1892.] NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 125 



A Catalogue of the Fishes of the Pacific Coast of America, 



North of Cerros Island. 



BY CARL H. EIGENMANN AND ROSA S. EIGENMANN. 



Notes on the Phalangida of the United States. 



BY NATHAN BANKS. 



Coleopterological Notices. IV. 



BY THOS. L. CASEY. 



Dr. L. H. Laudy read a paper on — 



Recent Researches on the Solar Spectrum, 



illustrated by experiments. 



The speaker briefly referred to the analogies between sound and 

 light, and then showed that since the time of Newton investigations 

 on the solar spectrum had been carried on by the most eminent men 

 of science, as Herschel, Tyndall, Bunsen, etc. 



The production of spectra by prisms and by gratings was explained, 

 and also the apparatus used in photographing them. The work of 

 Prof. Langley in measuring the actual energy of radiation by means 

 of the Bolospectrometer and concave gratings was mentioned. 



In 1812 Dr. Wollaston discovered the presence of dark lines in 

 the spectrum, and in 1859 Kirchoff noticed the coincidence of the 

 dark line of the solar spectrum with the bright line of the terrestrial, 

 although some recent investigators have doubted their absolute 

 coincidence. 



Absorption spectra were next explained, and their production by 

 the selective absorbing action upon white light when passed through 

 gases, liquids, and solids. 



Meeting adjourned. 



May 16th, 1892. 



Stated Meeting. 



The President, Dr. Hubbard, in the chair. One hundred and 

 fifty persons present. 



The minutes of May 9th were read and approved. 



