes the same kind of air waves or sound waves that you make when you shout, excepting that, of course, the vibrations do not occur so quickly in the sea and, therefore, the sound produced is a low sound. It is no different in any sense than the same noise would be if the same air waves could be produced on the land away from the water.

Why Is Fire Hot?

When a fire is lighted it throws off what we call heat rays or waves. These waves are very much like the waves of light which come from a light or fire or the air waves which produce sounds. The rays of light and heat which come from the sun are like the rays of light and heat from a fire. Heat is of two kinds--heat proper which is resident in the body, and radiant heat which is the kind which comes to us from the sun or from a fire. This radiant heat is not heat at all, but a form of wave motion thrown out by the vibrations in the ether. The heat we feel is the sensation produced upon our skins when it comes in contact with the waves created by the fire. Heat was formerly thought to be an actual substance, but we know now that radiant heat is known to be the energy of heat transferred to the ether which fills all of space and is in all bodies also. The hot body which sets the particles of either in vibration and this vibrating motion in the form of waves travels in all directions. When these vibrations strike against our skin they produce a heat sensation; striking other objects these vibrations may produce instead of a heat sensation, either chemical action or luminosity. This is determined by the length of the vibratory rays in each case.

When I Throw a Ball Into the Air While Walking, Why Does It Follow Me?

When you throw a ball into the air while moving your body forward or backward, either slowly or fast, the ball partakes of two motions--the one upward and the forward or backward motion of your body. The ball possessed the motion of your body before it left your hand to go up into the air because your body was moving before you threw it up, and the ball was a part of you at the time.

If you are moving forward up to the time you throw the ball into the air and stop as soon as you let go of the ball, it will fall at some distance from you. Also if you throw the ball up from a standing position and move forward as soon as the ball leaves your hand the ball will fall behind you, provided you actually threw it straight up.

Of course, you know that the earth is moving many miles per hour on its axis and that when you throw a ball straight into the air from a standing position, the earth and yourself as well as the ball move with the earth a long distance before the ball comes down again. The relative position is, however, the same. We get our sense of motion by a comparison with other objects. If you are in a train that is moving swiftly and another train goes by in the opposite direction moving just as fast, you seem to be going twice as fast as you really are. If the train on the other track, however, is going at the same rate of speed and in the same direction as you are, you will appear to be standing still.

Going back to the ball again, you will find that it always partakes of the motion of the body holding it in addition to the motion given when it is thrown up.

What Good Are the Lines On the Palms of Our Hands?

It cannot be said that the lines on the palms of our hands are of any great service to us. Indeed it is doubtful if they are of any value in themselves, outside of the possible aid they may be in helping us to determine the character of the surface of things which we grasp or touch. It is possible that they aid in some slight degree in this way. There is little doubt, however, that they are a result of the work the hands are constantly called upon to do rather than contrived for any

## particular service. The habitual tendency of the fingers in grasping

and holding things throws the skin of the palms into creases which through frequent repetition make the lines of the palms permanent in several instances.

The peculiarities of these lines or creases in various individuals as to details and length and variations is the chief basis of the so-called science of palmistry.

What Makes Things Whirl Round When I Am Dizzy?

The medical term that describes this condition of turning or whirling is vertigo, which means in simple language “to turn.” There are two kinds of dizziness--one where the objects about us seem to be turning round and round and the other where the person who is dizzy seems to himself to be turning round and round.

One cause of this is due to the fact that when you are dizzy the eyes are not in complete control of the brain and the eyes moving independently of each other look in different directions and produce this turning effect on the brain, since each eye then sends a different impression to the brain instantly.

The principal cause of the sense of dizziness is, however, the little organ which gives us our power to balance and which is located near the ears. Sometimes this organ becomes diseased and people affected in this way are almost continually dizzy. Whenever this organ of balance is disturbed we lose our idea of balance and the turning sensation occurs.

It is easy to make yourself dizzy. All you do is to turn round a few times in the same direction and stop. In doing this you disturb the little organ of balance and things begin to turn apparently before your eyes. If you turn the other way you right matters again or if you just stand still matters will right themselves. There is no great harm in making yourself dizzy and very little fun.

Why Are the Complexions of Some People Light and Others Dark?

This difference in the complexions of people is due to the varying amounts of pigment or coloring material in the cells of which the skins of all animals is made up. Very light people have very little pigment; very dark people, those with dark eyes and black hair, have a great deal of this coloring material in their cells. A great many people are neither light or very dark. They have less than the dark-complexioned people and more than the light-complexioned people. When the hair turns gray it is because the pigment has disappeared. As this is due to the loss of this coloring material, dark-complexioned people turn gray sooner than light-complexioned people. The structure of the skin showing how these cells are made in layers can be seen by examining the skin with a microscope.

What Makes Me Tired?

Men were wrong for a long time in their conclusions as to what produced the tired feeling in us.

We know now that every activity of our body registers itself on the brain. When we move an arm or leg a great many times we soon feel tired. Every time you move your arm the movement is registered in the brain, and after a number of these movements are registered the tired feeling in the arm appears. It is said that every movement of any part of the body really produces certain defective cells and that these accumulate in the blood. When these reach a certain number the tired feeling takes possession of us, and when we rest, the blood under the guidance of the brain, goes to work and rebuilds these defective cells. We know that a change takes place in the blood when we become tired because, if you take some of the blood from an animal that shows unmistakable signs of fatigue and inject it into an animal that shows no tired feeling at all, the second animal will begin to show signs of fatigue even though it is not active at all.

We used to think that being tired indicated that our bodies were in need of food and that the way to overcome it was to eat a big meal. We did not stop to think that even when we are hungry the human body has sufficient food supply stored up to keep it going for days without taking in new food. Of course, this mistake was made because we knew that our power and energy came as a result of the food we took into our systems, but this belief was exploded when it was found that a really tired person could hardly digest food while tired, and that it is best for people who are very tired to eat only a light meal.

Why Are Most People Right-Handed?

Most people are right-handed because they are trained that way. Being right-handed or left-handed depends largely on how we get started in that connection. When we are young we form the habit generally of being either right-handed or left-handed, as the case may be. Most people correct their children when it appears they are likely to become left-handed, as we have come to think that it is better to be right-handed than left, and that is the reason why most people are right-handed. As a matter of fact, if we were trained perfectly, we should all be both right-handed and left-handed also. Some people are so trained and, when we refer to their ability to do things equally well with both hands and wish to bring out this fact, we say they are ambidextrous. It is not natural that one hand should be trained to do things while the other is not.

Why Are Some Faculties Stronger Than Others?

All of our senses are capable of being developed so that our ability along these lines would be about equal. The trouble is that we soon begin to develop one or more of our faculties in an unusual manner at the expense of the development of others. Many people have a keener sense of observation than others because they have had more and better training along that line. It is a pity that more attention is not given to the development of the power of observation in children, because it is one of the most valuable accomplishments that we can possess ourselves of. With the sense of observation developed to the highest degree, many of the other faculties need not be developed so strongly because, if we notice every thing that it is possible for us to see, we do not have the need of the development of other powers to the same extent.

It is said that it would be possible to so train an infant and bring him up to maturity with all his faculties developed and in practically an even way. If we did that we would have a wonderfully intelligent being.

[Illustration: Glazing plates.]

[Illustration: Decorating china cups.]

The Story in a Cup and Saucer

~HOW CHINA IS MADE~

Many different kinds of raw materials are required to produce the clay from which china is formed, and these ingredients come from widely separated localities. Clays from Florida, North Carolina, Cornwall and Devon. Flint from Illinois and Pennsylvania. Boracic acid from the Mojave Desert and Tuscany. Cobalt from Ontario and Saxony. Feldspar from Maine. All these and more must enter into the making of every piece.

[Illustration: Grinders for reducing glazing materials.]

These materials are reduced to fine powder and stored in huge bins. Between these bins, on a track provided for the purpose, the workmen push a car which bears a great box. Under this box is a scale for weighing the exact amount of each ingredient as it is put in, for too much of one kind of clay or too little of another would seriously impair the quality of the finished china.

[Illustration: Mill for pulverizing materials.]

From bin to bin this car goes, gathering up so many pounds of this material and so many pounds of that, until its load is complete. Then it is dumped into one of the great round tanks called “blungers,” where big electrically driven paddles mix it with water until it has the consistency of thick cream. From the blungers this liquid mass passes into another and still larger tank, called a “rough agitator,” and is there kept constantly in motion until it is released to run in a steady stream over the “sifters.”

These sifters are vibrating tables of finest silk lawn, very much like that used for bolting flour at the mills. The material for china making strains through the silk, while the refuse, including all foreign matter, little lumps, etc., runs into a waste trough and is thrown away. From the sifters the liquid passes through a square box-like chute, in which are placed a number of large horseshoe magnets, which attract to themselves and hold any particles of harmful minerals which may be in the mixture.

After leaving the magnets the fluid is free from impurities, and is discharged into another huge tank called the “smooth agitator.” While the fluid is in this tank a number of paddles keep it constantly in motion.

[Illustration: Pressing the water from the clay.]

From the smooth agitator the mixture is forced under high pressure into a press where a peculiar arrangement of steel chambers packed with heavy canvas allows the water to escape, filtered pure and clear, but retains the clay in discs or leaves weighing about thirty pounds each. From the presses this damp clay is taken out to the “pug mills,” where it is all ground up together, reduced to a uniform consistency, and cut into blocks of convenient size. It is now ready to use. Automatic elevators carry it to the workmen upstairs.

[Illustration: Molding Dishes. The racks to the left are full of molds on which the clay is drying.]

[Illustration: Molding sugar bowls and covered dishes.]

~HOW THE DISHES ARE SHAPED~