Human Anatomy Videos

A windmill for developing from 1/2 to 2 hp. may be constructed at home, the expense being very small and the results highly satisfactory.
The hub for the revolving fan wheel is first constructed.
One good way to get both the hub, lining, shaft and spokes for the blades, is to go to a wheelwrights and purchase the wheel and axle of some old rig. There are always a number of discarded carriages, wagons or parts thereof in the rear of the average blacksmiths shop. Sometimes for half a dollar, and often for nothing, you can get a wheel, an axle, and connected parts.
Remove from the wheel, all but the four spokes needed for the fans as in Fig. 1. The same hub, axle and bearings will do. In case you cannot secure a wheel and shaft, the hub may be made from a piece of hardwood, about 4 in. in diameter and 6 in. long. A 2-in. hole should be bored through for a wooden shaft, or a 1-1/2-in. hole for a metal shaft.

Fig.1; Windmill
The hub may be secured by putting two or three metal pins through hub and shaft.
Adjust the spokes by boring holes for them and arrange them so that they extend from the center A, like B. The wheel is then ready for the blades. These blades should be of sheet metal or thin hardwood. The sizes may vary according to the capacity of the wheel and amount of room for the blades on the spokes. Each one is tilted so as to receive the force of the wind at an angle, which adjustment causes the wheel to revolve when the wind pressure is strong enough. Secure the blades to the spokes by using little metal cleats, C and D. Bend these metal strips to suit the form of the spokes and flatten against the blades and then insert the screws to fasten the cleats to the wood. If sheet metal blades are used, rivets should be used for fastening them.

Fig. 2, Fig. 3

The stand for the wheel shaft is shown in Fig. 2. Arrange the base piece in platform order, (J). This is more fully shown in Fig. 5. On top of this base piece, which is about 36 in. long, place the seat or ring for the revolving table. The circular seat is indicated at I, Fig. 1. This ring is like an inverted cheese box cover with the center cut out. It can be made by a tinner. Size of ring outside, 35 in. The shoulders are 4 in. high and made of tin also. Form the shoulder by soldering the piece on. Thus we get a smooth surface with sides for the mill base to turn in so as to receive the wind at each point to advantage. The X-shaped piece H rests in the tin rim. The X-form, however, does not show in this sketch, but in Fig. 5, where it is marked S. This part is made of two pieces of 2-in. plank, about 3 in. wide, arranged so that the two pieces cross to make a letter X.

Fig. 4

When the pieces join, mortise them one into the other so as to secure a good joint. Adjust the uprights for sustaining the wheel shaft to the X-pieces as shown at E, E, Fig. 2. These are 4 by 4 in. pieces of wood, hard pine preferred, planed and securely set up in the X-pieces by mortising into the same. Make the bearings for the wheel shaft in the uprights and insert the shaft.

Fig. 5

The gearing for the transmission of the power from the wheel shaft to the shaft calculated for the delivery of the power at an accessible point below must next be adjusted. The windmill is intended for installation on top of a building, and the power may be transmitted below, or to the top of a stand specially erected for the purpose. It is a good plan to visit some of the second-hand machinery dealers and get four gears, a pulley and a shaft. Gears about 5 in. in diameter and beveled will be required. Adjust the first pair of the beveled gears as at F and G. If the wheel shaft is metal, the gear may be set-screwed to the shaft, or keyed to it. If the shaft is hardwood, it will be necessary to arrange for a special connection. The shaft may be wrapped with sheet metal and this metal fastened on with screws. Then the gear may be attached by passing a pin through the set-screw hole and through the shaft. The upright shaft like the wheel shaft is best when of metal. This shaft is shown extending from the gear, G, to a point below. The object is to have the shaft reach to the point where the power is received for the service below. The shaft is shown cut off at K. Passing to Fig. 3 the shaft is again taken up at L. It now passes through the arrangement shown, which device is rigged up to hold the shaft and delivery wheel P in place. This shaft should also be metal. Secure the beveled gears M and N as shown. These transmit the power from the upright shaft to the lower horizontal shaft. Provide the wheel or pulley, P, with the necessary belt to carry the power from this shaft to the point of use.

The tail board of the windmill is illustrated in Fig. 4. A good way to make this board is to use a section of thin lumber and attach it to the rear upright, E of Fig. 2. This may be done by boring a hole in the upright and inserting the shaft of the tail-piece. In Fig. 4 is also shown the process of fastening a gear, R, to the shaft. The set screws enter the hub from the two sides and the points are pressed upon the shaft, thus holding the gear firmly in place.

Fig. 6

The platform for the entire wheel device is shown in Fig. 5. The X-piece S is bored through in the middle and the upright shaft passes through. The tin run-way or ring is marked T, and the X-piece very readily revolves in this ring, whenever the wind alters and causes the wheels position to change. The ring and ring base are secured to the platform, U. The latter is made of boards nailed to the timbers of the staging for supporting the mill. This staging is shown in Fig. 6, in a sectional view. The ring with its X-piece is marked V, the X-piece is marked W, and the base for the part, and the top of the stage is marked X. The stage is made of 2 by 4-in. stock. The height may vary, according to the requirements. If the affair is set up on a barn or shed, the staging will be sufficient to support the device. But if the stage is constructed direct from the ground, it will be necessary to use some long timbers to get the wheel up high enough to receive the benefit of the force of the wind. Proceeding on the plan of the derrick stand, as shown in Fig. 6, a stage of considerable height can be obtained.

Excerpt from the book:
THE BOY MECHANIC
VOLUME I
700 THINGS FOR BOYS TO DO
WITH 800 ILLUSTRATIONS
1913, BY H. H. WINDSOR CHICAGO
POPULAR MECHANICS CO. PUBLISHERS

As has already been remarked, we ask our "dear Five Hundred" to our balls and receptions, reserving our dinner invitations for those whom we particularly wish to compliment. The dinner we provide is by no means of the comfortable "pot-Iuck" kind. It is, in society, an elaborate and expensive form of entertainment. It requires delicacies for the palate, flowers and bonbons and other decorations for the table, and ceremonious serving. The finest of linen, cut glass and silver adorn it, and the repast may easily be prolonged through two or more hours. Such a dinner is served in courses; begins with an appetizer, extends through soup, fish, joint, salad and dessert courses at the very least, and ends with coffee, served at the table or in some other apartment--the library or drawing room--where the guests converse over their cups.
Such a meal cannot be prepared or served without competent service in the kitchen and dining-room. The cook must know how to prepare every dish in the best manner, and have it ready at the right moment; the waiter must be experienced and noiseless. The hostess must have such perfect confidence that everything will progress in perfect and proper order that she can give her full attention to the guests,

Serving the Dinner
Let us suppose a dinner for eight people is to be served. The ceremonious dinner, the world over, is served a la Russe, that is, according to the Russian fashion. By this fashion nothing but the covers--a term which includes the china, silver and glass at each plate--flowers, dishes of bonbons, salted nuts and olives, occasionally small cakes, are on the table when the guests are seated,
The hostess has inspected the table, after it is laid, seeing that everything is correct, Silver must have had a fresh polish, the cut glass must shine and sparkle, There must be plenty of light, yet no glare; to prevent this, ground glass globes on the electric lights are preferred. The hostess herself will arrange the place cards, separating married people, and in so far as possible so seating her guests that each may be pleased with his or her neighbor. The centerpiece is of flowers; for this never choose a strongly scented flower like hyacinths or narcissi. The heat, the odor of the food, combined with the scent of the flowers, may induce lethargy, so that the dinner may be "garnished with stupidity."
There must be a service plate at each place. These are to be as handsome as you can afford. At the side of this is laid the dinner napkin, within which a roll is folded. The guest removes the napkin, unfolding it for use. The waitress removes the service plate and puts down another on which is a grapefruit, vermouth, or other kind of cock¬tail. This plate and glass removed, there comes another plate, and little dishes of caviarre are passed. These plates also disappear, others are substituted, and soup is served. After the soup is eaten the soup plates are removed, leaving the other plates, and celery and radishes and salted nuts and olives are passed, not necessarily all, but at least two, say celery and olives; nuts and radishes. If the little individual almond dishes are used, of course the salted nuts will not be passed.
These plates are again changed when the fish is served, the rule being that at no time during the dinner must a guest be without a plate before him until the table is cleared for dessert. Moreover, the waitress, in placing plates that have a monogram or heraldic device for decoration, must so place the plate before each guest that the design faces him. In taking up the plates, one is taken up with the right hand while with the left the waitress replaces it with another; one plate is never placed upon another.
The fish, meat, and other courses are served from the pantry, the portions being arranged for convenience in helping, and garnished with parsley or lemon. The dish is passed first to the guest seated at the hosts right hand, next to the one on the left, and afterwards in regular rotation, irrespective of sex. All service is at the left; this leaves the guests right hand in position to help himself. The waitress holds the dish upon a folded napkin on the flat of her hand, and low down. Vegetables are passed in the same fashion.
You will see how much depends upon having well trained ser¬vants at such a dinner. The service must be without haste, yet with¬out delay; there must be no clatter of china and silver, no awkward¬ness in removing plates, etc. The waitress must be quick to refill glasses or supply whatever is needed.

The Help Required
A dinner to twelve or fourteen guests can¬not be served properly without two or three waiters--usually men at such large dinners--and additional help in the kitchen. So much thought and anxiety are required for the success of a home dinner party that it is small wonder many prefer to add a little to the expense, in cities at least, and order a dinner for the requisite number at hotel or club, where the responsibility rests with the management after the details of the menu are settled. Such a dinner is less of a compliment to ones guests than the entertainment at ones own home, however; and why should one possess stores of beautiful and expensive furnishings without their use?
One dinner generally means another a short time afterwards, since in selecting the small number who can be entertained one must necessarily leave out others who have equal claims to hospitality and whose sense of being slighted must be appeased. And if the hostess is socially prominent she may find herself embarked on a course of entertainments that will tax her time and her funds to a considerable degree.
Invitations to a dinner must be sent at least two weeks in advance. As has already been stated, an immediate and unconditional acceptance or regret is demanded.

Precedence
At these formal dinners, the question of precedence engages the hostesss attention, If all the guests are about on equal terms, the host takes out the oldest or most prominent lady, seating her at his right. The other, guests are paired off according to the hostesss ideas of social propriety or congeniality. No man ever takes his wife in to dinner. The place of honor for men is at the hostesss right hand. Dinner cards, legibly written, are placed on the napkins. The men draw out the chairs and seat the ladies, then seat themselves. Generally, at a small dinner, the hostess tells each man before leaving the drawing room, whom he is to take out: at large functions, he finds in the mens cloak room an envelope addressed to him containing the ladys name. He seeks out his partner and gives her his arm when dinner is announced.

Be Prompt
It is almost unpardonable for a guest to be late at a dinner. The arrival should be within fifteen minutes of the time named on the invitation, never earlier. The hostess must be ready in ample time, and must appear calm and untroubled. Nervousness be¬speaks the novice in entertaining. Generally, however, even if the affair passes off without any contretemps she is ready to say "Thank heaven its over!"
Now this is not to say that one may not serve a good and very enjoyable dinner or luncheon to a few friends, without as much trouble and expense as are here indicated. This is simply to state how such meals are served, formally and informally. Knowing the proper procedure one may adopt as much or as little as her circumstances and style of living warrant.

 THE INFORMAL DINNER

The informal dinner resembles the formal, save that fewer courses are served, the menu is simpler, and the decorations less elaborate. The serving is on the same order--a la Russe. If one is fortunate enough to have a maid who combines the experience of a waitress with the qualities of a good cook, by ingenious planning it is possible to serve six persons acceptably in the approved fashion.
But there are thousands of households in which but one maid is kept, and in this case what may be termed "the family dinner" will be found better, because there will be no endeavor to do more than one can accomplish with the means at her command. Better by far serve well and simply than attempt something more elaborate and fall short in it.

Family Dinners
At the family dinner, the grape fruit or oyster cocktail, or the raw oysters which form the first course, is on the table when the guests are seated. The grape fruit may be served in glasses, like the cocktail. If oysters are served, the maid passes the condiments. She then removes these plates, replacing them with ser¬vice plates as she does so, and brings in the soup. This the hostess serves and the maid carries about. While this is being eaten--celery or olives being passed after the guests are helped--the maid slips out in the kitchen to dish up the vegetables unless these are already in the warmer. Returning, she removes the soup-plates, never taking more than two at a time. She then brings on the joint or roast, placing it before the host, who proceeds to serve it. (If oysters are served first, a fish course is generally omitted; indeed, so many courses tax ones resources too severely.) The maid carries about the dinner plates, removing the service plate with the right hand and placing the other with the left. She then passes the vegetables. The serving begins with the lady at the hosts right hand. If the piece de resistance is a turkey, white and dark meat and a portion of dressing are placed on each plate; gravy and the vegetables, then cranberry or currant jelly, are passed. Here the waitress should refill water glasses.
The plates are then removed for the salad course, and the table cleared. This should be ready on the plates, and kept where it will be perfectly cold. While this is being brought on, the hostess will start dishes of salted nuts and bonbons down the table, the guests passing them. After the salad the plates are removed and the dessert brought in. This may be a mould of ice cream or a pudding; pie is seldom or never served. This the host or hostess serves. The coffee service may be brought in, and the hostess pours it; little cakes or wafers, or mints, are usually passed with it; then the maid is excused from further service. The hostess always gives the signal for leaving the table by a slight nod toward the lady on her husbands right, and rising.

Requirements
A dinner of this kind requires a serving-table or sideboard where china and silver may be in readiness. Such an aid is even more indispensable where the hostess serves the meal herself. Many very enjoyable "company dinners" are served where the hostess is also the cook, and she and her husband serve. If one has daughters they should be taught how to serve, and may rise from the table to change plates and bring in courses with perfect propriety. In such case, the soup is served at the table and, as it is awkward to pass without spilling, some one should carry it about if more than two or three guests are present. The roast or fowl is carved by the host; vegetables are on the table and are passed from hand to hand. After this course the hostess, or the daughter delegated to do this, clears the table and brings in the salad. The dessert follows. Coffee is occasionally served with the meat course, but it is better to bring it on with the dessert. Cups, etc., should be in readiness on the side table, to be transferred to the table. There should be an apparent absence of formality at such a meal, though everything should progress in regular order, systematically, quietly, without orders or clash. Above all things, see that everything likely to be wanted is at hand; nothing looks worse than someone jumping up to get some article that has been forgotten. If dishes, spoons or forks must be washed during the progress of the meal, have warm water ready in the kitchen, wash them quickly, and wipe them out of cold water; then their heat will not betray your limited resources.

Setting the Table
The "best cloth" and napkins are brought out for the dinner party. The cloth must be laid with mathematical exactness, its center exactly on the center of the table. The centerpiece, almost invariably of flowers, only occasionally of fruit, is also exactly placed. This should be low; it is awkward not to be able to see ones vis-a-vis, and the hostess should be able to command an uninterrupted view of her table, so that if the waitress omits any service she may by a glance direct her to supply it. The arrangement should be graceful and pretty, and, in summer, garden flowers may be used with propriety. The flowers give the keynote of the color scheme; dinner cards, bonbons, ices and creams and the decorations of the small cakes usually served with the dessert, conform to it. Candelabra are less used than at one time, but are by no means "out." A handsome silver candelabra may be used as a centerpiece, its base banked in flowers. On a square or oblong table, candlesticks with shades give a touch of color that relieves the whiteness of napery and glass.
There is a plate--your handsomest--at each place; a napkin squarely folded and lying flat; a row of forks at the left, oyster fork outside, then fish fork, dinner and salad fork, four in all, laid in the order in which they will be used. Knives are at the right of the napkin, always two, a large and a small one. Fashion has re-introduced the steel-bladed knife for the meat course; it is surprising to notice how much more tender meat is than it used to be when we tried to cut it with the silver knives. The soup-spoon is laid at the top of the plate. The salad fork may be brought in with the salad if preferred, spoons with the dessert and coffee. Grape fruit is eaten with an orange spoon, laid at the right. No "fancy folding" of napkins is permissible. The glasses stand at the top of the plate, a little to the right. Small cut glass or fancy dishes containing the relishes are placed near the corners of the table within the circle of plates if the table is square; if it is round they are so arranged so as to balance each other in the form of a square. There may be two of nuts and two of stuffed olives or of bonbons. Individual salt cellars are at the top of the plate; a roll is folded in the napkin, sometimes laid on the bread-and-butter plate, which is placed at the left. Such rolls should be small and well-baked. At formal dinners no butter is served, and the plates are omitted. Finger bowls are brought in after the ices or the pudding. They are on a small plate on which is a doily, and the fruit knife, if to be used, is on the plate. The guest lays bowl and doily at his right, lifting the two together, the plate being for fruit, if any is served. If no fruit, the bowl is left on the plate.



MANNERS AND SOCIAL CUSTOMS FOR OUR GREAT MIDDLE CLASS
AS WELL AS OUR BEST SOCIETY
Correspondence, Cards and Introductions, Dress for Different Occasions, Weddings, Christenings, Funerals, Etc.,
Social Functions, Dinners, Luncheons.
Gifts, "Showers," Calls, and Hundreds of Other Essential Subjects so Vital to Culture and Refinement of Men, Women, School-Girls and Boys at Home and in Public.
By MRS. ELIZABETH JOHNSTONE

Excerpt from the book:
MOTHERS  REMEDIES
Over One Thousand Tried and Tested Remedies from Mothers of the United States and Canada.
By DR. T. J. RITTER
PUBLISHED BY G.H. FOOTE  PUB. CO. DETROIT MICH 1921

Rain Gauge

An accurate rain gauge may be easily constructed from galvanized iron, as shown in the sketch herewith.
The funnel, A, overlaps and rests on the body, B, and discharges into the tube, C, the area of which is one-tenth that of the top of the funnel.
The depth of the water in C is thus ten times the actual rainfall, so that by measuring it with a stick marked off in tenths of an inch, we obtain the result in hundredths of an inch.
A good size to make the rain gauge is as follows: A, 8 in. diameter; C, 2.53 in. ; length of C, about 20 in.
It should be placed in an exposed location, so that no inaccuracy will occur from wind currents.
To find the fall of snow, pour a known quantity of warm water on the snow contained in the funnel and deduct the quantity poured in from the total amount in the tube.

Excerpt from the book:
THE BOY MECHANIC
VOLUME I
700 THINGS FOR BOYS TO DO
WITH 800 ILLUSTRATIONS
1913, BY H. H. WINDSOR CHICAGO
POPULAR MECHANICS CO. PUBLISHERS

Paddle Wheel Boat Plans - How to Build a Paddle-Wheel Boat By P. A. Baumeister

The paddle-wheel boat, illustrated herewith, was built in the spare time I had on rainy afternoons and Saturdays, and the enjoyment I derived from it at my summer camp more than repaid me for the time spent in the building. The materials used in its construction were:

• 2    side boards, 14 ft. long, 10 in. wide and 7/8 in. thick.
• 2    side boards, 14 ft. long, 5 in. wide and 7/8 in. thick.
• 1    outside keel board, 14 ft. long, 8 in. wide and 7/8 in. thick.
• 1    inside keel board, 14 ft. long. 10 in. wide and 7/8 in. thick.
• 120      sq. ft. of tongue-and-groove boards, 3/4 in. thick, for bottom and wheel boxes.
• 1    piece, 2 in. square and 18 in. long.
• 4    washers.
• 2    iron cranks.
• 10    screweyes.
• 30    ft. of rope.

• Nails.

The dimensions given in the drawing will be found satisfactory, but these may be altered to suit the conditions. The first step will be to cut and make the sides. Nail the two pieces forming each side together and then cut the end boards and nail them to the sides. Lay this framework, bottom side up, on a level surface and proceed to nail on the bottom boards across the sides. The ends of these boards are sawed off flush with the outside surface of the sides after they are nailed in place. The material list calls for tongue-and-groove boards for the bottom, but plain boards can be used, although it is then difficult to make the joint water-tight. When the tongue-and-groove boards are used a piece of string, well soaked in white lead or paint and placed in the groove of each board, will be sufficient to make a tight joint.
Having finished the sides and bottom, the next step will be to fasten on the bottom keel. Adjust the board to its position and nail it in the center part where it lies flat on the bottom boards, then work toward the ends, gradually drawing it down over the turn and nailing it down. If the keel board cannot be bent easily, it is best to soak it in hot water where the bend takes place and the wood can then be nailed down without the fibers breaking. The inside keel is put on in the same manner, but reversed.

The Boat As It Appears without the Spring and Running Board and Used as a Pleasure Craft or for Carrying Freight, the Operator Facing in the Direction of the Boats Travel

The next procedure is to make the paddle wheels. The hub for each [106] wheel is made of a 2-in. square piece of timber, 9 in. long. Trim off the corners to make 8 sides to the piece, then bore a 3/4-in. hole through its center. The 8 blades of each wheel, 16 in all, are 17 in. long, 6 in. wide and 3/4 in. thick. One end of each blade is nailed to one side of the hub, then it is braced as shown to strengthen the wheel.
 
Detail Drawing of the Boat and One of the Paddle Wheels. All the Material Required for the Construction is Such That can be Cut and Shaped with Ordinary Tools Found in the Home Workshop

The cranks are made of round iron, 3/4 in. in diameter, and they are keyed to the wheels with large nails in the manner shown. I had a blacksmith shape the cranks for me, but if one has a forge, the work can be done at home without that expense. The bearings for the crankshafts consist of wood, although it is preferable to use for this purpose two large iron washers, having a hole slightly larger than the diameter of the shaft, and drill holes in their rims so that they can be screwed to the wheel-box upright as shown. The bearings thus made are lubricated with a little lard or grease.
 
Detail of Paddle-Wheel Fastening, the Springboard Construction and the Fastening for the Rudder Control

The paddle-wheel boxes are built over the wheels with the dimensions given in the drawing, to prevent the splashing of water on the occupants of the boat.
The trimmings for the boat consist of three seats, a running board and a springboard. The drawings show the location of the seats. The springboard is built up of 4 boards, 3/4 in. thick, as shown, only nailing them together at the back end. This construction allows the boards to slide over each other when a persons weight is on the outer end. The action of the boards is the same as of a spring on a vehicle.
It is necessary to have a good brace across the boat for the back end of the springboard to catch on—a 2 by 4-in. timber being none too large. At the point where the springboard rests on the front seat there should be another good-sized crosspiece. The [107] board can be held in place by a cleat and a few short pieces of rope, the cleat being placed across the board back of the brace. A little diving platform is attached on the outer end of the springboard and a strip of old carpet or gunny sack placed on it to prevent slivers from running into the flesh. In making the spring and running board, it is advisable to make them removable so that the boat can be used for other purposes.
The boat is steered with a foot-operated lever, the construction of which is clearly shown. For the tiller-rope guides, large screweyes are used and also for the rudder hinges, the pin of the hinge being a large nail. The hull can be further strengthened by putting a few angle-iron braces either on the in or outside.
To make the boat water-tight will require calking by filling the cracks with twine and white lead or thick paint. The necessary tools are a broad, dull chisel and a mallet. A couple of coats of good paint, well brushed into the cracks, will help to make it watertight as well as shipshape. The boat may leak a little when it is first put into the water, but after a few hours of soaking, the boards will swell and close the openings.
This boat was used for carrying trunks, firewood, rocks, sand, and for fishing, and last, but not least, for swimming. The boat is capable of carrying a load of three-quarters of a ton. It draws very little water, thereby allowing its use in shallow water. It has the further advantage that the operator faces in the direction the boat is going, furnishing the power with his hands and steering with his feet.

THE BOY MECHANIC - BOOK 2
1000 THINGS FOR BOYS TO DO
HOW TO CONSTRUCT DEVICES FOR WINTER SPORTS, MOTION-PICTURE CAMERA, INDOOR GAMES, REED FURNITURE, ELECTRICAL NOVELTIES, BOATS, FISHING RODS, CAMPS AND CAMP APPLIANCES, KITES AND GLIDERS, PUSHMOBILES, ROLLER COASTER, FERRIS WHEEL
AND
HUNDREDS OF OTHER THINGS WHICH DELIGHT EVERY BOY WITH 995 ILLUSTRATIONS
PUBLISHED 1915, BY H. H. WINDSOR CHICAGO
POPULAR MECHANICS CO. PUBLISHERS

The wind has been a source of energy for thousands of years.
Before the development of the steam engine, most ships relied on wind power to fill their sails and push them along. Windmills were used to turn grindstones and pump water.
Now scientists are turning to wind power again. This time they are using it to generate electricity.
Windmills have been used to produce electricity since the early 1900’s. It is easy to produce electricity from a wind turbine. This is simply a windmill that converts the kinetic energy of the wind into electricity.
Small wind turbines are used by farmers in remote parts of Australia and North America. In wide, open spaces, these turbines can make some of the electricity that farmhouses need. However, the winds are sometimes so strong that they damage the turbines and put them out of action.
Engineers have designed many different kinds of wind turbines to try to solve this problem. Some turbines look like old-fashioned windmills, with four blades, or sails. Other, more modern ones have two blades like those of an aircraft propeller.

In North America, this type of traditional windmill is used to pump water.

One of the largest wind turbines in the world stands in Hawaii, in the Pacific Ocean. It has two blades 165 feet (50 meters) long on top of a high tower. There is a smaller turbine on Orkney, off the coast of Scotland. It can generate enough electricity for about 1,000 homes. Most wind turbines are mounted on a cap, or swivel, on top of a tower. This means that they can be turned to face the wind when its direction changes.
A huge power station driven by wind has been built in the Mojave Desert in California. Its owners call it a “wind farm.”  Hundreds of wind turbines are arranged in rows and all are linked together by wires. The electricity they produce is supplied to the California power pool.
These wind turbines supply electricity to homes and factories.