270 



POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



placed in housings with glass sides so that the action of the water on 

 striking the buckets can be observed. 



Some experiments have already been made in the laboratory on the 

 flow of air, the results of which have been communicated by Professor 

 Peabody to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. It is now 

 intended to continue the study of the flow of air and its use as a 

 motive power in great detail, just as the flow of water is studied, and 

 an air compressor of 100 horse-power, which will produce a pressure 

 of twenty-five hundred pounds, is now being installed. 



The laboratory for testing the strength of materials was established 

 in 1881 by Prof. Gr. Lanza, and has since been extensively developed 



Horizontal Emery Testing Machine of 300,000 Pounds Capacity in the Applied 

 Mechanics Laboratory. 



under his direction, until it is now one of the most complete in the 

 world. It is perhaps not too much to say that the experiments made 

 in this laboratory have in some respects revolutionized the ideas of 

 engineers. Previous to its establishment, the only tests of timber that 

 had been made were upon small selected specimens one or two inches 

 square and a few feet long. The results of these tests had been used 

 for years by architects and engineers, and they were given in all the 

 engineering handbooks. In the Institute laboratory there were con- 

 ducted the first systematic and extended tests of beams of commercial 

 size. The results soon showed that the strength of such timber was a 



