42 Master Minds of Modern Science 



but perfectly regular pattern of dots arranged about it. 

 It does not matter what subject you choose, the result is 

 a pattern more or less intricate, yet perfectly regular, and 

 often astonishingly beautiful. 



The manufacture of artificial silk grows by leaps and 

 bounds. This of course is made of cellulose blown out 

 into fibres so fine that they match the thinness of the 

 silkworm's own product. The holes through which the 

 liquid viscose is forced are one-five-thousandth of an inch 

 in diameter. These threads are constantly examined and 

 analysed by the X-ray, and for much of the beauty and 

 cheapness of the stockings they wear now women are 

 indebted to the experiments made by scientists such as 

 Sir William Bragg and M. Laue. 



Similarly we are indebted in some measure to the 

 X-ray for our cheap and reliable electric bulbs. In the 

 laboratory of the General Electric Company at Wembley 

 the fine wire filaments are examined under the X-ray, and 

 from enlarged photographs of the extremely fine wires 

 used the chemists learn more about the composition of 

 the metal than they could in any other way. 



The needle of a compass is hung upon a tiny jewel, and 

 similar jewels are used in the making of all high-class 

 watches, such as you see advertised as being jewelled in so 

 many holes. Here again the X-ray photograph plays its 

 part, enabling the cutter to make perfect his delicate work, 

 and to see with ease whether the tiny crystal of sapphire, 

 or whatever it may be, is of the requisite quality. 



No industry owes more to scientific research than the 

 motor-car industry. Those who drove motor-cars twenty 

 years ago will remember that one of the greatest diffi- 

 culties in those days was the weakness of the tyres; 

 punctures were distressingly frequent, and it was not 

 unusual for a tyre to burst. For the infinitely more 

 reliable tyre of to-day we are indebted partly to the 

 X-ray. 



