SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES 



RELATING TO 



ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY 



(principally invertebrata and cryptogamia), 



MICEOSCOPY, Etc.* 



ZOOLOGY. 



VERTEBEATA. 

 a. Embryology, t 



Organogenetic Capacity.! — H. Przribrarn discusses the organo- 

 genetic capacity of various parts of the body in diverse types. The 

 Metazoa have, like crystals, a certain polarity in the direction of growth, 

 but they have also a kind of polarity of stratification, chemically dif- 

 ferent substances occurring in zones from in front backwards. 



One part of an animal can produce only what corresponds to its 

 strata, which again are laid down in development. When materials 

 circulate, there may be a modification of the polarity of stratification, 

 and the polarity of growth may be also reversed. Ovum-regulation 

 and regeneration of parts must be interpreted on similar principles. 



Inheritance of Quantity and Quality in Cows' Milk.§ — James 

 "Wilson submits the results of a statistical inquiry showing the separate 

 inheritance of quantity and quality in cows' milk. " If we group 

 together all the low-yielding cows, and find their milk invariably high 

 in quality, we may infer that low yield and high quality are of the 

 nature of concomitant variations. If we group the high-yielding cows 

 together, and find their milk invariably of low quality, we may infer 

 that high yield and low quality run together. But if we take these 

 groups and any other groups we can form, and find that the quality 

 varies in the same way in them all — that is, that there are low qualities, 

 high qualities, and medium qualities in every one of them — then we are 

 justified in inferring that the quantity and quality of the milk are 

 independent of each other. And this is what we do find." 



* The Society are not intended to be denoted by the editorial " we," and they 

 do not hold themselves responsible for the views of the authors of the papers 

 noted, nor for any claim to novelty or otherwise made by them. The object of 

 this part of the Journal is to present a summary of the papers as actually pub- 

 lished, and to describe and illustrate Instruments, Apparatus, etc., which are 

 either new or have not been previously described in this country. 



t This section includes not only papers relating to Embryology properly so 

 called, but also those dealing with Evolution, Development, Reproduction, and 

 allied subjects. 



t Ver. Zool. Bot. Ges. Wien, lx. (1910) pp. 111-16. 



§ Sci. Proc. R. Dublin Soc, xii. (1910) pp. 470-9) 6 figs. 



