Popular Science Monthly 



897 



Strange Mineral Spring Deposit in a 

 Nevada Desert 



OXE might study this desert photo- 

 graph a long time before reaching 

 the conclusion that it pictured the 

 deposit of a mineral water spring, and a 

 very small spring at that. The spring is 

 situated on the southern border of South 

 Carson Lake in western Nevada and is 

 known as Allen's Springs. The flow of 

 water is less than one-half gallon a 

 minute, but in this very arid country 

 even this meager supply is important as 

 it represents the only drinkable water 

 within a radius of over twenty miles. 



The strange looking deposit is a 

 yellowish porous mass of tufa, chiefly 

 carbonate of lime, which has been left as 

 the waters have evaporated in the 

 desert sun. In addition to this tufa 

 from the spring, there are thinner 

 incrustations of similar material that 

 were deposited from the waters of the 

 now extinct Lake Lahonton which, in 

 prehistoric times, was a lake of enormous 

 dimensions. No definite conclusion can 

 be reached as to the time in years that 

 has elapsed since this lake reached its 

 maximum area, except that geologically 

 speaking the existence of the lake was 

 recent — perhaps seventy-five or one hun- 

 dred thousand years ago. 



strain these oil-laden cells, the oil 

 bursts out, often as a visible spray and 

 usually perceptible to our sense of smell, 

 and often as a greasy film on the fingers. 

 As shown in the accompanying photo- 

 graph, the peel may be so bent as to 

 rupture a large number of these cells at 



A miniature explosion occurs when the oil 

 from an orange peel is ignited 



one time, and to fill the air with an oily 

 mist. If, at the moment of bending, a 

 lighted match be applied by an assistant 

 a decided explosion will follow. This 

 experiment is most successfully per- 

 formed in a darkened room or in a room 

 wholly dark except for the light from the 

 match. 



As the waters from a Nevada spring evaporated, a 

 strange deposit was left. It is yellow, porous tufa 



Orange Peel Oil Is Explosive 



EVERYBODY knows the flavor of 

 orange peel, but not everybody 

 knows what causes that flavor. It is 

 due to the oil contained in little cells in 

 the rind. If the peel is bent so as to 



Air Raids Involve Problems 



Hard to Solve 

 ONDON'S problem of placing 

 anti-aircraft guns is a serious 

 The farther away from 

 London they are stationed, 

 the greater the number re- 

 quired to make the passage 

 across the fortified zone 

 sufificiently perilous. On the 

 other hand, the nearer the 

 guns are brought to the city, 

 the more restricted is their 

 action for fear of inflicting 

 injury on those they are 

 intended to defend. A 

 possible solution to this 

 problem is the employment 

 of mobile guns. 

 The use of aircraft as a defense against 

 air attacks has been officially stated to 

 be inefficient by itself. The difficulties to 

 be met are not regarded as insuperable, 

 however, and great hopes are placed in 

 future developments along that line. 



