GLASSBLOWING torrent

The history of scientific glassware has passed through
three rather definite stages. From the beginning of science
to the end of the last century, only the simplest glass apparatus
was known; flasks and retorts and tubes xvere used,
and they changed very little in form through the ages.
Then more complicated unit apparatus was introduced, such
as all-glass condensers, multiple-nv-cked flasks, and elaborate
automatic extraction devices. These were standardized
and manufactured for specialized uses, and they were rarely
altered. Finally, the last quarter century has been marked
by the development of custom-made glassware. Through
close coSperation between the workers in glass and in
research, large and complicated apparatus, especially
designed for the problem at hand, can be built quickly and
easily. Rubber hose connections have given way to all-glass
aonstruction, to great advantage, and now it is usual to
see a laboratory almost filled with one vine-like piece of
glass.