1937-02-25 — Page 6

THE HONGKOng Telegraph, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1937.

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Sun-spots make our Water restrictions...an IT IS earthquake in Japan can spoil our Summer?

the next 24 hours

Weather will be..

the

J

By

Sir NAPIER SHAW

The World-famous Meteorologist

-ANUARY to date, and November, indeed the whole of the past twelve months has been 50 tricky with its weather as to be vexatious for those who are responsible for the weather forecasts published HEAT-WAVE day by day in the news- Mount Washington, U.S., sending

papers.

A COOLING SIGHT IN A

Meteorologists.

in a temperature below zero on

up a balloon to get records from Undoubtedly much progress the upper air which help to has been made in the accurate make forecasts

On

Hongkong Hotel forecasting of weather.

Garage

Phone 27778-9

The

most occasions the prophecies prove reliable. There comes the day, however, when things go wrong. Clouds roll up instend Stubbs Rd, of sunshine, cold instead of

Thongkong Telegraph.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 1037,

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Men's Wear Dept.

LANE, CRAWFORD'S

warmth. Why?

Just how far have we ad- vanced since the days of the ancients and their old-fashioned weather-lore?

A few details of the extensive research which goes to make up a modern forecast will show what has been achieved.

The weather report, in the British section, exhibits daily some 3,000 facts about the weather at. 7 am. Greenwich time and for the previous 24 hours.

These facts are telegraphed for the forecaster's use from 44 ollicin stations.

To aid him still further there are sent nearly 400 additional details from health resorts.

From Ships at Sea

accurate.

more

ANNOYING..

Or so-

Maurice Lane-Norcott

DON'T tell

when

thinks

me that

a piece of bread-and-butter slips off a plato and falls on the carpet it always lands butter-side downwards by. accident. It doesn't.

Don't try to persuade me that with all the sensible food there. is in the world it is natural for a moth to prefer an old overcoat. No healthy moth would de- liberately eat an old overcoat if it wasn't possessed.

Maybe you believe that the handles of teapots are heated by human agency, but I don't. Why should a parlour-maid heat a tea- pot handle just to burn your fingers?

And I don't believe that rakes fly up and hit us in the facc.un- prompted, either, when we tread on them in the garden. A rake might do that once or twice, but it wouldn't do it.always.

Down a Rabbit Hole

IT is easy for people to say that there is simple scientifle explanation for everythipr, but, if this is so, what is the simple scientific ex- planation for a collar-stud roll- ing under a wardrobe?

If a large mass of wood, such as a wardrobe, had a magnetic httraction for a small mass of bone, such as a collar stud, I could understand it. It hasn't, though.

If a

man were to drop his collar atud in a forest it wouldn't A tree. instantly roll under Probably it wouldn't even roll under a bush. It would just fail straight down a rabbit hole and be lost for ever.

Yet when a man drops his collar stud in the bedroom it in- variably finds its way beneath the wardrobe where the dust is thickest. Doesn't that prove there is

Some

The news of the past few days has contained interesting evi- dence of the success of the trial flights carried out by the first of the high-speed, four-engined monoplanes which the British Air Ministry has ordered for the service, The Caledonia last week-end few non-stop from Southampton to

IN the International Sec- equal pressure, but surrounding about eleven years, which has tion are received 2,000 a centre of high pressure instead been attributed to the combined Alexandria, a greater distance weather records from the Con- of low, is the welcome anti- effect of the motion of Jupiter than the Atlantic crossing,tinent of Europe, North Africa, cyclone,

and Saturn, has been frequently whilst her sister-ship, the Cam-and the Atlantic islands, and With this knowledge at our examined for its effect on, our bria, flew around the British some 700 by wireless from ships disposal, the whole process of weather. Two cases are note

worthy, namely, the level of the Isles over a distance of 1,350 in the Atlantic and the North weather changes seemed clear.

fend at work? miles well within scheduled time. Sea,

But the cyclone proved to be water of Lake Victoria in equa-

simple-minded men, These feats indicate that British tions of pressure, temperature, of its behaviour. It moves or the spots, and the frequency of when they put on clean pyjamas

About 500 results of observa- like a serpent also in the wiliness torial Africa, which varies with aeroplane design and construc-and humidity in the upper air stays, develops or dies, apparent-

thunderstorms in Northern at night, are surprised to find that the cord has been pulled tion are still up to the highest of Western Europe, and perhaps ly as it pleases. No wonder the Siberia. standards. In the production the same number of facts about forecasters preferred to call it a

I once found, too, that for the right out of the waist-band of trousers. They can't twenty years for which I could their of civil - aircraft, marked pro-the winds in the upper air, are depression. gress was made in Britain last recorded in the Upper Air It was a distinguished Nor the wheat crops in Eastern Eng- thing like that.

get homogeneous estimates of derstand why people should do year. The supreme technical Section.

wegian philosopher and his achievement in design was the

land the yield responded quite So that, taken all together, assistants

who turned their production and entry into ser- there are perhaps 7,000 facts for attention to this misbehaving definitely to the frequency of vice of the first of the fleet of the forecaster's consideration, cyclonic depression und, explain- four-engined monoplane flying- illustrated by eight maps of the ed it as a result of the invasion boats ordered by Imperial Air-weather of the British Isles and of a mass of moist, warm, ways for operation on Empire their environment.

tropical air flowing westward routes. These machines are This is the material the fore- across temperate regiona by czid, well in advance of all contem-caster has to interpret to provide, dry, polar air flowing from the porary achievement in the same his daily answer to the question, polar regions or the cold Asintic fleld. They have proved them-"Will it rain to-morrow?" continent. selves to be easily the world's From the "weather-wise" best flying boats, superior in shepherd to the man who pre-, and tropical air currents ac- The repeated clashing of polar speed and in every other aspect pares a modern weather forecast counted for the extensive thun- of performance to any rival, and is a long, long way, for the derstorms we sometimes yet providing accommodation of traversing of which the mercury-perience.

ex- unprecedented luxury. Weigh-barometer, and electric tele- ing about eighteen tons when graphy are mainly responsible loaded these great aeroplanes

attain a maximum level speed of more than 200 miles an hour, and cruise economically at

speeds ranging up to 165 or 170

The Baffling Cylone

ONE used to hear a lot

in weather forecasts

But while we may be able to explain the reasons for the weather which has passed, how far can we go in the forecasting of what is to come?

Those Sun-Spots

UR modern weather OUR

maps enable the fore

sun-spots.

Too Much Ice THE Abbe Gabriel has tion of astronomical periods which recurs in 744 years and he

written of a compina.

It never surprises me, though. I'm not even surprised when I

put on a shirt in a hurry and find several small pins, possibly poisoned, cunningly hidden in the tail of it.

Loft in the Cold

BELIEVE

me,

you

} used one of its components some

would be simply

winter-and it was BO years ago to predict a cold amazed if you knew all the de- vilish things that are going on But with all these long periods in the world almost unsuspected the repetition of resultant wen- by anybody. ther conditions is liable to suffer

Have you ever paused to con accidental from

outside in-sider why eiderdowns are cover- fluences.

ed in smooth silk? Well, I will The year 1911, for example, tell you. So that they shall gave us our hottest summer and slip off during the winter nights 1912 promised to repeat the and give us pneumonia. effect; but then there was an

miles an hour. One of these of the word "cyclone." It was

eruption of Katmai, a volcano in Can you guess why the machines, carrying Christmas tho hurricanes of the Indian

dust into the air that it spoile Alaska, which poured so much banana, which is the easiest fruit mails towards the end of Decem-Ocean that first got that name

to oat out-of-doors, has such a ber, flew from England to Cairo because the air-motion in them caster to issue predictions for

our summer.

slippery skin? No? So that and back, a total distance of was like the coil of a snake.

Many other "accidents" ar、

small boys shall throw it on the nearly 4,800 miles, in 32 flying

about 24 hours ahead, and on oc possible-too much ice left over pavement that we may slip on it.. And, strange to relate, when casions-for example, when a on the mountains or in the hours. On the return flight to

Do you know why an umbrella our weather was first set out on deliberate anticyclone occupies Arctic or England the 1,700 miles from a map something very like a the stage one may venture to previous winter, may make a all round it? So that someone Antarctic from the has all those spikes sticking out Alexandria to Marseilles was vortex was found to be marked extend the forecast by three or different world for others, so can give us a good poke in the: covered in a little more than out by the lines of equal pressure four days. eleven hours. In the realm of surrounding a centre of low

much so that too much Arctic eye with them. military plancs,

One of the interesting outside ice is recognised as a cause of a ingenious pressure, and forming what has influences to be considered is cold year in Northern Europe, us in the rain; why does the Why do taxicab drivers pass schemes of mass production have been called a cyclonic depression. gun-spots! been introduced with complete It was found possible to assign

though we in our insular posi- phone bell ring at dawn, and a success, for output has been weather to the different parts of surface of the sun in a period of be affected.

The variation of the spotted tion in Great Britain may not slug eat our delphiniums? greatly accelerated without the the depression. slightest sacrifice of the high

The counterpart of the

standards of craftsmanship and cyclone, marked also by lines of efficiency for which British air-

craft constructors are famous.tish aeronautical technique was This has meant the wholesale scrapping of old methods and admirably demonstrated Jast autumn, when Squadron-Leader

1, .

Why...?

SPLIT INFINITIVES

There

strength to

University,

the rapid creation of new man F.R.D. Swain, with a specially My barber is loquacious liked facturing processes. In the

Prior to this Incident, I confess I to think-lends early days of aviation British built monoplane, set up a new kind and withal well-informed i did not know that the insertion of | Infinitive., manufacturers excelled in the

world- altitude record. He and not unmindful of the rules of adverbs

our infinitives туда · Newspaper

editors, excellence of design and

reached a height of 15,223 grammar.

grammatically wrong.

are professors, and high school teachers, struction of military aircraft;

metres at the first attempt, of the successful salesman-as such

Also, he has the accomplishments many, not otherwise untutored, who are very severe on the split infinitive reach adult fa without giving aevidently, they regard it as a for a time they were challenge, magnificent achievement in this accomplishments are appraised in thought to the matter; others who grammatical heresy. In the face of They hey are again in the lead. most difcult, field of aeronau-bottomed remarked: alls up the line pile Vinonintegrame de come to post my ples on behalf of the

this age. Holding

know the view of grammarians on patent opposition one hesitates:

con-

able of "Schnelder Trophy sphere" flying research. Dur-

baldness."

His

rule, which prohibits its use.

They are producing fighters cap Britain in the van of "strato-only mixture to effectively prevent reason or other, elect to defy the heretier. speeds of wall, over three hun-ing 1987 more experimental' mind of my English teacher of many rebuke must have had, the desired

words brought a picture to my In my own case, the teacher's Legal Lapses": dred miles an hour, and bombers flights will be made, in the years ago returning my youthful effect... for ever since. I have Learned lawyers,-who frame thei capacity,The quality of Bria new work record will be set up. split Infinitives in ons essay"

nearly as fast and of great load

Courso

effort in composition to me with the regarded with a fealing akin to statutes of our country, seem to have o of which it is hoped a scathing comment Terriblet three horror that inserted adverb, which, taken liberties with the rules of

rightly or wrongly--one would seem

(Continued on Page 43)