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Methane Saves MidIN a recent report by the dlesex From Large IMiddlesex County Council Fuel BUI. . Sewerage Committee, reference was_ made to the excellent production of methane.. During 1944-45, the power produced by its use provided 97 per cent, of the total requirements of the sewerage works. In addition it met the whole need for the central heating of the main buildings, arid the works vehicles were operated entirely on compressed methane. The volume consumed. during the year was 443,000,000 cubic It. displacing, 1,282,000 gallons of imported fuel. Oil and 5,800 .gallons of petrol, the cost of which to the Council would have been N.:18,043. • Older People Are wiE are encouraged! .Accordmore Careful and 11` mg to the" Daily Express,— Capable a Harvard professor, following a survey of war Aworkers„; has found -that, so far as industrial efficiency is concerned, those over 40 years of age are more efficient than the younger. Amongst mill hands, met over 60 had only half as many accidents as those of 20 years of age. He has also discovered that motor 'drivers between 40 and 60 are safer, whilst critical ...judgment and learning. abtht ere just as high between 35 and 65 as When .below 30 ft i§ mentionedthat one air-travel concern has 100 pilots over 45 years of age.
Interesting Fluctu'THE cost of living is a
ations in. the Cost 1 matter which affects us all, d Living and in which road -transpOrt plays a fairly large part. Therefore, the comparative index figures are of considerable interest. As is well known, the level of July, 1914, was taken as the par value of 100, and the figures now, given are the increases on this. The highest figure, 176, occurred in November, 1920; the lowest since then was in April and May, 1935, when it dropped to 39. Thenceforward it rose steadily, averaging about 100 between 1941 and 1944. In August, 1944, it rose to 102, 'Litt dropped to 101 in October of that year, reaching 102 again in January, 1945, 103 last May, 104 in June, and 107 in July; so that now we are still well below the highest of 1920: . The State has, of course, expended many millions in buying foodstuffs, which are usually sold• at lower and fixed prices, otherwise the index figure would have been much higher. It is. interesting to note also that petrol alone rose to over 4s. per gallon soon after the war of 1914-18; now it is .1s. 114,..d. Model Cars Capable A4ODELS can be made to of Travelling at Over IV 'serve a most practical
60 m.p.h. . . . purpose and much use is "made
. of them in shipbuilding and in the world of aeronautics. . We have, too, seen some really fine models of 'goods vehicles, as well as passenger and municipal machines, but these have been built mostly as glass-case exhibits, and not for the object of serving a useful purpose, such as testing out theory. Anewsport is, however, now gripping model makers, and this concerns the running of miniature race cars, it being possible to attain speeds of over 60 m.p.h. around a circular course. " Model Race Cars," a publication issued by the Drysdale. Press, Ltd., gives details of many such models, whilst fullsize plans of several types of machine can be obtained from the same source. -Power is provided by 'miniature petrOl engines as small as 3 c.c, capacity, some of the larger ones having engines as big as
• 10 c.c.! Any readers interested should .communicate with the publishers mentioned at Wilmary House, Merton Lane, Highgate, London, N.6.