London South Collegiate Institute - Oracle Yearbook (London, Ontario Canada)

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L. S. C. I. ORACLE 41 n - ..i I .- A - N TURAL. .r....L, L A p Editor, BOB MCLEOD, V B FEEDING THE WINTER BIRD Such a vast amount of knowledge is included under the name Natural Science that it would be impossible for any one person thoroughly to peruse the entire subject. But Natural Sci- ence has so many various phases, all of which are intensely fascinating, that there is a subject to suit the taste of every person who does not stop up his ears to the voice of nature or blind himself to her beauties. To my mind the most interesting of these departments is Ornithology, and at this particular season it is appropriate to consider the feeding of winter birds. l an-Ja'-'H'-'-'rv ---l--:i:.T:- - - ' --x 1 ' -.J --., , .5 . , , - - ,........- v,,,., - 5:Z .:.-::7,f- ' j ' ,-1-in ---- ' ,lg--42, li! This is one of the most interesting of winter pastimes, and one which involves very little expense and only a few minutes of work each day. Before the winter storms come many of the birds migrate to the south. On the other hand there are over twenty common species that regularly stay with us during the winter. In London dis- trict alone, thirty-live species were ob- served in a single day. This was the result of the observations of the people taking part in the annual Christmas Bird Census of the Macllwraith Orni- thological Society. During the three winter months, December, January and February, there have been observed in Middlesex County nearly eighty species of birds. t However, although a person cannot expect to have many species of birds attracted to his feeding station, he may be reasonably sure of having at least two or three if he will provide food and water regularly. A great deal of the birds' natural food becomes covered with snow so that many birds perish during the winter from lack of food. For this reason several species forget their fear of man and come to the source of supply. To insure their visits regularly the bird feeder must renew the food. If the birds come and find that there is no more food they are very apt to forsake that particular feeding station and seek food elsewhere. The best and cheapest foods are sunflower seeds and suet. These will attract nearly all the winter birds, although it is wise to supply also millet, for the benefit of such birds as the junco. Enough sunflower seed to last several seasons can be bought for twenty- five cents. An interesting field for inves- tigation would be to experiment with different varieties of foods to find out which are most acceptable. There are several methods of offering suet. A lump of suet may be covered with wire netting and nailed to a tree. this prevents any large birds such as a bluejay from carrying off the Whole piece. On the other hand it is dangerous as the bird's tongue or eye might be injured by sticking to the frosty metal. A safer method is the use of the feeding stick. This can be easily made by boring holes about one inch in diameter and half an inch deep in a small log four or live inches thick and about fifteen inches long. A log with rough bark such as elm is

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40 the law of inverse squares. can be reflected but cannot be refracted. The uses to which X-Rays have been put are many. By far the most out- standing use has been its application to pure science as a means for measur- ing the constitution of matter. From this came the discovery of radium by Madame Curie, the modern concep- tion of the atom with its far-reaching effects in the applied sciences Cradio for instancel, and the tremendous stimulus to astronomical investigation of the physical nature of the universe. In medicine it has been a great aid to the physician in the diagnosis of many obscure diseases and in the treatment of many serious as well as trivial conditions. More recently the X-Ray has been used in the detection of spurious works of art and more recently still it has been used for the detection of flaws in metal castings. Such use in commerce is bound to develop tremendously in the future when one thinks of the many metal parts that break in auto- mobiles and airplanes, due to faults in the manufacture, with disastrous results to life and limb. Rayon from Cotton Most of the rayon manufactured at the present time comes from wood pulp. The cellulose is extracted by a chemical treatment, which dissolves out the fats, resins, and other materials. It is then treated with other chemical agents, chiefly sodium hydroxide, and finally the resulting sticky substance is forced through tiny holes as in a sprinkler. When dried, the fine threads which emerge from these holes closely resemble silk. These are then woven into rayon fabrics. Spruce is the wood chiefly used in producing rayon. However, with the increasing demand and the prospects of an entirely new textile resembling wool from this source, it may soon be necessary to find a substitute for spruce. At the present time, cotton is'pro- duced only with considerable care and expense. It is planted in rows about four feet apart, and subjected to much cultivating. In harvest time the cotton is picked by hand and ginned while the stalks are left in the field. In this new method of produc- L. S. C. I. ORACLE ing rayon the whole plants-both stalks and lint-is utilized. The crop can now be mowed like hay, ginned and baled without picking. This greatly reduces the expense of producing cotton. Then, too, as the plants will be crowded to- gether, they will mature faster than in the old way, and so will produce more lint, relative to the size of the plant. Thus the cellulose yield of the whole plant may be raised to about sixty-live per cent. The new method of sowing cotton will practically elim- inate cultivation, and is expected to produce better and cheaper rayon. V -G. M. L. EDISON AND ELECTRICITY Although there are over twelve hun- dred patents registered in Edison's name, most of his active life was de- voted to inventions of an electrical nature. The most important of these are the incandescent lamp, and the system for the transmission of electric current for producing light, heat and power. Edison himself considered his in- ventions leading to the development of the electric light and power industry to be most important, for, until his time, electric lights were known only in the form of powerful arc lamps to illuminate streets. After more than a year of concentrated effort he succeeded by carbonizing a piece of ordinary thread, in making the first incandescent lamp, which, when placed in a circuit maintained its incandescence for over forty hours. In two months these lamps were perfected to such an extent that a public demonstration was given. Two years later a factory was estab- lished and almost immediately elec- tricity became the most popular means of illumination. Edison went on to improve the dynamos, and the means of determining and distributing the current produced by them. He also perfected sockets, switches and various other appliances to facilitate the use of electricity in the home. E The inscription on the United States Congressional Gold Medal In com- memoration of his achievements in illuminating the path of progress through the development and application of his inventions, expresses the sentiment of a grateful world.-JEAN PHILLIPS.

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42 preferable as it provides a secure foot- hold for chickadees, downy and hairy woodpeckers and nuthatches. The holes may be plugged with suet or filled with sunflower seeds with melted suet poured over them. I have tried both these methods and find. that the birds prefer the plain suet. The sun- flower seeds seem more acceptable separately. An ingenious device which prevents the English sparrows from taking the food as well as protectingitfrom rain and snow has been invented by Mr. W. E. Saunders, a prominent London orni- thologist. It consists of a flat slab Slab .--f f 'Q l'J7-?f'ff 2 I 'Pe YY- fi INVERTED FORD 'BOARD with perches below. Melted suet is poured on the underside of the slab, to which it adheres when it hardens. The agility of the woodpeckers and Chicka- dees enable them to hang upside down while feeding. The small amount of work involved is well worth while. As well as pro- viding the pleasure of observing the feeding habits of the birds it benefits the country by preserving the useful birds which might otherwise perish. -BoB McLEoD. How Many of These Birds Do You Know? CAnswers on Page 875. 1. The crazy bird. 2. The furry bird. 3. Scotty at the beach. . The hunter. . You should keep your when this bird is near. . The milkmaid. . The astronomer. . Fun in a field. . Norman, the artist. . Mr. McNeil when he is peeved. Dealer in rags, bottles, old iron, etc. 4 5 hat on . Church dignitary. . Mr. Byles in Auditorium. . The bird that incubates squirrel food. .- Mr. Graham. 6 7 8 9 10 11. 12 13 14 15 16. Frank White. L. S. C. I. ORACLE M DE R Y Q..-4' , X,J WH VI t I 5 S' IYOIA hklnovnyaeaepvl MAPLE LEAVES By FLOYD LAN12, V B The Maple Leaf is the emblem of Canada and all its virtuesg many wonder why. Few realize the unity, strength, and character expressed. The veins, radiating from one central point, hold together and strengthen the leaf. just so, from the icy regions of the Klondike to sunny southern Ontario, do the ties- of manhood bind us together. The clear-cut, beautiful outline expresses character in a marked degree. The far-Hung outstretched tips ex- press Canadian tenacity and ambition. To have and to hold has always been a watch-word among true Canadians, following the example set by the Motherland. The maple tree, the last of the deciduous. trees to drop its burden of foliage, also expresses ten- acity. ' The highly-coloured leaves in autumn express the Canadian outlook. just as the leaves reach the brightest colours, in the same way Canada faces the future with high hopes and with- out fear. The leaf, along with others of her kind, joins the branch by means of the stem. The stem might well repre- sent the silken ties binding the domin- ionslto the island kingdom. In reality, however, the large leaves would over- whelm the tiny branch. Is it strange, therefore, that the maple leaf has been selected as repre- sentative of Canada? There is no other thing in this fair land of ours, from sea to sea, which represents better in miniature Canadian unity, Canadian character, and Canadian loyalty.