HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1960-09-15, Page 7yeryi3ody Wqnts
To Get A Patent!
Some months after the idea
first hit him, Milton B. Silver-
man Of Baltimore recently was
issued U.S. patent No. 2;047!,013
for an "audible toothbrush,"'
which Makes musical sounds
when the teeth are brushed ill
the approved, vertical direction.
Zenith Radio Corp, Patgntea
"secrecy communication" sys-
tem., developed by two staff sci-
entists, 'for encoding intelligence .
Information signals, KoHunan
Instrument Corp. got its patent
on a new optical-electronic sys-
tem for tracking stars, and Louis
P, McKenzie of Houston got one
on a teeter-totter exercise board
with attached, mirrors that en-
able the user to watch TV while
teetering, Alexander Konrad et
Parma, Ohio, registered a dual-
flavour cigar that smokes
straight if lit at one end, pro-
duces a highly flavoured smoke
if lit at the other. Monsanto
Chemical Co, patented a method
for injecting, liquid phosphorus
into the soil as a lasting fertili-
zer — invented by none other
than its chairman, Edgar M.
,Queeny,
Along with a new overhead
monorail system, a new machine
for making corrugated potato
chips, and a new automatic pilot
-for helicopters a n (1 autogyros,
this was just a small part of the
traffic at the Washington head-
quarters of the U.S. Patent Of-
fice, where 989 inventions in all
got an official, legal stamp of
approval that week. The thumb-
nail descriptions alone were
enough to fill a book, and did—
a 284-page edition of the Offi-
cial Gazette, which the Patent
Office issues weekly to Sum-
marize its activities. Yet the
week was no busier than usual.
And, as usual, there were about
two new patent applications for
every patent issued. Some 2,000
new ideas, from every part of
the U.S. poured in during the
week and brought the Patent
Office's backlog of applications
to an appalling 196,000. Average
waiting time between applica-
tion and final approval (or re-
jection): 39 months.
The overwhelming problem
for the Patent Office is to sort
the flood of wonders and wid-
gets to decide which are new,
useful, workable, and "beyond
what would be obvious to a per-
son skilled in the art" the
minimum qualifications for a
patent. (The Patent Office sug-
gests, but does not insist, that
an invention also be saleable;
as one official puts it, "our files
are lull of better mousetraps
that no one wanted to buy.")
Among the better mousetraps
— some saleable and others less
so — in the Patent Office's 170-
year-old files:
An unnumbered patent to
Samuel Colt in 1836 for his "re-
volving gun."
No. 1,647, issued in 1840 to
Samuel P. B. Morse for the tele-
graph.
No. 6,469, to Congressman
Abraham Lincoln in 1849, for a
"device for buoying vessels over
Shoals" (a set -Of bellows attach-
ed below the waterline).
No. 504,038, to Whitcomb Jud-
son in 1893, for a "slide fastener"
, the zipper).
No. 1,370,316, to Harry Hou-
.dini in 1921 for a diver's suit
that could be slipped off easily
in case of trouble.
Without a sizeable investment
in manufacturing facilities or
promotion, few inventions, in
fact, can be a commercial suc-
cess — and a sizeable number
can never be anything more than
gadgets or trivia. Yet thousands
of amateur U,S. inventors take
the plunge every year, bidding
for patent profits the way spe-
culators play the stock markti.
— From NEWSWEEK.
DRIVE CAREFULLY — The
life you save may be your own.
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JUNE IN AUGUST -- June Wil-
kinson, is in movies. Her latest
movie is "Macumba Love."
when watching him occupied
with his more serious work of
building his domed nest, which
is often on a ledge under a wa-
terfall. When feeding his family
he will fly in and out a cascade
of water without even a shake
of his feathers; that the nest
remains dry is astounding. It is
usually difficult to find, seeming
almost a part of the dripping,
mossy rock; one I saw was about
eight inches deep and twelve in
diameter with an entrance at the
side, the whole structure inter-
woven with delicate green Mess,
yet; in spite of this water-site,
the nest remains cosy and warm:
Every beck in the Pell country
knows the sweet trilling totes of
this bird who seems inspired by
the water he loves; he gives his
bright cascade of song all the
year round and I have heard
him even in mid-winter, But if
he senses a watcher he will
quickly dive and, when he reap-
pears, will find a temporary
place of concealment until the
intruder 16 accepted as a harm=
loss addition to his world, —
From "Winged Builders," by
Nancy Price,
l'nFi MOST-SUNG. 'SONGS
What are the world's most-
sung songs? in his new book, "50
Years With Musie," composer-.
tunesieuth Sigmund Spaeth, 15,
invited many an argument by
listing these three as the top
numbers on the global hit Par-
ade: "Good- Morning: to AU" (bet-
ter known as,``Happy Birthday to
You"), "For He's a jolly Good
VelIeW" (also known as "We
Won't Get Home Until Morn=
ing"), and "Auld Lang Syne,"
rourth: "God Save the Queen,"
known better itt the 'United
States `America" and
khowri better still, through ,fn-,
accurately, as "My Couetry 'Tis
of 'Thee."
TIE FARM FRONT
kzassea
Safflower, grown for thou-
sands of years in the Orient has
almost suddenly become a farm
crop in the United. States, mo-
derately profitable for its grow-
ers and showing gre51 promise
for expansion. Commercial pro-
duction of safflower did not
start in thit country until after
World War II, and in its first
year's total acreage was not over
1,500. By 1958, however, plant-
ings were up to 125,000 acres;
they doubled in 1959 and in 1960
have risen to approximately
300,000.
Rising demand for safflower
oil in the paint and varnish in-
dustry, plus a substantial export
market, may well push 1961
acreage to the vicinity of half
a million. The United States De-
partment of Agriculture- will be-
gin to collect detailed statistics.
The public will exclaim: "Saf-
flower? What's that? Never
heard of it."
It's a thistlelike annual plant
known to botanists as Cartha-
mus tinctorius. The seed, where-
in its only value lies, is white
and about the- size of a barley
kernel. Oil content is about 38
per cent, all but 3 per cent re-
coverable by standard crushing
processes.
That golden-hued oil is a
-wholesome and nutritious food
for and is a popular cook-
ing fat in the Old World. In the
United States it is prized mainly
as a component of varnishes and
enamels that takes a high gloss
and don't discolour with age.
The wholesale price is 14 to 15
cents a pound,
*
India, where safflower may be
indigenous, grows around 500,-
000 acres a year. It is also plant-
ed in Egypt, China, and North
Africa. In the Middle Ages
Europeans grew it for the sake
of Carthatnine, an unstable pig-
ment extracted from its flower
buds. With the arrival of ani-
line dyes, carthamine ceased to
be an article of commerce.
Spanish and Portuguese immi-
grants brought safflower to the
United States a century or so
ago, but it attracted no notice
until after World War I when a
systematic search was begun for
new crops adapted to the Mid-
west,
*
It was one of 70 plant species
tested by the chemurgic depart-,
merit of the Nebraska Agricul-
tural Experiment Station. Pos-
sibilities were perceived that led
to an intensive breeding pro-
gram which vastly improved- on
the varieties previously known,
Indeed, a majority of the vari
eties now grown are designated
by a number preceded by the
initial N Or Nebraska.
Among the Nebraska origina-
tors of new safflower strains
was an earnest young agrono-,
mist named Carl E. Claassen, to-
day a leading figure in the na-
tion's fast-growing safflower in-
dustry.
Paint manufacturers tested
safflower oil, found it to be evert
more than the Nebraska, chem-
ists claimed. On the strength of
their interest, at least five large
corporations tried to establish
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.r.ized, as an established cash
(roe in the Saerwnento
where it Is often rotated with
rice,
Activities of Pacific Oilseeds
were not confined to California,
however, The 'firm joined with
General Mills to build a crush-
ing plant in Sidney, Neb., and
to persuade northern Great
Plains farmers to grow safflow,
er. Last year another mill went
into operation at Culbertson,
Mont,, wholly owned by Pacific
Oilseeds,
California has about half this
year's 300,000 acres, Arizona has
3,000, accompanied by visions of
a dozen times this much in 1961,
The rest is divided between Ne-
braska, Colorado, Wyoming, and
Montana, with a little in North
Dakota and Oklahoma,
Although Pacific Oilseeds and
General Mills have contracted
for most of the harvest, they
have no monopoly. Practically
all of Arizona's acreage is under
contract to Calcana Safflower
Products, Inc., offshoot of a
large Canadian company with
headquarters at Medicine Hat.
* *
Safflower can be grown in any
locality that enjoys 125 to 130
frost-free days in, a year. It is
planted in spring, threshed in
the fall, everywhere except in
irrigated southern California
and Arizona, where December
seeding and June harvest are
the rule. The farmer uses the
same equipment as for barley
or wheat, and his cost is little
if any higher than with grain.
In the Midwest, 1,000 pounds
an acre are a good yield. Nor-
thern California averages 1,500.
Under irrigation in Arizona,
3,000 and 4,000 are not uncom-
mon. This year's contract prices
are $75 a ton delivered at the
crushers, $74 at designated ware-
houses in the producing areas.
Immunity to most of the ha-
zards that afflict other crops is
a main reason why farmers are
showing such enthusiasm for
safflower. They are also attract-
ed by a stable market, and the
prospect that surplus produc-
tion is unlikely for a number of
years.
To err is human — out gener-
ally a much better excuse is de-
manded.
Upsidedown to 'Prevent Peeking
BlddER, BETTER HIGHWAY SIGNS Here's good news for the tiefuddied motorist Whe
Mentally grapples with all taricts of information at he bolts down the highway. 'Bigger
'ay signs cire In the works to guide today's higherspeed troffic. These signs of Me auto age
are spread Out before Janiet C. McCoy, left, and Joseph Havci at the state highway deparci
merit Cleveland, These sight — Only Lki sample Of the 250 types In bins are uted 01114:
Similar ones ate used in Other States,
ACROSS
1, Vile thieving fellow
1, Forgive
Solemn prOniiSe
12. Hateni room
26. Escape 14. Period of time 15, Deep-disci
, , pie 17, .Analyte .ote 10. Rely 20. Andy's MU ' 21. Ptipsictinv, ekhatisied 21, Nuii6 26.'114111mi river
27, Cupela 20, NtirrolV opening is, aartestribtite curds it. Take to court 85. Myer duck 37. Representa. five 80, SYMbol for
selenliirn 40.- values 42. Artlet,'S Stand Alt Salford 45.- Zone, 46. in *hat triad* 48, ProfeaSiciiis 51,1)&314116 „ 52, Preferred' it-W0,1db MI/115171Y WOrtii,„
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DOWN I. trallulOus bird 2. Tod() 3, Systematic list of details 4, Connected by
kinshiii 5. Not varying
5, Ix Say e 7. I'Neonselotis
AnaiVeit ellieWtere on th s page,
3, Coinnanlet of play era 9. Ships I0..Medieval money 11, Route 16.- Inclination 13. Topers 20. Passageway 21, Vreshet 22. Minute openingS 23, Male deer 29, Stir up 25, 'Cough en 28. SeWed joints 31. Stibjects of diseussion
Timeless serenity of summer day in the country is caught
in this photograph of colts and mares roaming a field near
Rapid City. The picture has no news value as such but
33. Smiled . derisively
36. Shake, spearca n hing
as, Story
41. Pointed
u i -43, Spirited horse. 45, Sordid 46, Misery 47, 1?ossesseS 46. Povine 42, Matey cereal. grass 50. Mg& -Wu% e' 53 Ili,zektniti Con
illOavlIvo
perhaps cameraman Rudy Vetter of the. Red Cross saw in,
it a more permanent news story than the current accounts
of man's brief, tortured activities over this strife-filled world.
safflower as a standard crop.
For several reasons, they did
not meet with too much success.
Both farmers and agronomists
had a great deal to learn about
safflower culture, and there was
no established market.
9 9 9
Out in California, an enthusi-
ast named B. T. Rocca refused
to be discouraged. He saw a
future for safflower in the
United States, and for several
years he plowed into safflower
promotion much of the profit
he earned as an importer and
exporter of vegetable oils. Cali-
fornia farmers were offered
planting seed, and an assured
market at a plant set up in
Richmond by Pacific Oilseeds,
Inc., subsidiary of Mr. Rocca's
Pacific Vegetable Oil Corpora-
tion writes Ernest Douglas in
the Christian Science Monitor.
Dr. Classen was lured away
from Nebraska as president of
Pacific Oilseeds, as well as saf-
flower breeder and general ad-
viser to growers. A young giant
named Joseph R. Smith was in-
stalled as secretary and mana-
ger. Safflower was on its way,
and as early as 1950 was recog-
UNDAY SO001
LESSON
fey. OPT-1a,'- Warms-
1M., JUL
Isalait's Vision of the :Pntore.
Xsai4h, 14 1.0
Memory Selection; Ile Shall
Judge among t h e nations, and
shall rebuke Allany people; and
they shall beat their SWordS late
ploughshares, and their spew%
into pruning hooks; nation shall
not lift up mood against natier4
neither shall they learn war any'
more. Isaiah 3:4.
Isaiah wrote more of the com-
ing Messiah and His kingdom
than did any other of the pro-
phets, In our lesson Messiah is
identified as a descendant of
Jesse. Some will say, "Was it
not just a sign of Isaiah's loyalty
and confidence in the royal line
of David that he looked forward
for a leader who would give
them a better day?" But Isaiah
looks for one who is far above
the ordinary. "He shall not
judge after- the sight of his eyes,
neither reprove after the hear-
ing of his ears; but with righte-
ousness shall he judge the poor."
This 'rod of Jesse' will bring
peace. Those who have received
Jesus Christ as Lord and Savi-
our do experience this peace.
But in the world about us there
are wars and rumours of wars.
As I write some of our friends
have received their posting to
the Congo. We believe that the
United Nations has served well
in restraining many of these
local conflicts, But Isaiah's vi-
sion is still unfulfilled. In USA.
20% of the federal budget goes
for defense. When Jesus Christ
shall slay the wicked with the
breath of His mouth and reign
without a rival no money will be
spent for armaments, "neither
shall they learn war any more."
The mass of people around the
world long for the day of peace.
Most people are sick and tired
of war. A few greedy heartless
folk may welcome war that they
may add to their wealth but
most people would prefer a mo-
dest living, made in peaceful
pursuits.
Jesus Christ is the answer for
our needs today. Let us as indi-
viduals submit our wills to Him
and hasten the coming of His
kingdom,
A man is liable to lose control
of the car if he applies the brake
on a Curve, says the Ontario
Safety League. And is almost
certain to, if he lets his wife and
son learn to drive.
ISSUE 37 — 1960
CROSSWORD
PUZZLE
A Bird That Dives
Before It Can Swim
No wanderer or mountain-
climber in our Fell country can
fail to have seen and heard the
water-ousel, the dapper little
bird with black and white plum-
age which seems designed to
harmonize with the spray of wa-
erfalls and bubles of the stream.
To many this bird is known
as the dipper; undoubtedly he
owes the name to his. frequent
habit of bobbing up and down
on a stone and constantly dip-
ping in the water. I find him a
most intriguing and entertaining
water-bird, one that I can watch
for hours. . . . For those who
would have beauty and interest,
I would suggest they leave the
complications that gather within
four walls and seek the habitat
of the dipper beside some friend-
ly stream or voluble waterfall...
There are few who will not
be refreshed by his entertaining
companionship, the multitudin-
oue variety of his movements
and exploits, his confidence and
intimacy with water. Few, how-
ever lugubrious, will not smile
as they see him taking his pleas-
ure and exercise, wading like a
heron, swimming on the surface
like a duck, diving like a king-
fisher, hovering like a hawk,
and swooping like a gannet. He
must be dull indeed if he is not
intrigued as he watches the wa-
ter-ousel walking with ease un-
der the water on the bed of the
stream, clinging to the stones
with his claws, seeking the
larvae which are his food and
using, his wings even as when in
the air.
The bird delights in the spray
of a waterfall, standing on some
favourite stone; jerking his body
about, dipping up and down with
his continuous bob and curtsy.
He obviously rejoices in his div-
ing practices and it is astonish-
ing to note that his family will
dive even before they can swim.
He not only indulges in this
sport from a jutting rock but
even from a block of ice, and I
have seen him disappear uhdis-
mayed, into turbulent waters....
It is not only entertainment
but admiration I experience