NEWS EDITION
14
A m o n g Chemists Κ. G. Baker has been a-ppointed t o the Cincinnati sales force of the Wagner Electric Corp., S t . Louis, M o . M r . Baker was previously connected witii the Century Blectric and Fulton Iron Works, of St. LouisLawrence W. B a s s has been appointed as executive assistant at the Mellon Institute of Industrial Research, Pittsburgh, Pa. Doctor B a s s was formerly a n associate in the Division of Chem istry of tb.e Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. Beginning July 1, 1929, Firman E. Bear, of Ohio State Uni versity, w i l l be associated with the American Cyanamid Com pany at i t s home office, 5 3 5 Fifth Ave., N e w York, Ν . Υ., in the capacity of director of agricultural research. C. A. Dodge has resigned from the Welsbach Co., and is now in charge of the manufacture of lacquers for the Valatine Co. of N e w York:, located a t 19 H o f f m a n St., Maplewood, N . J. Arthur JB. Knoebel, formerly assistant chemist at t h e Monsanto Chemical Works, S t . Louis, Mo., has established a n analytical and consulting office at 20Ç) California St., San Francisco, Calif. Jacob I/urie has resigned as chief chemist of the Thresher Varnish Co., Dayton, Ohio, to t a k e charge of lacquer research at t h e Fiberloid Corp., Indian Orchard, Mass. Fred J. Mingst has been elected p v i V ^ .,Γ:ï;^'^S^^·-'.'feΐ^/•X •.:.v•--^^Λj• assistant treasurer of Pfaltz & Bauer, Inc., 300 Pearl St., N e w York, Ν. Υ . C . H. Penning, technical editor and chief of the Information Bureau of t h e Chemical Catalog Co., N e w York, Ν. Υ . , has resigned, effective April 1, a n d will engage in commer cial research for the Federal Phos !^->\£i#/£fphorus Co., of Birmingham, Ala. -'3Ë Ralph P . Perkins has resigned his fellowship at Northwestern Univer sity to accept a position as research chemist w i t h the Dow Chemical Co., C. EL. P e n n i n g Midland, Mich. A. W. S u e s , formerly research fellow at the Pittsburgh Ex periment Station of the U. S . Bureau of Mines, is n o w instructor in charge o f a new course ira metallurgical melting technic in the evening scliool of I^ewis I n s t i t u t e , Chicago, 111. Charles A . Soch, who recently resigned his position as chemist with the Overman Cuslnou. Tire Co., Belleville, N". J., is now chief chemist for t h e Swinetiart Tire & Rubber Co., Akron, Ohio. C. Kern Stewart h a s given up h i s consulting practice and testing laboratory to accept a position as research metallurgical en gineer wirJb. the Westinghouse Hlectric & Manufacturing Co., East Pittsburgh, P a . Gilbert I£. Trimble, until recently connected w i t h the Seiberling Rtibber Co., in compounding, factory service, and de velopment -work in t h e new products division, is now chief chem ist of the Midwest Rubber IReclairning Co., E a s t St. Louis, 111. i
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Vol. 7, No. 6
The specifications covered by these lists are the result o f work of 75 technical committees of the Federal Specifications Board, which are composed of experts in the respective lines of work in the government service, i n cooperation with the various industries and associations of industries. Copies of this list may b e obtained from t h e Federal Specifications Board or the Bureau of Standards on application.
Chemical Work of Underwriters* Laboratories The Annual Review Number of Laboratories1 Data, published b y the Underwriters' Laboratories, 207 East Ohio St., Chicago, 111., contains a report of t h e work done b y the Department of Chemistry, of which A. H . Nuckolls is chemical engineer- The most notable features of t h e work of this department w e r e the opportunity afforded by special appropriations made b y "the directors for research and for the preparation for publication, in the technical press of t h e results of earlier research; and t h e very great increase in t h e work of the explosion laboratory, w i t h particular reference t o electric motors, electric control apparatus, and flame arresters for oil tanks.
Plane-Sprayed Volcanic Sulfur Used to Combat Rubber-Tree Mildew Airplanes are being u s e d to combat rubber-tree mildew bydusting it with sulfur obtained from local volcanoes i n Java, according to the Department of Commerce. Experiments b y t h e Rubber Experiment Station at Buitensorg are said t o have demonstrated that t h e sulfur treatment would kill the mildew o n t h e trees within 24 hours. The volcanic sulfur is contained in a funnel-shaped tank a t the bottom of t h e plane. Inside true tank i s a motor-driven apparatus for stirring the sulfur dust, which must be kept dry and loose to prevent lumping.
Hydrogen-Ion Control The fifth edition of the "A B C of Hydrogen-Ion Control" has just been issued by t h e LaMotte Chemical P r o d u c t s Co., Baltimore, M d . This book holds a unique position, being used as a textbook b y a large number of colleges and universities. T h e first 76 pages are devoted to a simple discussion of the t h e o r y and meaning of p H control a n d its application t o more than thirtydifferent processes. The remainder of the 132 pages describes materials and equipment for hydrogen-ion work and f o r the analysis of water, sewage, and industrial wastes. Among the new equipment shown may be m e n t i o n e d the IvaMotte sludge-testing s e t , Β. Ο. Ό. set, Dalite comparator lamp, sterilization test s e t , soil Teskit, nitrophenol indicators for special p H work, standards for water analysis in closed Nessler tubes with polished tops and bottoms, and a special colorimeter for Nessler t u b e comparison. A complimentary copy m a y be obtained by anyone interested i n these subjects.
Study of Radium Poisoning Health Hazards in Chromium Plating In view* of the rapid progress of chromium plating and its adoption i n many diverse industries, t h e pamphlet on "Health Hazards in Chromium Plating," b y Bloomfield and Blum, recently issued by "the U. S. Public H e a l t h Service, is of special interest. This is Reprint 1245 from t h e Public Health Reports, issued September 7, 1928, comprising some 2 2 pages. T h e conclusions and recommendations, twenty i n number, are of special value, as is also the bibliography.
The committee appointed by Surgeon-General d i m m i n g , of t h e U. S. Public Health Service, t o study the problem of radium poisoning has had i t s initial meeting t o discuss and decide upon details of method and procedure. I t is expected t h a t the study will be completed a b o u t July 1. T h e investigation will include detailed physical examinations of t h e 200 persons en gaged in the luminous watch-dial industry, t o determine, among other things, just h o w much radium is absorbed by t h e bodies of t h e workers, how this will affect their health, and w h a t safe guards should b e taken.
New* Government Master Specifications
Salt Substitute for Use in Briglit's Disease
T h e Federal Specifications Board, which has adopted and promulgated, up t o and including June 30, of l a s t year, 578 government master specifications, has issued a revised alpha betical index and numerical list. This publication (Bureau of Standards Circular 371) a l s o includes instructions for obtaining copies of t b e specifications, whose use is mandatory upon all government departments arid establishments. This issue super sedes Bureau of Standards Circular 319, dated January 1, 1928, under the same title, and includes 31 n e w specifications and 31 revisions adopted and promulgated as government master specifications.
During the past year it lias been discovered that t h e sodium salt of malic acid h a s a t a s t e practically identical with t a b l e salt and m a y be used a s a substitute by sufferers from high blood pressure, Bright's disease, and dropsy, who bave been required t o omit salt from their food, according t o an announcement made b y John C. Krantz, Jr., at a joint meeting of t n e members o f state boards of pharmacy and delegates of faculties of colleges of pharmacy, held in Atlantic City, March 1 2 . Doctor Krantz stated that extensive investigations had shown that t h e sub stitution of this salt would satisfy the craving for salt in food, b u t have no ill*effects.
