of the Popular Science Monthly in spreading the Darwinian ideas of 

 evolution. 



The meeting adjourned at 10 o'clock. 



- F. GRINNELL, JR., 



Acting Secretary. 



The Astronomical section of the Academy met on Friday evening, 

 February 21, 1913, at the residence of Mr. S. J. Keese, 1509 Shatto 

 street, Los Angeles. In the absence of Chairman Knight (on account 

 of illness) Mr. Keese opened the meeting and introduced the speaker 

 of the evening. Mr. Harold B. Babcock of the Mt. Wilson Solar 

 Observatory, who spoke on the subject, "The Laboratory Side of 

 Some Problems in Astronomy"; with some applications of the Zeeman 

 effect. He explained the Zeeman effect by means of blackboard illus- 

 trations, and then showed the application in a beautiful series of 

 lantern slide photographs of spectra, pointing out the Zeeman effect 

 in each. These were followed by some slides showing various nebulae 

 and star clusters, including the interesting nebular whorls or vartices. 

 Mr. Babcock told of the general organizations of the laboratory in 

 Pasadena; the Mt. Wilson observatory was one of the first in the 

 world to have a laboratory in connection with the observatory. Views 

 of the buildings on Mt. Wilson were shown as well as the apparatus 

 in the Pasadena laboratory, which was explained. 



Mr. Keese showed crystal formation with the aid of the polari- 

 scope, which was briefly explained by Mr. Babcock. 



After light refreshments served by Mrs. Keese and daughters, the 

 meeting adjourned at 10:30. 



F. GRINNELL, JR., 



Acting Secretary. 



The Astronomical section of the Southern California Academy of 

 Sciences met in the library of the State Normal School, Los Angeles, 

 on Friday evening, January 17, 1913, at 7:45 o'clock. Chairman Wm. 

 H. Knight presided. A large number were present, among them 

 being the following who were noted and registered: Melville Dozier, 

 C. A. Whiting, S. K. Keese, John Frederick, Wm. Read, J. M. McLeish, 

 Tom Smith, Prospero Barrows, H. A. Prince, John Clark (applying 

 for membership). Dr. A. Gosdess (of the Keeley Institute of Philadel- 

 phia), H. M. Bishop, Abbie M. White, Thos. DeWitt (of the St. Louis 

 Academy of Science), Arthur J. Mack, Phillip A. Bettens, N. J. 

 Bradway, Mr. and Mrs. H. J. Darton, R. L. Beardsley, W. H. Knight, 

 F. Grinnell, G. Wharton, James and Chas. E. St. John. 



With appropriate remarks Chairman Knight introduced the first 

 speaker of the evening, Dr. St. John, of the Mt. Wilson Solar Obser- 

 vatory, who spoke on the subject, "The Distribution of the Elements 

 in the Solar Atmosphere. The discourse was strictly technical, being 

 results of recent original work, partly still in progress, and was listened 

 to with close attention by those present. The speaker illustrated his 

 remark with blackboard diagrams, figures, etc., photographs of the 

 sun showing the "spots," and plates of the spectra of the sun spots. 

 A few points may be brieflystated. Evershed in India was the first 

 man to work on this problem. Dr. St. John studied the "spots" when 

 they were on the side of the sun; takes the spectra of one side of the 

 spots, then the other side, and places these together. Thn he ex- 

 plained the lines of the spectum; this is very expensive work and 

 takes a long time to measure these lines, and an accumulatton of con- 

 siderable data to get seemingly small results. By the amount of the 

 displacement of these lines, it can be learned how fast the substances 

 or elements are moving in or out of a spot. The iron vapor flows 



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