110 PALEOBOTANY [Bot. Absts., Vol. VI, 



788. Watson, W. Lichens of Llanberis and district. Jour. Botany 58: 108-110. 1920. 

 — The list given supplements that of Wheldon (Jour. Botany 58: 11-15). About ninety 

 forms are considered. — K. M. Wiegand. 



BACTERIA 



789. Peterson, W. H., and E. B. Fred. The fermentation of glucose, galactose and 

 mannose by Lactobacillus pentoaceticus n. sp. Jour. Biol. Chem. 42: 273-287. 1920. — See 

 Bot. Absts. 6, Entry 1338. 



790. Winslow, C.-E. A., William Rothberg, and Elizabeth I. Parsons. Notes on 

 the classification of the white and orange Staphylococci. Jour. Bact. 5: 145-167. 1920. — One 

 hundred and eighty strains of Staplujlococcus were collected from various sources, 104 of which 

 were from pathological conditions in man and animals. Several tests were made on each 

 strain, and the conclusions are reached that the generic names Aurococcus and Albococcus 

 used by the Winslows should not be retained for this group but, that all should be included 

 under the genus Staphylococcus. Of the forms studied, six species are recognized, based on 

 the color of pigment formed, the power of fermenting lactose, and the power of liquefying 

 gelatin. The species recognized are St. aureus Rosenbach, St. aurantiacus Schroter, St. 

 epidermidis Gordon, St. candidus Cohn, St. tetragenus Gaffky, and St. candicans Flugge. — 

 Chester A. Darling. 



MYXOMYCETES 



791. Lister, G. Mycetozoa from Cornwall. Jour. Botany 58: 127-130. 1920.— A short 

 account is given of the activities of Alfred Adams as a collector and student of Mycetozoa, 

 especially in Cornwall. A list of 82 species and 4 varieties is given as occurring in Cornwall. 

 This list is based on the work of Adams and on notes by. G. H. Fox and J. M. Coon. — K. M. 

 Wiegand. 



PALEOBOTANY AND EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY 



E. W. Berry, Editor 



792. Benson, W. N. A review of recent researches on the mesozoic floras of Australasia. 

 New Zealand Jour. Sci. Tech. 2: 29-32. 1919. — Views of Walkom, Arber and others are com- 

 pared, especially as to correlation of Australian and New Zealand strata. Australian meso- 

 zoic flora has four times as many species as that of New Zealand. — A. Gundersen. 



793. Berry, Edward W. The ancestors of the Sequoias. Nat. Hist. 20: 152-155. Maps 

 and plate. 1920. — Brief account of the geological history of Sequoia, with maps showing 

 Mesozoic and Cenozoic occurrences. — E. W. Berry. 



794. Cockerell, T. D. A. [Rev. of: Knowlton, F. H. A catalogue of the Mesozoic and 

 cenozoic plants of North America. U. S. Geol. Surv. Bull. 696. 815 p. 1919.] Torreya 20: 

 53-57. 1920. — Enumerates 4789 accepted forms, including the fossil plants of Alaska, but 

 excluding those of Greenland and Mexico. The species are listed by strata and localities. 

 Nearly all the genera of woody plants well represented today in North America appear also 

 in the Tertiary flora. The herbaceous plants are very scantily represented. — J. C. Nelson. 



795. Conklin, E. J. The rate of evolution. Sci. Monthly 10 : 589-602. 1920.— The results 

 of evolution are diversity, adaptation and progress. Diversity appears as varieties, species 

 and genera, but they are usually better adapted than their ancestors. The first is the most 

 evident phase and the one dealt with in experimental evolution. — -Differences may be classi- 

 fied as (1) fluctuations, (2) new combinations, (3) mutations. Fluctuations are due to 

 environment and are the modification of the soma rather than of the germplasm, of the indi- 

 vidual development rather than heredity. They are of little evolutionary value. New com- 

 binations of Mendelian factors in sex reproduction give the most common inherited diversity. 



