No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
Science and technology know no geographical boundaries. The horizons are limited only by man's ingenuity and the materials with which he has to work. One of the most striking examples of what ingenious man can do to emulate and even surpass nature in the provision of useful things is exemplified in the rubber industry.
The Museum has been fortunate in securing the industrial cooperation of the Lee Rubber & Tire Company in equipping and decorating a room so that the comprehensive story of rubber may be told.
Beginning with a brief pictorial history of natural rubber and a superb wall map showing the distribution of its sources, the exhibits proceed to show the molecular structure of synthetic rubbers, and the significance of rubber in our modern world.
The people of the United States consume more than three-quarters of the world's supply of rubber, and the greater bulk of this goes to the manufacture of automobile tires. Since this application leaves relatively few families in the country unaffected, special attention is devoted to the manufacture of the component parts of the automobile tire.
An illustrated and illuminated flow chart shows the process of manufacture from crude rubber to finished tire, while a recorded talk assists the visitor to follow the process, reminding him that a tire is something more than a piece of molded rubber.
The Museum staff has always been concerned with the provision of dynamic exhibits which would enable the visitor to participate in the demonstration. In the case of this room devoted to rubber, opportunity has been taken to secure visitor participation by the provision of operable exhibits and demonstrations. For example, the simple push of a button will set in operation a.device by which the rubber latex is coagulated and the usable base of commercial rubber is produced. By the exercise of a little strength, the visitor may learn the lesson of danger in a skidding tire and the safety furnished by a well treaded tire.
Still other demonstrations illustrate the properties of rubber. Everyone knows rubber's astonishing degree of passive resistance, how it will permit itself to be stretched, buffeted, pummelled, and mauled. Rubber's capacity to "take it" is due to its ability to absorb a blow and to return it. Therein lies most of its usefulness to man. But its other properties are not so well known. Its resistance to abrasion and its adhesive qualities when vulcanized are not so fully recognized, so that emphasis is placed upon these in operable demonstrations. The special properties of synthetic rubbers, such as the acid resistance and dielectric qualities, are similarly shown.
As admirable examples of the modern decorator's art, the rubber flooring and foam rubber "upholstery" of the seats further illustrate how the rubber goods manufacturer is taking advantage of the material which modern science is offering for his use.
LIBRARY NOTES. The Committee on Library desires to add to the collections any technical works that members would wish to contribute. Contributions will be gratefully acknowledged and placed in the library. Duplicates received will be transferred to other libraries as gifts of the donor.
Photostat Service. Photostat prints
๐ SIMILAR VOLUMES
The fears of many people who imagine that, by developing nuclear fission for the purpose of making destructive atomic bombs, the United States had seized a bear by the tail, will be set at rest by the exhibition planned for display in the Museum during the months of November, December, and January.
The work of the Educational Department is in full swing, booking reservations and conducting groups on visits to the Museum, Planetarium and Dairy Dell. In anticipation of the busy fall season, two separate mailings have been prepared and sent out to a mailing list which includes over 1500 schools a