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Scientific American Supplement, No. 365, December 30, 1882 by Various, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book . THE ABA OR ODIKA. here THE ABA OR ODIKA. By W.H. Bacheler, M.D. Among the many luxuriant and magnificent forest trees of equatorial West Africa, none can surpass, for general beauty and symmetry, that which is called by the natives the "aba." When growing alone and undisturbed, its conical outline and dark green foliage remind one very much of the white maples of the northern United States, by a distant view, but, on a nearer approach, a dissimilarity is observed. Wherever, in ravines or near the banks of rivers, the soil is moist the most part of the year, there the aba chooses to grow, and during the months of June and July the falling fruits permeate the atmosphere with a delicious fragrance not similar to any other. This, in form, size, and general appearance, is very much like mango apples, so that the natives call mangoes the "white man's aba;" but the wild aba is not much eaten as a fruit, one or two being sufficient for the whole season. The kernel, or seed, is the important and useful part. When the fallen fruit covers the ground, much as apples do in America, the natives go in canoes to gather it, and the number harvested will be in proportion to the industry of the women. The aba plum is about the size of a goose's egg, of a flattened, ovoid shape, and, when ripe, a beautiful golden color. It consists of three distinct parts: the rind, the pulp, and the seed. The pulp consists of a mass extensively interwoven with strong filaments, which apparently grow out of the seed and are with great difficulty separated from it. The seed, reniform in shape, is bivalved, and constitutes about two-thirds of the bulk of the entire plum, and the inner kernel two-thirds the bulk of the seed. In consequence of it being such a high tree and growing in such inconvenient places, I have been unable to procure a specimen of the flowers. As soon as the fruit is brought to the village, all the inhabitants assemble with cutlasses and engage in the work of opening the plums and removing the kernels. The former are thrown away as useless. The seeds are evenly spread on the top of a rack of small sticks, under which a fire is built in the morning, and subjected to the smoke and heat of an entire day. Toward evening the heat is greatly augmented, and in a couple of hours the process is completed. The kernels are now soft, and the oil oozing from them, and while yet in this condition they are thrown into an immense trough and throughly beaten and mashed with a pestle. Baskets, with banana leaves spread in the inside to prevent the escape of the product, are in readiness, and it is put into them and pressed down. The next day these baskets are suspended in the sun, and at night are brought into the houses to congeal. The process is now finished. The cakes are removed by inversion of the baskets and "bushrope" tied around them, by which the pieces are carried. As thus prepared, odika is highly esteemed by the natives as an article of food, being made into a kind of thick gravy and eaten with boiled plantains. While at an interior mission station on the Ogowe River, I made some experiments in soap making. With palm oil I succeeded very well, using for an alkali the old-fashioned lye of ashes. But I was disappointed with the odika, though I learned some peculiar characteristics of it as a grease. By boiling the crude odika, I was unable, as I hoped, to separate the oleaginous from the extraneous matter, of which it contains a large proportion, but when the above-mentioned lye was used instead of water, the mass, instead of saponifying, merely separated; the grease, resembling very much in all particulars ordinary beef tallow, rising to the top of the caldron, while the refuse was precipitated. After clarifying this, it answers instead of oil of theobroma very nicely, and I have used it considerably in making ointments and suppositories with pleasing results. Gaboon, W. Africa, Aug., 1882.— New Remedies. About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Various (2006). Scientific American Supplement, No. 365, December 30, 1882. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/18763/pg18763-images.html This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at , located at . www.gutenberg.org https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html

THE ABA OR ODIKA

Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883 by Various, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book . TESTING OLIVE OIL. here TESTING OLIVE OIL. By DR. O. BACH. There is no department in analytical chemistry in which so little success has been attained as in the testing of commercial fats and oils. All methods that have been proposed for distinguishing and recognizing the separate oils, alone or mixed, bear upon them the stamp of uncertainty. The facts observed by J. Koenig, and described by him in his excellent book entitled " " (p. 248), excited great expectations; viz., that the quantity of glycerine in vegetable fats was much less than the amount required to combine with all the fatty acids, and that the quantity of oleic acid in the oils that he examined exhibited essential differences. Koenig himself asserts that the fats have hitherto been too little investigated to found upon it a method for distinguishing them, but that nevertheless it may possibly do good service in some cases. Die Menschlichen Nahrungs und Genussmittel My own estimation of the amount of glycerine in different olive oils, by Koenig's method, has shown, unfortunately, that the percentage may vary from 1.6 to 4.68, according to the origin and quality of the oil. In like manner the estimation of the oleic acid, which was conducted essentially in the manner proposed by Koenig, showed that the amount of oleic acid in different olive oils varied from 45 to 54 per cent. But since cotton seed oil, for example, which is most frequently used to adulterate olive oil, contains 5 per cent. of glycerine, and 59.5 per cent. of oleic acid, it is easy to see an admixture of cotton seed oil cannot be detected by this method, which appeared to be so exact. The method of analysis that I am about to describe is based chiefly upon the determination of the melting point of the fatty acids contained in the oils, and upon their solubility in a mixture of alcohol and acetic acid. The oils employed in adulterating olive oil, and to which regard must be had in testing it, are the following: Cotton seed oil, sesame, peanut, sun flower, rape, and castor oils. The tests for the two last named have hitherto never presented any difficulty, as rape seed is easily detected, owing to the sulphur in it, by saponifying it in a silver dish, and castor oil by its solubility in alcohol. But in recent times another product has come into the market called sulphur oil or pulpa oil, obtained by extracting the pressed olive cake with sulphide of carbon. This also gives a sulphur reaction when saponified, while it resembles castor oil by its solubility in alcohol. When this oil is mixed with ordinary olive oil, it can easily deceive any one who uses the ordinary tests. My method of testing olive oil is as follows: First, the so-called elaidine test is made, and then the test with nitric acid. About 5 c. c. (a teaspoonful) of the oil is mixed in a test tube with its own volume of nitric acid, spec. gr. 1.30, and shaken violently for one minute. At the expiration of this time the oils will have acquired the following colors: Olive oil, pale green; cotton seed oil, yellowish brown; sesame, white; sun flower, dirty white; peanut, rape, and castor oils, pale pink or rose. As soon as the color has been observed, the test glass is put in a water bath at the full boiling temperature and left there five minutes. It was found that the action of nitric acid upon cotton seed and sesame oil was the most violent, sometimes so violent as to throw the oil out of the glass. At the end of another five minutes after the test tube is taken out of the water bath, the following colors are seen: olive and rape oils are red; castor oil is golden yellow; sun flower oil, reddish yellow; sesame and peanut, brownish yellow; cotton seed, reddish brown. After standing 12 to 18 hours at about 60° Fahr. the olive, rape, and peanut oils will have solidified; sun flower, castor, and cotton seed will be like salve (sticky), while sesame will remain perfectly liquid. Mixtures of olive oil with small quantities of cotton seed or sesame are distinguished by this characteristic--that, although the whole mass, which is darker in color than olive oil, solidifies at first, at the end of 24 or 36 hours a brown oil will be found floating upon the surface of the solid mass, while the lower strata exhibit the yellow color of pure olive oil. Oil of rosemary has no effect when shaken with cold nitric acid, and imparts to it only a slightly darker color on heating. Oils treated with lye act just like pure oils. Far the purpose of determining the melting point of the fatty acids, 10 grammes of oil were saponified with 5 grammes of caustic potash on the water bath; some water and alcohol being added. After all the alcohol had been expelled the soap was dissolved in hot water, and the fatty acids separated from the clear solution by adding hydrochloric acid. After prolonged heating these acids will swim on the salt solution as a perfectly clear oil, a portion of which is then put into a little, narrow, thin walled tube and allowed to solidify. The point at with it melts and solidifies is determined by putting this tube in a beaker glass filled with water and warming with a small flame. A thermometer is placed the fatty acids and moved gently about during the observation, and the point accurately observed at which the whole mass becomes perfectly clear, and also when the mercury bulb begins to be clouded. It was found that the acids from pure olive oil melt between 26½ and 28½° C. (= 80° to 83° Fahr.) and solidify at a point not lower than 22° C. (72° Fahr.). The melting point of the fatty acids in the oils used to adulterate olive oil differs considerably from this. The melting and solidifying points of the acids in cotton seed, sesame, and peanut oils lie considerably higher, those of sunflower, rape, and castor oils decidedly lower than those of olive oil. in The melting and solidifying points of these acids are as follows: Cotton seed melts at 38.0°C.  solidifies 35.0°C.
  Sesame       do.     35.0 do.    do.     32.5 do.
  Peanut       do.     33.0 do.    do.     31.0 do.
  Sunflower    do.     23.0 do.    do.     17.0 do.
  Rape         do.     20.7 do.    do.     15.0 do.
  Castor oil   do.     13.0 do.    do.      2.0 do. The above figures differ so much from those of olive oil, that adulteratious carried to the extent that they are in trade can easily be detected by the aid of an estimation of the melting point, for a Gallipoli olive oil, mixed with 20 per cent. of sunflower oil, melted at 24° C. and solidified at 18° C. (of course, the fatty acids are meant). A Nizza oil, mixed with 20 per cent. cotton seed oil, melted at 31½° C. and solidified at 28° C. A Gallipoli oil with 33-1/3 per cent. of rape oil melted at 23½° C. and solidified at 16½° C. When 0.50 per cent. of rape is added, it melts as low as 20° and solidifies at 13½° C., etc. In testing the solubility of the fatty acids in alcohol and acetic acid, I employ the method proposed by David (in , 1878, p. 1416) for estimating stearic acid. Comptes Rendus It depends upon the principle that when acetic acid is poured drop by drop into an alcoholic solution of oleic acid, there comes a time when all the oleic acid separates, but stearic acid, which is insoluble in a mixture of alcohol and acetic acid, remains insoluble if the mixture contains oleic acid. The following manipulations are adopted in testing olive oil: Equal parts of glacial acetic acid and water are mixed in a bottle. Then 1 c.c. of pure oleic acid, 3 c.c. of 95 per cent. alcohol, and 2 c.c. of acetic acid are put in a small tube graduated in tenths of cubic centimeters. The solution should remain clear; on adding another one-tenth c.c. of acetic acid it becomes turbid, and when 1 c.c. of oleic acid (or at first even more) floats on the mixture of acid and alcohol, the liquid is ready for use. If this is not the case, the proportions (of acetic acid and alcohol?) must be varied until the addition of one-tenth c.c. of the former will cause all the oleic acid to separate. The proportions having been ascertained from these preliminary experiments, the alcohol and acid are then mixed accordingly, e.g., 300 of alcohol to 225 of acid. One or two grammes of stearic acid are added to the alcoholic acetic acid, and the clear supernatant liquid used for the experiments. One cubic centimeter of the oil (acids) to be tested is put in the tube, and 15 c.c. of alcoholic acetic acid added, well shaken, and the whole left to stand quietly at 15° C. (60° Fahr). If the olive oil is pure, the acids dissolve to a clear solution that remains so. Cotton seed oil is insoluble, and the solution obtained by heating the solution solidifies at 60° Fahr. to a white jelly. Sesame and peanut oil react in a similar manner. Sunflower oil dissolves, but at 60° a granular precipitate falls. Rape oil is entirely insoluble and floats like oil on the surface. Castor oil on the contrary dissolves completely, just like olive oil, and hence cannot be detected therein by this method. To detect this oil we must take the melting point of the acids along with the solubility of the oil itself in alcohol. Olive oil when mixed with 25 per cent. of cotton seed oil yields a granular precipitate, and so does 25 per cent. of sesame. Smaller quantities cannot be detected by these methods. For rape oil the limit is 50 per cent., and in smaller quantities the oil does not collect on the alcoholic solution. The decided lowering of the melting point of the fatty acids in combination with the sulphur reaction, and the insolubility of the oil in alcohol, also furnish a method of detecting when present in smaller quantities in olive oil. Although I am well aware that I am making public a research that is by no means free from objections, I nevertheless believe that it may be of use to those who have to undertake the ticklish and intricate analyses of commercial fats.-- , p. 355. Translated from the Chemiker Zeitung Leipsic, Jan., 1883. About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Various (2005). Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/8742/pg8742-images.html This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at , located at . www.gutenberg.org https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html

TESTING OLIVE OIL

Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883 by Various, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book . ON THE ADULTERATION OF SOAP. here ON THE ADULTERATION OF SOAP. By Dr. H. BRACKEBUSCH. The importance of soap as an indispensable article in the household has not restrained the adulterators from making it a favorite object of their operations, and at the present day soap is only very rarely what it should be, the alkaline salt of a fatty acid with about 15 per cent. of water, which may be increased in case of soft soaps to 30 per cent. at most. The amount of moisture is an immediate signal for adulteration. Of all substances that can be used to adulterate soap, water is of course the cheapest, and as it is also harmless, this was the first point where manufacturers made use of their knowledge. The percentage of water was raised to 26 or 28 per cent., and now nearly all the ordinary soaps contain that amount when they leave the factory. At first the retailers objected to this method, because they had to suffer the loss so far as it dried out and lost weight in the store. The next point was to find some substance that would prevent this rapid drying, and it was very soon discovered that those soaps that contained an excess of lye retained moisture longer. Henceforth it was only necessary to use lyes of extra strength so as to obtain a large yield of soap containing an excess of water. The results of this ingenious method are before us; in the shops of the soap dealers the bars of soap become coated with a crust of white crystals, which is nothing but soda. If a few drops of corrosive sublimate be dropped on these crystals, a red spot will at once be produced by the formation of mercuric oxide. In addition to the deception of the public who buy such soaps, this alkali destroys clothes washed with it, as the fiber of the tissues is directly attacked by it, while the proper action of the soap depends on its enveloping the particles of dirt and carrying them off. Soap is subject to another kind of adulteration called filling, or weighting. Soapstone and similar mineral substances are added to the finished soap to increase its weight. But it may be added that this fraudulent weighting is rare. Large establishments cannot take the risk of being detected in such avaricious practices, and small ones scarcely have the apparatus at their disposal for making a uniform mixture which will not arouse suspicion. Now soaps are frequently found in the market that scarcely deserve this name. Mineral soap, cold water soap, etc., are the names inscribed on the placards behind which is buried a preparation consisting for the greater part of water-glass. The well-known water-glass is a silicate of soda or potash dissolved in free or caustic soda, or potash. There was a time when it excited great hopes, and its introduction into the household for washing was dreamed of, but it was soon found that its caustic properties made their appearance at a relatively low temperature. Hence we often find the notice, "TO BE USED COLD," printed in bold letters on the wrappers. This product is obtained by thickening water-glass with stearine, oleine, or any other easily saponifiable fat. As it takes but very little of the substances named to make an article closely resembling soap, of course the product is very cheap. There does not seem to be any limit to the amount of water in it; at least the author found in one kind of mineral soap from Berlin 58 per cent. of water. Water-glass soaps do not dissolve readily in water, they make but little suds, and render the skin hard and unpliable. Admitting that they are suitable for many purposes, nothing can be said against their sale so long as they appear under names which preclude their being confounded with other soaps. Nevertheless, there is always this danger--that water-glass may come into general use in making soap, and this is to be deplored. Water-glass soaps are easily recognized by their insolubility in moderately strong alcohol, the water-glass remaining behind in a gelatinous form. Great deception has been practiced under such names as "almond soap," etc. Fortunately the difference between various kinds of fat are not very great from a chemical point of view, although it is always an unpleasant thought that the fat from animals that have died may return to the house in the form of soap. A white or yellow soap having a good smell is not made from bad fat, and hence is more appetizing. A method formerly much in use consisted in mixing green soap with starch paste, a mixture that could not be detected by the naked eye, especially if colored with caramel. On attempting to dissolve it in ordinary burning alcohol, a white coagulum forms. From the foregoing it is sufficiently evident that those who buy soap to sell again have every reason to keep a sharp lookout on those who furnish them with soap.-- Polyt. Notiz. About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Various (2005). Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/8742/pg8742-images.html This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at , located at . www.gutenberg.org https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html

ON THE ADULTERATION OF SOAP

The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book . Chapter XX here Chapter XX The winter season set in with the month of June, which corresponds with the month of December in the Northern Hemisphere. It began with showers and squalls, which succeeded each other without intermission. The tenants of Granite House could appreciate the advantages of a dwelling which sheltered them from the inclement weather. The Chimneys would have been quite insufficient to protect them against the rigor of winter, and it was to be feared that the high tides would make another irruption. Cyrus Harding had taken precautions against this contingency, so as to preserve as much as possible the forge and furnace which were established there. During the whole of the month of June the time was employed in different occupations, which excluded neither hunting nor fishing, the larder being, therefore, abundantly supplied. Pencroft, so soon as he had leisure, proposed to set some traps, from which he expected great results. He soon made some snares with creepers, by the aid of which the warren henceforth every day furnished its quota of rodents. Neb employed nearly all his time in salting or smoking meat, which insured their always having plenty of provisions. The question of clothes was now seriously discussed, the settlers having no other garments than those they wore when the balloon threw them on the island. These clothes were warm and good; they had taken great care of them as well as of their linen, and they were perfectly whole, but they would soon need to be replaced. Moreover, if the winter was severe, the settlers would suffer greatly from cold. On this subject the ingenuity of Harding was at fault. They must provide for their most pressing wants, settle their dwelling, and lay in a store of food; thus the cold might come upon them before the question of clothes had been settled. They must therefore make up their minds to pass this first winter without additional clothing. When the fine season came round again, they would regularly hunt those musmons which had been seen on the expedition to Mount Franklin, and the wool once collected, the engineer would know how to make it into strong warm stuff.... How? He would consider. “Well, we are free to roast ourselves at Granite House!” said Pencroft. “There are heaps of fuel, and no reason for sparing it.” “Besides,” added Gideon Spilett, “Lincoln Island is not situated under a very high latitude, and probably the winters here are not severe. Did you not say, Cyrus, that this thirty-fifth parallel corresponded to that of Spain in the other hemisphere?” “Doubtless,” replied the engineer, “but some winters in Spain are very cold! No want of snow and ice; and perhaps Lincoln Island is just as rigorously tried. However, it is an island, and as such, I hope that the temperature will be more moderate.” “Why, captain?” asked Herbert. “Because the sea, my boy, may be considered as an immense reservoir, in which is stored the heat of the summer. When winter comes, it restores this heat, which insures for the regions near the ocean a medium temperature, less high in summer, but less low in winter.” “We shall prove that,” replied Pencroft. “But I don’t want to bother myself about whether it will be cold or not. One thing is certain, that is that the days are already short, and the evenings long. Suppose we talk about the question of light.” “Nothing is easier,” replied Harding. “To talk about?” asked the sailor. “To settle.” “And when shall we begin?” “To-morrow, by having a seal hunt.” “To make candles?” “Yes.” Such was the engineer’s project; and it was quite feasible, since he had lime and sulphuric acid, while the amphibians of the islet would furnish the fat necessary for the manufacture. They were now at the 4th of June. It was Whit Sunday and they agreed to observe this feast. All work was suspended, and prayers were offered to Heaven. But these prayers were now thanksgivings. The settlers in Lincoln Island were no longer the miserable castaways thrown on the islet. They asked for nothing more—they gave thanks. The next day, the 5th of June, in rather uncertain weather, they set out for the islet. They had to profit by the low tide to cross the Channel, and it was agreed that they would construct, for this purpose, as well as they could, a boat which would render communication so much easier, and would also permit them to ascend the Mercy, at the time of their grand exploration of the southwest of the island, which was put off till the first fine days. The seals were numerous, and the hunters, armed with their iron-tipped spears, easily killed half-a-dozen. Neb and Pencroft skinned them, and only brought back to Granite House their fat and skin, this skin being intended for the manufacture of boots. The result of the hunt was this: nearly three hundred pounds of fat, all to be employed in the fabrication of candles. The operation was extremely simple, and if it did not yield absolutely perfect results, they were at least very useful. Cyrus Harding would only have had at his disposal sulphuric acid, but by heating this acid with the neutral fatty bodies he could separate the glycerine; then from this new combination, he easily separated the olein, the margarin, and the stearin, by employing boiling water. But to simplify the operation, he preferred to saponify the fat by means of lime. By this he obtained a calcareous soap, easy to decompose by sulphuric acid, which precipitated the lime into the state of sulphate, and liberated the fatty acids. From these three acids-oleic, margaric, and stearic-the first, being liquid, was driven out by a sufficient pressure. As to the two others, they formed the very substance of which the candles were to be molded. This operation did not last more than four and twenty hours. The wicks, after several trials, were made of vegetable fibers, and dipped in the liquefied substance, they formed regular stearic candles, molded by the hand, which only wanted whiteness and polish. They would not doubtless have the advantages of the wicks which are impregnated with boracic acid, and which vitrify as they burn and are entirely consumed, but Cyrus Harding having manufactured a beautiful pair of snuffers, these candles would be greatly appreciated during the long evenings in Granite House. During this month there was no want of work in the interior of their new dwelling. The joiners had plenty to do. They improved their tools, which were very rough, and added others also. Scissors were made among other things, and the settlers were at last able to cut their hair, and also to shave, or at least trim their beards. Herbert had none, Neb but little, but their companions were bristling in a way which justified the making of the said scissors. The manufacture of a hand-saw cost infinite trouble, but at last an instrument was obtained which, when vigorously handled, could divide the ligneous fibers of the wood. They then made tables, seats, cupboards, to furnish the principal rooms, and bedsteads, of which all the bedding consisted of grass mattresses. The kitchen, with its shelves, on which rested the cooking utensils, its brick stove, looked very well, and Neb worked away there as earnestly as if he was in a chemist’s laboratory. But the joiners had soon to be replaced by carpenters. In fact, the waterfall created by the explosion rendered the construction of two bridges necessary, one on Prospect Heights, the other on the shore. Now the plateau and the shore were transversely divided by a watercourse, which had to be crossed to reach the northern part of the island. To avoid it the colonists had been obliged to make a considerable detour, by climbing up to the source of the Red Creek. The simplest thing was to establish on the plateau, and on the shore, two bridges from twenty to five and twenty feet in length. All the carpenter’s work that was needed was to clear some trees of their branches: this was a business of some days. Directly the bridges were established, Neb and Pencroft profited by them to go to the oyster-bed which had been discovered near the downs. They dragged with them a sort of rough cart, which replaced the former inconvenient hurdle, and brought back some thousands of oysters, which soon increased among the rocks and formed a bed at the mouth of the Mercy. These molluscs were of excellent quality, and the colonists consumed some daily. It has been seen that Lincoln Island, although its inhabitants had as yet only explored a small portion of it, already contributed to almost all their wants. It was probable that if they hunted into its most secret recesses, in all the wooded part between the Mercy and Reptile Point, they would find new treasures. The settlers in Lincoln Island had still one privation. There was no want of meat, nor of vegetable products; those ligneous roots which they had found, when subjected to fermentation, gave them an acid drink, which was preferable to cold water; they also made sugar, without canes or beet-roots, by collecting the liquor which distils from the “acer saceharinum,” a sort of maple-tree, which flourishes in all the temperate zones, and of which the island possessed a great number; they made a very agreeable tea by employing the herbs brought from the warren; lastly, they had an abundance of salt, the only mineral which is used in food... but bread was wanting. Perhaps in time the settlers could replace this want by some equivalent, it was possible that they might find the sago or the breadfruit tree among the forests of the south, but they had not as yet met with these precious trees. However, Providence came directly to their aid, in an infinitesimal proportion it is true, but Cyrus Harding, with all his intelligence, all his ingenuity, would never have been able to produce that which, by the greatest chance, Herbert one day found in the lining of his waistcoat, which he was occupied in setting to rights. On this day, as it was raining in torrents, the settlers were assembled in the great hall in Granite House, when the lad cried out all at once,— “Look here, captain—A grain of corn!” And he showed his companions a grain—a single grain—which from a hole in his pocket had got into the lining of his waistcoat. The presence of this grain was explained by the fact that Herbert, when at Richmond, used to feed some pigeons, of which Pencroft had made him a present. “A grain of corn?” said the engineer quickly. “Yes, captain; but one, only one!” “Well, my boy,” said Pencroft, laughing, “we’re getting on capitally, upon my word! What shall we make with one grain of corn?” “We will make bread of it,” replied Cyrus Harding. “Bread, cakes, tarts!” replied the sailor. “Come, the bread that this grain of corn will make won’t choke us very soon!” Herbert, not attaching much importance to his discovery, was going to throw away the grain in question; but Harding took it, examined it, found that it was in good condition, and looking the sailor full in the face—“Pencroft,” he asked quietly, “do you know how many ears one grain of corn can produce?” “One, I suppose!” replied the sailor, surprised at the question. “Ten, Pencroft! And do you know how many grains one ear bears?” “No, upon my word.” “About eighty!” said Cyrus Harding. “Then, if we plant this grain, at the first crop we shall reap eight hundred grains which at the second will produce six hundred and forty thousand; at the third, five hundred and twelve millions; at the fourth, more than four hundred thousands of millions! There is the proportion.” Harding’s companions listened without answering. These numbers astonished them. They were exact, however. “Yes, my friends,” continued the engineer, “such are the arithmetical progressions of prolific nature; and yet what is this multiplication of the grain of corn, of which the ear only bears eight hundred grains, compared to the poppy-plant, which bears thirty-two thousand seeds; to the tobacco-plant, which produces three hundred and sixty thousand? In a few years, without the numerous causes of destruction, which arrests their fecundity, these plants would overrun the earth.” But the engineer had not finished his lecture. “And now, Pencroft,” he continued, “do you know how many bushels four hundred thousand millions of grains would make?” “No,” replied the sailor; “but what I do know is, that I am nothing better than a fool!” “Well, they would make more than three millions, at a hundred and thirty thousand a bushel, Pencroft.” “Three millions!” cried Pencroft. “Three millions.” “In four years?” “In four years,” replied Cyrus Harding, “and even in two years, if, as I hope, in this latitude we can obtain two crops a year.” At that, according to his usual custom, Pencroft could not reply otherwise than by a tremendous hurrah. “So, Herbert,” added the engineer, “you have made a discovery of great importance to us. Everything, my friends, everything can serve us in the condition in which we are. Do not forget that, I beg of you.” “No, captain, no, we shan’t forget it,” replied Pencroft; “and if ever I find one of those tobacco-seeds, which multiply by three hundred and sixty thousand, I assure you I won’t throw it away! And now, what must we do?” “We must plant this grain,” replied Herbert. “Yes,” added Gideon Spilett, “and with every possible care, for it bears in itself our future harvests.” “Provided it grows!” cried the sailor. “It will grow,” replied Cyrus Harding. This was the 20th of June. The time was then propitious for sowing this single precious grain of corn. It was first proposed to plant it in a pot, but upon reflection it was decided to leave it to nature, and confide it to the earth. This was done that very day, and it is needless to add, that every precaution was taken that the experiment might succeed. The weather having cleared, the settlers climbed the height above Granite House. There, on the plateau, they chose a spot, well sheltered from the wind, and exposed to all the heat of the midday sun. The place was cleared, carefully weeded, and searched for insects and worms; then a bed of good earth, improved with a little lime, was made; it was surrounded by a railing; and the grain was buried in the damp earth. Did it not seem as if the settlers were laying the first stone of some edifice? It recalled to Pencroft the day on which he lighted his only match, and all the anxiety of the operation. But this time the thing was more serious. In fact, the castaways would have been always able to procure fire, in some mode or other, but no human power could supply another grain of corn, if unfortunately this should be lost! About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Jules Verne (1998). The Mysterious Island. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved October 2022 https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1268/1268-h/1268-h.htm This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at , located at . www.gutenberg.org https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html

The winter season set in with the month of June

The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne, is part of the HackerNoon Books Series. You can jump to any chapter in this book . Chapter XVII here Chapter XVII The next day, the 7th of May, Harding and Gideon Spilett, leaving Neb to prepare breakfast, climbed Prospect Heights, while Herbert and Pencroft ascended by the river, to renew their store of wood. The engineer and the reporter soon reached the little beach on which the dugong had been stranded. Already flocks of birds had attacked the mass of flesh, and had to be driven away with stones, for Cyrus wished to keep the fat for the use of the colony. As to the animal’s flesh it would furnish excellent food, for in the islands of the Malay Archipelago and elsewhere, it is especially reserved for the table of the native princes. But that was Neb’s affair. At this moment Cyrus Harding had other thoughts. He was much interested in the incident of the day before. He wished to penetrate the mystery of that submarine combat, and to ascertain what monster could have given the dugong so strange a wound. He remained at the edge of the lake, looking, observing; but nothing appeared under the tranquil waters, which sparkled in the first rays of the rising sun. At the beach, on which lay the body of the dugong, the water was tolerably shallow, but from this point the bottom of the lake sloped gradually, and it was probable that the depth was considerable in the center. The lake might be considered as a large center basin, which was filled by the water from the Red Creek. “Well, Cyrus,” said the reporter, “there seems to be nothing suspicious in this water.” “No, my dear Spilett,” replied the engineer, “and I really do not know how to account for the incident of yesterday.” “I acknowledge,” returned Spilett, “that the wound given this creature is, at least, very strange, and I cannot explain either how Top was so vigorously cast up out of the water. One could have thought that a powerful arm hurled him up, and that the same arm with a dagger killed the dugong!” “Yes,” replied the engineer, who had become thoughtful; “there is something there that I cannot understand. But do you better understand either, my dear Spilett, in what way I was saved myself—how I was drawn from the waves, and carried to the downs? No! Is it not true? Now, I feel sure that there is some mystery there, which, doubtless, we shall discover some day. Let us observe, but do not dwell on these singular incidents before our companions. Let us keep our remarks to ourselves, and continue our work.” It will be remembered that the engineer had not as yet been able to discover the place where the surplus water escaped, but he knew it must exist somewhere. He was much surprised to see a strong current at this place. By throwing in some bits of wood he found that it set towards the southern angle. He followed the current, and arrived at the south point of the lake. There was there a sort of depression in the water, as if it was suddenly lost in some fissure in the ground. Harding listened; placing his ear to the level of the lake, he very distinctly heard the noise of a subterranean fall. “There,” said he, rising, “is the discharge of the water; there, doubtless, by a passage in the granite cliff, it joins the sea, through cavities which we can use to our profit. Well, I can find it!” The engineer cut a long branch, stripped it of its leaves, and plunging it into the angle between the two banks, he found that there was a large hole one foot only beneath the surface of the water. This hole was the opening so long looked for in vain, and the force of the current was such that the branch was torn from the engineer’s hands and disappeared. “There is no doubt about it now,” repeated Harding. “There is the outlet, and I will lay it open to view!” “How?” asked Gideon Spilett. “By lowering the level of the water of the lake three feet.” “And how will you lower the level?” “By opening another outlet larger than this.” “At what place, Cyrus?” “At the part of the bank nearest the coast.” “But it is a mass of granite!” observed Spilett. “Well,” replied Cyrus Harding, “I will blow up the granite, and the water escaping, will subside, so as to lay bare this opening—” “And make a waterfall, by falling on to the beach,” added the reporter. “A fall that we shall make use of!” replied Cyrus. “Come, come!” The engineer hurried away his companion, whose confidence in Harding was such that he did not doubt the enterprise would succeed. And yet, how was this granite wall to be opened without powder, and with imperfect instruments? Was not this work upon which the engineer was so bent above their strength? When Harding and the reporter entered the Chimneys, they found Herbert and Pencroft unloading their raft of wood. “The woodmen have just finished, captain.” said the sailor, laughing, “and when you want masons—” “Masons,—no, but chemists,” replied the engineer. “Yes,” added the reporter, “we are going to blow up the island—” “Blow up the island?” cried Pencroft. “Part of it, at least,” replied Spilett. “Listen to me, my friends,” said the engineer. And he made known to them the result of his observations. According to him, a cavity, more or less considerable, must exist in the mass of granite which supported Prospect Heights, and he intended to penetrate into it. To do this, the opening through which the water rushed must first be cleared, and the level lowered by making a larger outlet. Therefore an explosive substance must be manufactured, which would make a deep trench in some other part of the shore. This was what Harding was going to attempt with the minerals which nature placed at his disposal. It is useless to say with what enthusiasm all, especially Pencroft, received this project. To employ great means, open the granite, create a cascade, that suited the sailor. And he would just as soon be a chemist as a mason or bootmaker, since the engineer wanted chemicals. He would be all that they liked, “even a professor of dancing and deportment,” said he to Neb, if that was ever necessary. Neb and Pencroft were first of all told to extract the grease from the dugong, and to keep the flesh, which was destined for food. Such perfect confidence had they in the engineer, that they set out directly, without even asking a question. A few minutes after them, Cyrus Harding, Herbert, and Gideon Spilett, dragging the hurdle, went towards the vein of coals, where those shistose pyrites abound which are met with in the most recent transition soil, and of which Harding had already found a specimen. All the day being employed in carrying a quantity of these stones to the Chimneys, by evening they had several tons. The next day, the 8th of May, the engineer began his manipulations. These shistose pyrites being composed principally of coal, flint, alumina, and sulphuret of iron—the latter in excess—it was necessary to separate the sulphuret of iron, and transform it into sulphate as rapidly as possible. The sulphate obtained, the sulphuric acid could then be extracted. This was the object to be attained. Sulphuric acid is one of the agents the most frequently employed, and the manufacturing importance of a nation can be measured by the consumption which is made of it. This acid would later be of great use to the settlers, in the manufacturing of candles, tanning skins, etc., but this time the engineer reserved it for another use. Cyrus Harding chose, behind the Chimneys, a site where the ground was perfectly level. On this ground he placed a layer of branches and chopped wood, on which were piled some pieces of shistose pyrites, buttressed one against the other, the whole being covered with a thin layer of pyrites, previously reduced to the size of a nut. This done, they set fire to the wood, the heat was communicated to the shist, which soon kindled, since it contains coal and sulphur. Then new layers of bruised pyrites were arranged so as to form an immense heap, the exterior of which was covered with earth and grass, several air-holes being left, as if it was a stack of wood which was to be carbonized to make charcoal. They then left the transformation to complete itself, and it would not take less than ten or twelve days for the sulphuret of iron to be changed to sulphate of iron and the alumina into sulphate of alumina, two equally soluble substances, the others, flint, burnt coal, and cinders, not being so. While this chemical work was going on, Cyrus Harding proceeded with other operations, which were pursued with more than zeal,—it was eagerness. Neb and Pencroft had taken away the fat from the dugong, and placed it in large earthen pots. It was then necessary to separate the glycerine from the fat by saponifying it. Now, to obtain this result, it had to be treated either with soda or lime. In fact, one or other of these substances, after having attacked the fat, would form a soap by separating the glycerine, and it was just this glycerine which the engineer wished to obtain. There was no want of lime, only treatment by lime would give calcareous soap, insoluble, and consequently useless, while treatment by soda would furnish, on the contrary, a soluble soap, which could be put to domestic use. Now, a practical man, like Cyrus Harding, would rather try to obtain soda. Was this difficult? No; for marine plants abounded on the shore, glass-wort, ficoides, and all those fucaceae which form wrack. A large quantity of these plants was collected, first dried, then burnt in holes in the open air. The combustion of these plants was kept up for several days, and the result was a compact gray mass, which has been long known under the name of “natural soda.” This obtained, the engineer treated the fat with soda, which gave both a soluble soap and that neutral substance, glycerine. But this was not all. Cyrus Harding still needed, in view of his future preparation, another substance, nitrate of potash, which is better known under the name of salt niter, or of saltpeter. Cyrus Harding could have manufactured this substance by treating the carbonate of potash, which would be easily extracted from the cinders of the vegetables, by azotic acid. But this acid was wanting, and he would have been in some difficulty, if nature had not happily furnished the saltpeter, without giving them any other trouble than that of picking it up. Herbert found a vein of it at the foot of Mount Franklin, and they had nothing to do but purify this salt. These different works lasted a week. They were finished before the transformation of the sulphuret into sulphate of iron had been accomplished. During the following days the settlers had time to construct a furnace of bricks of a particular arrangement, to serve for the distillation of the sulphate or iron when it had been obtained. All this was finished about the 18th of May, nearly at the time when the chemical transformation terminated. Gideon Spilett, Herbert, Neb, and Pencroft, skillfully directed by the engineer, had become most clever workmen. Before all masters, necessity is the one most listened to, and who teaches the best. When the heap of pyrites had been entirely reduced by fire, the result of the operation, consisting of sulphate of iron, sulphate of alumina, flint, remains of coal, and cinders was placed in a basinful of water. They stirred this mixture, let it settle, then decanted it, and obtained a clear liquid containing in solution sulphate of iron and sulphate of alumina, the other matters remaining solid, since they are insoluble. Lastly, this liquid being partly evaporated, crystals of sulphate of iron were deposited, and the not evaporated liquid, which contained the sulphate of alumina, was thrown away. Cyrus Harding had now at his disposal a large quantity of these sulphate of iron crystals, from which the sulphuric acid had to be extracted. The making of sulphuric acid is a very expensive manufacture. Considerable works are necessary—a special set of tools, an apparatus of platina, leaden chambers, unassailable by the acid, and in which the transformation is performed, etc. The engineer had none of these at his disposal, but he knew that, in Bohemia especially, sulphuric acid is manufactured by very simple means, which have also the advantage of producing it to a superior degree of concentration. It is thus that the acid known under the name of Nordhausen acid is made. To obtain sulphuric acid, Cyrus Harding had only one operation to make, to calcine the sulphate of iron crystals in a closed vase, so that the sulphuric acid should distil in vapor, which vapor, by condensation, would produce the acid. The crystals were placed in pots, and the heat from the furnace would distil the sulphuric acid. The operation was successfully completed, and on the 20th of May, twelve days after commencing it, the engineer was the possessor of the agent which later he hoped to use in so many different ways. Now, why did he wish for this agent? Simply to produce azotic acid; and that was easy, since saltpeter, attacked by sulphuric acid, gives azotic, or nitric, acid by distillation. But, after all, how was he going to employ this azotic acid? His companions were still ignorant of this, for he had not informed them of the result at which he aimed. However, the engineer had nearly accomplished his purpose, and by a last operation he would procure the substance which had given so much trouble. Taking some azotic acid, he mixed it with glycerine, which had been previously concentrated by evaporation, subjected to the water-bath, and he obtained, without even employing a refrigerant mixture, several pints of an oily yellow mixture. This last operation Cyrus Harding had made alone, in a retired place, at a distance from the Chimneys, for he feared the danger of an explosion, and when he showed a bottle of this liquid to his friends, he contented himself with saying,— “Here is nitro-glycerine!” It was really this terrible production, of which the explosive power is perhaps tenfold that of ordinary powder, and which has already caused so many accidents. However, since a way has been found to transform it into dynamite, that is to say, to mix with it some solid substance, clay or sugar, porous enough to hold it, the dangerous liquid has been used with some security. But dynamite was not yet known at the time when the settlers worked on Lincoln Island. “And is it that liquid that is going to blow up our rocks?” said Pencroft incredulously. “Yes, my friend,” replied the engineer, “and this nitro-glycerine will produce so much the more effect, as the granite is extremely hard, and will oppose a greater resistance to the explosion.” “And when shall we see this, captain?” “To-morrow, as soon as we have dug a hole for the mine, replied the engineer.” The next day, the 21st of May, at daybreak, the miners went to the point which formed the eastern shore of Lake Grant, and was only five hundred feet from the coast. At this place, the plateau inclined downwards from the waters, which were only restrained by their granite case. Therefore, if this case was broken, the water would escape by the opening and form a stream, which, flowing over the inclined surface of the plateau, would rush on to the beach. Consequently, the level of the lake would be greatly lowered, and the opening where the water escaped would be exposed, which was their final aim. Under the engineer’s directions, Pencroft, armed with a pickaxe, which he handled skillfully and vigorously, attacked the granite. The hole was made on the point of the shore, slanting, so that it should meet a much lower level than that of the water of the lake. In this way the explosive force, by scattering the rock, would open a large place for the water to rush out. The work took some time, for the engineer, wishing to produce a great effect, intended to devote not less than seven quarts of nitro-glycerine to the operation. But Pencroft, relieved by Neb, did so well, that towards four o’clock in the evening, the mine was finished. Now the question of setting fire to the explosive substance was raised. Generally, nitro-glycerine is ignited by caps of fulminate, which in bursting cause the explosion. A shock is therefore needed to produce the explosion, for, simply lighted, this substance would burn without exploding. Cyrus Harding could certainly have fabricated a percussion cap. In default of fulminate, he could easily obtain a substance similar to guncotton, since he had azotic acid at his disposal. This substance, pressed in a cartridge, and introduced among the nitro-glycerine, would burst by means of a fuse, and cause the explosion. But Cyrus Harding knew that nitro-glycerine would explode by a shock. He resolved to employ this means, and try another way, if this did not succeed. In fact, the blow of a hammer on a few drops of nitro-glycerine, spread out on a hard surface, was enough to create an explosion. But the operator could not be there to give the blow, without becoming a victim to the operation. Harding, therefore, thought of suspending a mass of iron, weighing several pounds, by means of a fiber, to an upright just above the mine. Another long fiber, previously impregnated with sulphur, was attached to the middle of the first, by one end, while the other lay on the ground several feet distant from the mine. The second fiber being set on fire, it would burn till it reached the first. This catching fire in its turn, would break, and the mass of iron would fall on the nitro-glycerine. This apparatus being then arranged, the engineer, after having sent his companions to a distance, filled the hole, so that the nitro-glycerine was on a level with the opening; then he threw a few drops of it on the surface of the rock, above which the mass of iron was already suspended. This done, Harding lit the end of the sulphured fiber, and leaving the place, he returned with his companions to the Chimneys. The fiber was intended to burn five and twenty minutes, and, in fact, five and twenty minutes afterwards a most tremendous explosion was heard. The island appeared to tremble to its very foundation. Stones were projected in the air as if by the eruption of a volcano. The shock produced by the displacing of the air was such, that the rocks of the Chimneys shook. The settlers, although they were more than two miles from the mine, were thrown on the ground. They rose, climbed the plateau, and ran towards the place where the bank of the lake must have been shattered by the explosion. A cheer escaped them! A large rent was seen in the granite! A rapid stream of water rushed foaming across the plateau and dashed down a height of three hundred feet on to the beach! About HackerNoon Book Series: We bring you the most important technical, scientific, and insightful public domain books. This book is part of the public domain. Jules Verne (1998). The Mysterious Island. Urbana, Illinois: Project Gutenberg. Retrieved October 2022 https://www.gutenberg.org/files/1268/1268-h/1268-h.htm This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at , located at . www.gutenberg.org https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html

The engineer and the reporter soon reached the little beach

It smells because there are likely many instances where it could be edited or improved. Most of these smells are just hints of something that might be wrong. Therefore, they are not required to be fixed per se… (You should look into it, though.) Previous Code Smells You can find all the previous code smells (Part i - XXXVI) . here Let's continue... Code Smell 181 - Nested Classes Nested or Pseudo-Private Classes seem great for hiding implementation details. TL;DR: Don't use nested classes Problems fault to real-world concepts. Bijection Lack of testability Lack of reuse Scopes and namespaces complexity Solutions Make the class public Keep the public class under your own namespace/module. Use a Facade to the external world to hide it. Context Some languages allow us to create private concepts that only live inside a more significant idea. These classes are harder to test, harder to debug, and reuse. Sample Code Wrong class Address {

  String description = "Address: ";

  public class City {
    String name = "Doha";
  }
}


public class Main {

  public static void main(String[] args) {

    Address homeAddress = new Address();
    Address.City homeCity = homeAddress.new City();
    System.out.println(homeAddress.description + homeCity.name);
  }
}

// The output is "Address: Doha"
//
// If we change privacy to 'private class City' 
//
// We get an error " Address.City has private access in Address" Right class Address {
  String description = "Address: ";
}

 
class City {
  String name = "Doha";
}


public class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    Address homeAddress = new Address();
    City homeCity = new City();
    System.out.println(homeAddress.description + homeCity.name);
  }
}

// The output is "Address: Doha"
//
// Now we can reuse and test the City concept Detection Automatic [x] Since this is a language feature, we can detect it and avoid its usage. Tags Hierarchies Conclusion Many features are bloated with complex features. We seldom need these new pop culture features. We need to keep a set of concepts. minimal More Info W3 schools Disclaimer Code Smells are just my . opinion Credits Photo by on Dana Ward Unsplash Developers are drawn to complexity like moths to a flame, frequently with the same result. Neal Ford Software Engineering Great Quotes Code Smell 182 - Over Generalization We are refactoring fans. Sometimes we need to stop and think. TL;DR: Don't make generalizations beyond real knowledge. Problems Overgeneralization violation Bijection Solutions Think before making structural generalizations Context Refactoring is not just looking at structural code. We need to refactor behavior and check if it needs an abstraction. Sample Code Wrong fn validate_size(value: i32) {
    validate_integer(value);
}

fn validate_years(value: i32) {
    validate_integer(value);
}

fn validate_integer(value: i32) {
    validate_type(value, :integer);
    validate_min_integer(value, 0);
} Right fn validate_size(value: i32) {
 	validate_type(value, Type::Integer);
	validate_min_integer(value, 0);
}
	
fn validate_years(value: i32) {
	validate_type(value, Type::Integer);
	validate_min_integer(value, 0);
}
	
// Duplication is accidental, therefore we should not abstract it Detection Manual [x] This is a semantic smell. Tags Duplication Conclusion Software development is a thinking activity. We have automated tools to help and assist us. We need to be in charge. Relations Code Smell 46 - Repeated Code More Info DRY—The Evils of Duplication Disclaimer Code Smells are just my . opinion Credits Photo by on Matthew Henry Unsplash Duplication is far cheaper than the wrong abstraction. Sandi Metz Code Smell 183 - Obsolete Comments Comments are a code smell. Obsolete comments are a real danger and nobody maintains what can't be executed. TL;DR: Don't trust comments. They are dead. Problems Bad documentation Maintainability Solutions Replace comments with tests Refactorings Refactoring 005 - Replace Comment with Function Name Context We know comments add almost no value to our code. We need to restrict comments only to very important decisions. Since most people change logic and forget to update comments they might become obsolete easily. Sample Code Wrong void Widget::displayPlugin(Unit* unit)
{

 	// TODO the Plugin will be modified soon, 
	// so I don't implement this right now

 	if (!isVisible) {
		// hide all widgets
		return;
 	}

} Right void Widget::displayPlugin(Unit* unit)
{ 
	if (!isVisible) {
		return;
 	}
} Detection Semi-Automatic [x] We can warn for comments in our code and try to remove them. Exceptions Very important design decisions Tags Comments Conclusion We need to think before adding a comment. Once It is in the codebase is beyond our control and can start to lie anytime. Relations Code Smell 05 - Comment Abusers Code Smell 152 - Logical Comment Code Smell 151 - Commented Code Disclaimer Code Smells are just my . opinion Credits Photo by on Volodymyr Hryshchenko Unsplash Obsolete comments tend to migrate away from the code they once described. They become floating islands of irrelevance and misdirection in the code. Bob Martin Software Engineering Great Quotes Code Smell 184 - Exception Arrow Code Arrow code is a code smell. Exception polluting is another. This is a mortal combination. TL;DR: Don't cascade your exceptions Problems Readability Complexity Solutions Rewrite the nested clauses Context In the same way is hard to read, handling exceptions is a usual case when we must address the topics in a cascade way. arrow code Sample Code Wrong class QuotesSaver {
    public void Save(string filename) {
        if (FileSystem.IsPathValid(filename)) {
            if (FileSystem.ParentDirectoryExists(filename)) {
                if (!FileSystem.Exists(filename)) {
                    this.SaveOnValidFilename(filename);
                } else {
                    throw new I0Exception("File exists: " + filename);
                }
            } else {
                throw new I0Exception("Parent directory missing at " + filename);
            }
        } else {
            throw new ArgumentException("Invalid path " + filename);
        }
    }
} Right public class QuotesSaver {
    public void Save(string filename) {
        if (!FileSystem.IsPathValid(filename)) {
            throw new ArgumentException("Invalid path " + filename);
        } else if (!FileSystem.ParentDirectoryExists(filename)) {
            throw new I0Exception("Parent directory missing at " + filename);
        } else if (FileSystem.Exists(filename)) {
             throw new I0Exception("File exists: " + filename);
        }
        this.SaveOnValidFilename(filename);
    }
} Detection Semi-Automatic [x] Some linters warn us when we have this kind of complexity Tags Exceptions Conclusion Exceptions are less critical than normal cases. If we need to read more exceptional code than normal then it is time to improve our code. Relations Code Smell 102 - Arrow Code Code Smell 26 - Exceptions Polluting Disclaimer Code Smells are just my . opinion Credits Photo by on Remy Gieling Unsplash An error doesn't become a mistake until you refuse to correct it. Orlando Aloysius Battista Software Engineering Great Quotes Code Smell 185 - Evil Regular Expressions Regular expressions are a code smell. Sometimes also a vulnerability TL;DR: Try to minimize Regular Expression's recursive rules. Problems Security Issues Readability Premature Optimization Solutions Cover the cases with tests to see if they halt Use algorithms instead of regular expressions Add timeout handlers Context This is known as attack, a subtype of a attack. ReDos Denial of Service ReDoS attacks can be divided into two types: A string with an evil pattern is passed to an application. Then this string is used as a regex, which leads to ReDoS. A string with a vector attack format is passed to an application. Then this string is evaluated by a vulnerable regex, which leads to ReDoS. Sample Code Wrong package main

import (
    "regexp"
    "fmt"
)

func main() {
    var re = regexp.MustCompile(`^(([a-z])+.)+[A-Z]([a-z])+$`)
    var str = `aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!`
    
    for i, match := range re.FindAllString(str, -1) {
        fmt.Println(match, "found at index", i)
    }
} Right package main

import (
    "fmt"
    "strings"
)

func main() {
    var str = `aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!`
    
    words := strings.Fields(str)
    
    for i, word := range words {
        if len(word) >= 2 && word[0] >= 'a' && word[0] <= 'z' && word[len(word)-1] >= 'A' 
            && word[len(word)-1] <= 'Z' {
                fmt.Println(word, "found at index", i)
        }
    }
} Detection Semi-Automatic [x] Many languages avoid this kind of regular expression. We can also scan the code for this vulnerability. Tags Security Conclusion Regular Expressions are tricky and hard to debug. We should avoid them as much as possible. Relations Code Smell 41 - Regular Expression Abusers More Info Catastrophic backtracking: how can a regular expression cause a ReDoS vulnerability? https://owasp.org/www-community/attacks/Regular_expression_Denial_of_Service_-_ReDoS Runaway Regular Expressions: Catastrophic Backtracking Disclaimer Code Smells are just my . opinion Credits Photo by on engin akyurt Unsplash Some people, when confronted with a problem, think “I know, I’ll use regular expressions.” Now they have two problems. Jamie Zawinski 5 more code smells are coming soon…

How to Find the Stinky Parts of Your Code [Part XXXVII]

Here is how you should be using data instead. I can’t go one day without reading about big data. Companies often proudly proclaim how they have access to millions of data points (well, not anymore since a certain Ivy League-brand brought disrepute to the whole story). In the zeal to think big, we often forget why we were looking at the data in the first place. We look at data to make decisions. That is it, nothing else. Businesses — large multinational corporations and tiny garage startups alike — look at data solely because it helps them make informed decisions. Companies are not run by analysts who pore over data everyday. They are run by leaders who use (a fraction of the) data for effective decision-making. So what should we be doing with data instead? My points below may not apply to everyone equally… but if you are a startup with limited resources, then these points apply to you. So, read on. Let’s start with some basic assumptions. Assume you have a data dump of orders on your e-commerce stores for the last two years, say about 200,000 orders from 120,000 customers from 120 cities across your country. That’s also 120,000 e-mail addresses, phone numbers, shipment data, and returns data. What problem are you trying to solve? Yes, that’s right. Don’t dive into the data right away. Look at what decision needs to be made. If you are working with a senior executive or founder, then ask them what challenge they are trying to solve. Don’t settle for: “I want to find out more about our orders.” Expect questions to the level of specificity like the examples below: What can we do to reduce the return rates on our orders? (broad) What can we do to bring back the customers who have not purchased from us in the last six months? (more specific) What ZIP codes do we get the most profits from? (quite specific) Build your hypothesis first. Let’s take the first question as an example and determine what a potential hypothesis could be. If the aim is to reduce the return rates on our orders, we could look at where most of the returns are coming from. But wait: don’t look at the data just yet. Is this really the best hypothesis? Do you want to know returns are coming from, or do you want to know the returns are happening? Since the question clearly is to find out the reasons for returns, build a hypothesis like this instead: where why Customers are returning goods because shipments take too long to reach them. Building the right hypothesis early will save a ton of excess work later. Determine what data you need to prove/disprove your hypothesis. This hypothesis is clearly going to be proved or disproved by your data. How do you test this? One way could be to check if the average time taken to deliver the order where a return occurred is than the average time taken to deliver closed orders (let’s say closed orders are orders that were not returned). higher You could go a step further and think: what if averages skew the numbers so that returned orders and closed orders appear to have similar delivery times? That’s a valid risk. So instead map the order times on a scale and determine the (say) 25-, 50-, 70-percentile orders by delivery times. It’s important to note here that you probably need a fraction of the data to analyse: simply order numbers, order dates, and delivery dates. You don’t care about the customer’s location, value of orders, or birth dates — at least not to test this specific hypothesis. Ok, now you can run your analysis. A significantly shorter analytical run remains now. You could pull all the data and test your hypothesis in 15 mins flat. Ideally, remove the extremities of the data: e.g., if some orders got deliver in two hours and some delivery attempts happened 45 days later, remove those orders from your analysis. Focus the rest of your time on weaving a story around the data, and presenting your finding. Something like this: We looked at the time taken to deliver each order and mapped them across a percentile scale. We found that orders with delivery times in the top 10-percentile were returned 50% more than in the bottom 90-percentile. At the top 10-percentile, deliveries take 5.45 days or more. This means we have to ensure delivery to the customer in less than five and a half days. There you go. Isn’t that more impactful? In summary, simply keep these in mind: Don’t dive into analysing data. Identify the questions that need answering. Build a hypothesis that can be proved or disproved. Identify the minimum data required to prove or disprove the hypothesis. Be wise. Run your analysis. Provide a recommendation. If you have enjoyed reading this story, please give it a “👏”. Also, follow me so you get more stories like this. If you are launching a new product or service, head over to www.sapsonic.com and sign up or leave me a note.

Love insights, not data.

Taking A/B test results at face value goes against the fundamentals of experimentation. A few weeks ago, I was in a meeting with a very senior product manager, with about decade and a half of experience in PM. He proudly mentioned that the company runs hundreds of A/B tests and experiments . They take the results of the experiments and use it to tweak the product. every day They never ask why. If users tend to click on blue buttons more, let’s change the main buttons to blue. If users tend to click on Book Now if they see rooms are running out, then let’s show them how many rooms are left. Maybe reduce the availability a bit to drive urgency. Never asking why. There are two massive ways we are doing this wrong. Causality drives decision-making, not the other way round. I’m a firm believer in the . Understanding the root causes that drive user behaviour is as important as learning about the user behaviour in the first place. If an A/B test gives you a result at the beginning of the year and another six months later, did you really gain anything useful with the experiment? five why’s The five why’s technique will typically help you identify the root cause of user behaviour by simply asking Why five times. The immense appeal of this technique is simply that it works. Eric Ries explains it far better than I ever will: Another trick is to get initial findings from A/B tests and then validate those findings and assumptions with real life customers. An unhealthy amount of product managers tend to look at data – that is only half the story. Testing on 50,000 customers is important, but if talking to an additional 50 can amplify the impact of your tests, then why not? only Unavoidable selection-bias can kill authenticity of the tests. The next problem I have with blind A/B tests is that there is an inherent selection bias that marketers and product managers tend to ignore. Until you are absolutely sure that the users coming to your website every day are exactly representative of the entire user base, you are going off base. Look out for the impact of these biases: . For instance, if you are an e-commerce company, daily promotions and sales will have an impact on who lands on your home page. Assume you’re a horizontal player selling products across a range of categories, your home page will look very different at Valentine’s vs. when you’re promoting a new Xiaomi launch. Any experiment you run on those days will be representative of a different kind of audience. This applies on every day to varying degrees. To avoid this, remove the impact of outliers on the user base and choose a day when your audience is more representative of the user base. Say no to hundreds of tests everyday. Impact of daily sales . Surely a repeat user that regularly spends fifteen minutes on the website at every session is not the same as one that arrived on your website for the first time and bailed in 10 seconds. If a change enables you to keep your repeat users engaged but keeps away new users, your user-base will shrink with time. To avoid this, limit your testing to the average: remove people that spend too little or too much time. Remove users who buy too frequently or bounce too quickly. Difference in on-site behaviour In summary: A/B and split tests are very powerful in helping us understand user motivations. But doing a half-baked job of getting user feedback can do more harm than good. Don’t experiment for the heck of it. Draw causation. Take the extra step to get first-hand user feedback, from quantitative as well as qualitative channels. Avoid inherent selection bias. Look at what might be causing selection bias in your industry, and protect against that. If you have enjoyed reading this story, please give it a “👏”. Also, follow me so you get more stories like this. If you are launching a new product or service, head over to www.sapsonic.com and sign up or leave me a note. First consultations are free!

We are misusing A/B tests. Here’s what you should do with them instead.

Whether you are a startup founder or a legacy MNC trying to disrupt your existing processes, hiring a Product Manager can be a daunting task. There are no Ivy League courses you can hire from without a second thought. Also, who is a PM really? There are many small and major errors you can make in hiring PMs. First the basics: Is the PM a technical guy? Maybe, but likely not. Think of it this way: a PM may be technically knowledgeable, but not all technically knowledgeable candidates are PM-worthy. 2. So, a PM’s a generalist? Glad you asked! Most often, PMs will be generalists. But it could also be that the PM has been a specialist in many functions before moving to a product management role. 3. How senior should my first hire be? A lot of the PM’s job is to influence and convince stakeholders across the organization to converge on a coherent product. Being a senior guy helps. Also, if (s)he is your first hire, it’s better to hire a smart senior person and let him/her build a team when the time is right. Product management is fast becoming a coveted route for fresh MBAs, . This means once you go out into the market looking for a senior PM, you could easily be drowned in a deluge of interested candidates. according to WSJ (paywall) Unfortunately, this is a role where the CV is not very helpful as an elimination — PM CVs are likely to be very impressive across the board. They are likely to be great at presentation, concision, and contain a showcase of impressive products. So how do you choose the right PM for your organisation? Prioritise referrals. The PM community is small and, especially among startups, most PMs network very well. Remember, experienced PMs are probably the smartest group of people you will ever meet. Smart people like to be in touch with smart people. If you are hiring, spread the word among your peers and on LinkedIn, Angel List, and other forums. Talk to them. Don’t interview. Smart PMs are judging you when you’re judging them. Senior PMs across the world are valued highly and they want to be motivated by the product or service you are trying to build. Talk about your product and the product vision. Talk less about perks of working with you. If the product you are building is not worth their interest, the perks (or the money) won’t matter. Sell the role to them: don’t assume that just because they applied to a role they are dying to work with you. They are judging you as much as you are judging them. Photo by on rawpixel.com Unsplash Walk through the product journey. Chances are very high that their portfolio of work will show the final products they’ve built. While that is a great way to start, your time is better spent understanding how they arrived at the final product instead. In subsequent meetings, ask them to share scrubbed examples of work-in-progress materials, process maps, vision boards, and product requirement documents they have built. See how deep they were willing to get into the problem before they solved it. Ask them about the top challenges they faced across the process. Once they launched said product, what process did they follow to continually improve upon the product? Where did they get feedback from? What data did they look at? Where did they get data from? The final product of a great PM and an average PM might look similar. The rigour they applied in arriving at that final product won’t be. Ask for criticism. If you have a product up and running, then get them to critique the existing product. Ask them what they would change. Serious PM candidates should already have reviewed your product (unless it is behind a paywall) and come prepared with their observations. See how deep they are able to go in critiquing your product and which areas did they critique the most: some might focus on design, while others may focus on deviations from standards, and still others might question certain decisions to determine why they were made. Assess how they phrase their criticism. Don’t get defensive about your product — keep in mind, they are interviewing you too. If they feel that feedback from them will be handled defensively, they may not be excited about coming to work for you. Don’t depend on standardised tests. You are not going to like the answer, but — in the context of hiring PMs — this is a resounding no. If the candidate knows what his IQ scores are and believes the score somehow makes him/her better, stop the interview right away and go grab a beer. Your time will be better spent. Hey, isn’t testing on IQ supposed to make this easy? Don’t believe it? Take a look at the . Have you booked a flight to Hong Kong yet? Maybe. But it is reasonable to believe that the PMs are similarly above the average. average IQ scores around the world here But PMs are not average, you say? The above extends to personality tests too. Sometimes, personality tests structured for one part of the world simply does not work in another. For instance, one (global) personality test we tried in the past gave the for 124 individuals tested. A fat lot of good that did us. exact same assessment Discuss ways to solve a real-world problem. The best way to figure out how a PM candidate thinks is to ask them to solve a problem you are facing. Even if you don’t hire the candidate, you at least have a good sense of how to solve your problem. Meet in person to discuss a problem you are facing. Do not use vague, irrelevant, or abstract problems: it is insulting to a senior PM candidate if you ask him to solve a problem involving circles, squares, and triangles. Better questions include: Take a look at our product page. A lot of people appear to be coming to the product pages, but very few are clicking on the Add to Cart button. What could be possible reasons? We are considering adding a dashboard for our SaaS clients to use. How would you determine which metrics to show on the dashboard? Brainstorming a real-world problem can provide insights into the candidate’s way of thinking. Hire for decision-making rigour, not analytical chops. This seems another counterintuitive tip, but guess what people on the hyper-analytical side of the quadrant don’t do too well: They take longer to decide. They don’t handle ambiguity very well. They like structure. Of course, a certain level of analytical chops is essential, but don’t overvalue that too much. A PM has to be immensely comfortable with ambiguity — she is unlikely to have all the information to make a decision in majority of the problems she is facing. The ability to make decisions trumps the ability to analyse data. Keep in mind: if your PM can’t make decisions in an ambiguous environment, then you are going to have to make them for her. Give extra points to candidates with cross-functional experience. I have found that PMs that have been in a couple of different functions before moving to a PM role are generally more adept at building products that work for the business. They have a more holistic approach to the product and tend to find it easier to put themselves in the shoes of the user. They also find it easier to get buy-in from cross-functional leaders. So, take the “10–15 years of Product Management experience” bullet off your job description. You best PM candidate probably only has five years of PM experience. The above points may or may not provide you with the best PM for the role, but will help you avoid rookie mistakes when hiring your first PMs. The fact that you have earned yourself into a situation where you can afford a PM is a great achievement, so pat yourself in the back first. Originally published at sapsonic.com on April 16, 2018.

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