100 ANNUAL EECOKD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTKY. 



Norway, having crossed the Atlantic at least twice. In ref- 

 erence to the rapid growth of plants in the Polar regions 

 during the summer season, Schtibeller concludes that this is 

 due not so much to the warmth as to the continuous sunshine 

 that the plants enjoy during the long polar days, in connec- 

 tion with which a most important point is to be remarked, 

 viz., that the change of temperature is during these polar 

 days much slighter than in those regions where day and night 

 alternate. Among the general conclusions given by Schti- 

 beller, he states that if in Scandinavia any kind of grain is 

 successively brought from the plains up into the mountain- 

 ous regions, it becomes accustomed thereto, and not only de- 

 velops, but develops in shorter time than before, and even at 

 a much lower temperature. When such grains as have been 

 cultivated for many years successively in the mountainous 

 regions are then slowly returned to their mother earth, they 

 at first bear fruit earlier than the same varieties that have 

 remained uninterruptedly cultivated in that place. In this 

 way does grain beliave that is slowly transferred from south- 

 ern to northern regions the seeds increase in size and weight 

 according as they are removed to the south, and diminish as 

 they are removed to the north. With these phenomena are 

 associated similar changes with reference to the odors and 

 the quantity of sugar contained in the sap. 



INFLUENCE OF THE SUN's SPOTS ON TEMPERATUEE AND EAIN. 



The relation between the sun's spots and the various 

 changes that take place in the earth's atmosphere has been 

 the subject of a number of essays of late years, of which the 

 last that we had to record was the supposed discovery by 

 Lockyer and Meldrum of a periodicity in the frequency of 

 tornadoes, cyclones, and typhoons, corresponding to the pe- 

 riod of the solar spots. The most recent investigation in 

 this field is that of Celoria, who has studied the connection 

 between the solar spots and the mean temperature of the 

 vear at Milan, as well as the annual rain-fall. The observa- 

 tion of these two meteorological phenomena began at Milan 

 in the year 1763, since Avhich time they have been continued 

 with sufiicient uniformity to allow of an investigation of the 

 kind that Celoria has undertaken, with perhaps as great 

 hopes of success as can be any where expected. The result 



