amateur scientist

606 Pages·2008·42.6 MB·English

THE
AMATEUR
SCIENTIST
Experiments and constructions, challenges and
diversions in the fields of Astronomy, Archaeol
ogy, Biology, Natural Sciences, Earth Sciences,
Mathematical Machines, Aerodynamics, Optics,
Heat and Electronics. Selected from Mr. Stong's
clearing house of amateur activities, appearing
monthly in SciENTIFIC AMERICAN, and ex
panded with additional information, instruc- ·
tions, notes, bibliographies - and postscripts,
from readers.
BY C. L. STONG
INTRODUCTION BY VANNEYAR BUSH
ILLUSTRATED BY ROGER HAYWARD
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
INCLUDING THE RIGHT OF ,REPRODUCTION
IN WHOLE OR IN PART IN ANY FORM
COPYRIGHT @ 1960 BY C. L. STONG
PUBLISHED BY SIMON AND SCHUSTER, INC.
ROCKEFELLER CENTER, 630 FIFTH AVENUE
NEW YORK 20, N. Y.
FIRST PRINTING
Material previously published in SciENTIFIC AMERICAN is copyright
© 1952, 195.3, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960 by Scientific
American, Inc.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOG CARD NUMBER: 60-14286
MANUFACTURED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
PRINTED BY THE MURRAY PRINTING COMPANY, FORGE VILLAGE, MASS.
BOUND BY H. WOLFF, NEW YORK
TO MIL

CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION BY VANNEVAR BUSH XVII
" ... the motivation of the scientist. profes
sional or amateur. is the sheer foy of knowing."
PREFACE BY C. L. STONG XXI
••. . . the fact that an experiment delivers an
unexpected answer means simply that you
have not asked the question you as&ume you
have asked."
I.
AsTRONOMY
1. ASTRONOMICAL DIVERSIONS 3
A note about the delights of stargazing and
some fascinating instruments devised to over
come the limitations of the human eye.
2. A SIMPLE TELESCOPE FOR BEGINNERS 5
For about $25 the amateur can construct a
telescope more powerful than Galileo's.
3. A TRANSISTORIZED DRIVE FOR TELESCOPES 18
Telescopes must be turned slowly to foUow
the stars across the sky. Here is a way of
turning one automatically by means of a mo
tor deriving its power from transistors.
4. AN ELECTRONIC STAR-TWINKLE SUPPRESSOR 26
How to build an apparatus for making ex-
ceptionaUy clear photographs of the planets.
VII
CONTENTS
5. AN ASTROPHYSICAL LABORATORY IN YOUR 38
BACK YARD
With the addition of a spectrograph the tele
scope becomes a tool of immense power for
probing the mysteries of the universe.
6. USING SHADOWED STARLIGHT AS A YARDSTICK 53
How to use fleeting star shadows cast by the
moon for locating with great precision geo
graphical points on earth.
7. A UNIVERSAL SUNDIAL 62
By mounting a globe of the earth this way
you can convert it into a universal sundial
that yields a wealth of information about the
earth's relative motion in the solar system. It
gives you the hour of the day in distant lands.
8. A SUNDIAL THAT KEEPS CLOCK TIME 73
Some attractions of the sundial frequently
overlooked by laymen. Instructions for con
structing a sundial which can be adjusted
to keep clock time (including daylight sav
ing) anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere.
9. THE MOON IN "3-D" 80
With the aid of a mirror, and your own nose
as a measuring rod, the photographs in this
chapter will give you a "3-D" view of the
moon. Notes on how the pictures were taken.
II.
ARCHAEOLOGY
1. SHOULD THE AMATEUR DIG? 85
The amateur's role in archaeology. How the
hobby of surveying ancient ruins and arti-
VIII
CONTENTS
facts can give pleasure to the amateur and
help his professional colleagues.
2. THE EXCAVATION OF WAPANUCKET NO. 6 90
How a group of amateurs with professional
guidance unearthed an ancient Indian vil
lage and thereby upset some well-established
conclusions about Indian culture. Important
do's and don'ts for the beginner.
I I I.
BIOLOGY
1. HOW TO CULTIVATE HARMLESS BACTERIA 105
Adventures in gardening at the microscopic
level. How to experiment with weed-killers
popularly known as wonder drugs.
2. GROWING ALGAE ON A WINDOW SHELF 117
Even if you live in the city you can grow a
pioneer crop of the minute plants which may
some day become an important source of
man's food.
3. HOW TO TRANQUILIZE A RAT 123
An experiment designed by a Michigan high
school girl.
4. HOW TO MEASURE THE METABOLISM 135
OF ANIMALS
An Ohio high-school girl ·devised this appa
ratus. She describes its assembly and opera
tion and gives details of a typical experiment
utilizing mice as subjects.
5. CHROMATOGRAPHY 142
An analytic technique, one of the most
powerful known to biochemists, is used to
separate chlorophyll from spinach leaves.
IX
CONTENTS
6. ZONE ELECTROPHORESIS 152
When a solution of chemical compounds is
applied to an electrified sheet of porous pa
per an extraordinary _phenomenon occurs
which the amateur can use jor analyzing
subtle chemical mixtures.
IV. THE NATURAL SCIENCES
1. "NATURE'S UNIMPORTANT PUZZLES" 167
A note about a great amateur naturalist, the
late Walker Van Riper.
2. THE DELIGHTS OF HUMMINGBIRD STUDY 168
Walker Van Riper devised brilliant tech
niques for attracting and studying humming
birds. Here are some of his methods described
in his own words.
3. RAISING MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES AS 184
EXPERIMENTAL ANIMALS
An amateur lepidopterist explains how he
raises unusual species and prepares them for
scientific study.
4. BIRD-BANDING FOR THE AMATEUR 194
How the amateur who becomes a licensed
bird-bander can make valuable contributions
to science in his own back yard.
5. HOW TO LIVE WITH REPTILES AND 202
AMPHIBIANS
Follow these simple direction for raiSing rep
tiles at home and you can see a snake shed its
skin, or witness the courting rites (at once
comical and enthralling) of small desert liz
ards, or watch a dime-store turtle grow to
a length of eight or ten inches.
X
CONTENTS
V.
THE EARTH SCIENCES
1. HOW TO KNOW THE ROCKS 217
To the amateur who learns to "read" in
rocks the history of the earth's ever-chang
ing surface, mineral collecting becomes a
doubly rewarding avocation. How to begin.
2. THE ATTRACTIONS OF AMATEUR SEISMOLOGY 228
How to locate distant earthquakes by the
vibrations that shake your own back yard.
Typical seismographs. An eminent seismolo-
gist shows how amateurs can help the pro-
fessionals.
3. AN ELECTRONIC SEISMO$,>~APH 236
From a war-surplus magnet, some scrap
metal, and a few electronic parts, you can
build a sensitive instrument for detecting
earthquakes and the approach of violent
storms.
4. AN AMATEUR'S SEISMOLOGICAL 245
OBSERVATORY
The design and construction of the instru
ments. How a well was turned into an earth
quake detector.
5. HOW TO TRACK EARTH SATELLITES 263
Basic equipment for Method 1: a piano and
a radio set capable of picking up signals
from an artificial satellite. Method 2 employs
a set of sticks and a stop watch.
6. EXPERIMENTING WITH THE EARTH'S CHARGE 272
Normally the air around your head is some
200 volts positive with respect to the ground
underfoot, but what happens in a thunder-
XI
CONTENTS
storm? Facts about the earth's electric charge
and ways to measure it.
7. AN ELECTRONIC WEATHER FORECASTER 281
How to build a device for making accurate
short-term forecasts.
8. DETECTING THE EARTH'S ROTATION 290
Leon Foucault's pendulum and directions
for duplicating his results. R. Stuart Mackay
explains his novel method of driving the
Foucault pendulums.
VI.
NUCLEAR PHYSICS
1. EXPLORING THE ATOM AT HOME 30S
Atoms can be investigated with simple ap
paratus. A practical cloud chamber may be
made from a whiskey glass. Some old tin
cans, glass jars, discarded inner tubes, etc. -
.and you're on your way.
2. CLOUD CHAMBERS FOR DETECTING 307
NUCLEAR EVENTS
How the circular rainbows made by clouds
in sunlight led C. T. R. Wilson to invent a
powerful instrument for investigating the
structure of the atom. How the amateur can
make and operate a) a simple peanut-butter
jar cloud chamber, b) a "rubber plunger"
cloud chamber, c) a dry-ice diffusion cloud
chamber, and others.
3. A SIMPLE MAGNETIC-RESONANCE 335
SPECTROMETER
At the center of every atom there is a minute
top, the nucleus, which spins on its axis
with incredible speed. How to flip it over
XII