Various

“ Patents are granted for any new and useful art, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement on any art, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, not known or used by others before his or their discovery or invention thereof, and not, at the time of his application for a patent, in public use, or on sale, with his or their consent, or allowance, as the inventor or discoverer. ”

“ In January last, I addressed a few lines to you, asking information in regard to an article entitled Atmospheric Resistance, in the New York Mechanic, of December 11, 1841. In your answer, you say if the full surface is 30,000 square feet to each wing, (which makes 60,000 square feet,) only about half of one horse power would be required to sustain this weight, and I understand you, virtually to say, that they must be ten times as large, in order that the strength of one man be sufficient to work this and elevate himself together with the apparatus, if it were not too heavy. ”

“ An easy flow of words is no sign of an abundance of ideas. Swift made a wise comparison when he likened a well stored mind to a crowded church, where the people elbow each other, and cannot get out.
"If a civil word or two will render a man happy," said a French king, "he must be a wretch indeed who will not give them to him. Such a disposition is like lighting another man's candle by one's own, which loses none of its brilliancy by what the other gains." ”

“ SHERWOOD'S MAGNETIC MACHINE,--Is warranted to be greatly superior to every other manufactured, by whatever imitations or pretensions foisted upon the public. No premium has ever been obtained over this machine at the American or any other Institute, as has been falsely represented. It imparts the magnetic forces more continuously, with less violence to the sensations of the patient, and with more permanent efficacy, than any other invented, while the cures it has actually effected are incomparably more numerous. ”

“ A wedge is considered to be the most simple of "mechanical powers," and is often used in cases where no other apparatus can be made to apply; as in splitting logs and other adhesive articles. If a massive rock is to be elevated from the ground, a wedge must first be driven between that and its foundation, preparatory to the application of levers. Yet the wedge is in most cases objectionable on account of the friction with which its use is attended. The next, and most common power applied for elevating buildings on large rocks, is the simple lever, commonly called a pry. ”

“ The principles of the steam engine he did not invent; he claimed only the application of that machine to water wheel, for propelling vessels. In 1806 he returned to America; he and Mr. Livingston built, in 1807, the first boat, the Clermont, 130 feet in length, which navigated the Hudson at the rate of five miles an hour. Nothing could exceed the surprise and admiration of all who witnessed the experiment. The minds of the most incredulous were, changed in a few minutes. Before the boat had made the progress of a quarter of a mile, the greatest unbeliever must have been converted. ”

“ The reasoning powers of the writer may be learned from the following:
"Thus we conclude that the novelty of an invention consists in making something 'useful to society,' and that in an original and novel way, so as to embody the great principle of invention." Or, as far as the writer has informed us, the novelty is the useful, the useful is the original and novel, and the original and novel are the great principle, and the great principle is the novelty or something else. ”

“ The windlass is made in a conical form, being a little larger at one end, than at the other; and if the friction of its bearings be relieved by the ordinary friction rollers, it will so far multiply the force applied, as to break a double inch-rope, by the power of one man at the crank. An endless rope, or one of which the two ends are spliced together, is passed five or six times round the small end of the windlass, and down under a single pulley below: then, as the windlass is turned by the crank, the rope is constantly given off from one part, while the circumference is greater. ”

“ With regard to the philosophy of the flight of the eagle, it must be borne in mind that atmospheric resistance is as the square of the velocity downward and the only way in which the phenomenon of the flight of the eagle can be reconciled with the laws of mechanical science as established by experiment, is by supposing the velocity of the wing downward to be equal to 70 feet per second, whereby a resistance would be encountered equal to 12 pounds per square foot of surface to the wings. ”

“ At length that curiosity which is the moving spring of woman's actions, could be no longer resisted by her female admirers, who at the close of the ball, instituted a rigid examination of the nature of those incomparable brilliants, when, to their astonishment, they found that they were no more or less than so many fire flies, which the envy of the ball-room had secured in gauze bags, and which as she moved about, fluttered, and thus threw out their varied brilliant hues. ”

“ With regard to the requisite strength of the cylinder's head, if they are made in a semi-spherical convex form, they will require no more thickness of plate than the cylinder: but if they consist of plane disks, the thickness thereof should bear the same proportion to that of the periphery that the area in square inches does to three times the circumference. But in general, no other rule is observed for the thickness of the heads, than to make them extravagantly heavy, without much regard to theoretic calculation. ”

“ The railroad bridge at Deerfield, Mass., is said to be a splendid affair. It is fifty feet above the traveled stage road bridge, and nearly eighty feet above the waters of the river. The piers are already erected, and nearly ready for the superstructure.
The Artesian well at South Boston has been sunk to the depth of nearly 400 feet. The boring machine is worked by steam power, and progresses about 12 feet per day.
Some impudent doctor says that tight lacing is a public benefit; for it kills off the foolish girls, and leaves the wise ones for good wives and mothers. ”

“ But by far the better way is to take of each and every thing a view the most favorable. This course is evidently peaceable, else politicians and sectarians could not so uniformly applaud every act of their favorite sect or party, and as uniformly oppose and deprecate those of their opponents. Every man who habituates himself to viewing things in the most favourable light, will find this course the most conducive to his own happiness, while it contributes much to that of his neighbors and associates. Look at the bright side of every thing, and hold every picture right side up. ”

“ It requires the application of a great quantity of power to overcome the friction of its many axles and machinery, in addition to what is requisite to overcome the gravity of the vessel. It is, moreover, injurious to the vessels which are taken up thereby, on account of its elevating the forward part, before the centre and stern become seated on the carriage. The most judicious mode in present use, for raising vessels to repair, and which must be preferred to all others, where there is a supply of water from an elevated reservoir, is on the principle of locks ”

“ If a boiler made of thin iron is 14 inches in diameter, or 44 inches in circumference, each inch of its length will contain 44 square inches, and either half thereof will contain 22 inches, and as the pressure on this portion is sustained by at least two inches of width of plate,--one inch on each side,--it follows that it will sustain a pressure of at least 700 lbs. per square inch, in the direction of circumference. If the diameter is double, the number of square inches will be double, and will require double the thickness to sustain equal pressure. ”

“ R. C. Holmes, says the United States Gazette, has invented a new application of the tiller rope to the wheel for steering vessels, and has prepared a model of the whole application, tiller-frame, wheel, and rope, so that the properties of the invention can be easily discovered. The advantages are that there is no slack made; and, consequently, there is no chafing, and a single hand at the wheel will do the ordinary work of two men. ”

“ Nor can I comprehend why it would require so much power, the eagle though he exerts himself considerable in rising, no doubt, does not seem to use power any where in the proportion that you have thought would be required supposing the wings to be made in the same proportion to the 150 pounds that his wings are to his weight, his beats are not so quick but what they can be very easily counted. ”

“ And that we may furnish an acceptable family newspaper, we shall continue to give in a brief and condensed form, the most useful and interesting intelligence of passing events,--not omitting a small portion of serious matter, suitable for Sunday reading, but avoiding the disgusting and pernicious details of crime, with which too many of our public journals abound, and which evidently produces a deleterious effect on the morals of the community. ”

“ Some of the best in use consist of a vertical iron rack, which is occasionally forced upward by the teeth of a pinion: a geer wheel on the same axle with the pinion being driven by the thread of a horizontal screw, to the head of which is attached a crank. By a machine of this construction, properly proportioned, one man may raise about twenty tons weight. Vertical screws, turned by levers, have been frequently used for the purpose of raising vessels to repair. ”

“ Editor: I had a little curiosity to hear what the press said of this periodical; but as yet I have not seen any notice, except the brief one in your columns. As a general rule, it is inexpedient for an association to publish a periodical. Instead of being an expression of the society, it almost unavoidably becomes the organ of a clique, and renders the patronage of an otherwise liberal organization subservient to private interest. ”

“ If the band connecting the drums, is governed by a shifting lever connected with a governor, it may be so adjusted as to keep the motion of the machine regular, although the driving power should be irregular in its motion, as is the case with a wind-wheel. But if the operator is engaged, requires a move rapid motion at one time than at another, he can accommodate himself by shifting the position of the cone-band, to the right or left, as occasion may require. ”

“ New York. BY MUNN & COMPANY.
The SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN is the Advocate of Industry and Journal of Mechanical and other Improvements: as such its contents are probably more varied and interesting, than those of any other weekly newspaper in the United States, and certainly more useful. It contains as much interesting Intelligence as six ordinary daily papers, while for real benefit, it is unequalled by any thing yet published. ”

“ In painting common chairs, the ground is prepared by a coat of paint composed of ivory black and rose-pink,--equal quantities, ground in a mixture of equal parts of linseed oil, drying japan and spirits of turpentine.--When this is dry, the graining color, consisting of three parts of rose-pink with one of vermillion, ground in a mixture of oil, japan and spirits of turpentine, is applied with a common flat graining brush. Fancy boxes and cabinet furniture are painted by a different process, by which a better imitation is produced. ”

“ Now it is plain, that if the windlass is one-fifth of an inch larger in circumference, at the point at which the rope is taken up, than at the place where it is given off to the pulley, that whatever may be appended thereto, will be raised one tenth of an inch by each revolution Then, if we suppose the crank lever to be fifteen inches, the handle will travel about 100 inches, in each revolution, which gives a power, or increase of force, of 1000 to one. Therefore, if 100 pounds of power be applied to the crank handle, it will be sufficient--minus friction--to raise a weight of 100,000 lbs. ”