300 CARNEGIE INSTITUTION OF WASHINGTON. 



Pulse-rate during muscular work. — After much experimenting a 

 method has been developed of fastening suitable electrodes to the body 

 of a subject in such vva}- that they will not become loosened during 

 muscular work. This has enabled us to record electro-cardiograms 

 photographically by means of the Bock-Thoma oscillograph and has for 

 the first time given us reliable means for securing continuous pulse-rates 

 during active muscular work. The Bock-Thoma oscillograph, which has 

 been manipulated by Mr. K. H. Brown, of the Laboratory staff, has 

 also been used for obtaining the heart-beat in investigations with geese. 



The conversion of carbohydrates to fat in the animal body. — An interest- 

 ing series of observations, made in 1914, on the metabolism of geese, 

 led to deductions which justified the repetition of certain experiments. 

 An extensive series of observations was therefore made on the surfeit 

 feeding of geese, in which the small respiration apparatus was used 

 for studying a single goose and also the clinical respiration chamber in 

 which six geese were studied simultaneously; the heat-production of 

 the six geese was also directly measured with the bed calorimeter. As 

 a result of these observations, a series of experiments on fasting geese 

 was instituted and carried out b}^ Professor H. Monmouth Smith and 

 Miss Alice Johnson, in June and Julj^ of the past year. We hope from 

 these data to establish some relationship between the body- weight, the 

 percentage of nitrogen in the blood, the percentage of nitrogen in the 

 whole body, the percentage of fat in the body, and the basal metabolism 

 as affected by prolonged fasting. The analyses and computations 

 are still being made. 



The influence of moderate amounts of alcohol upon psychological pro- 

 cesses. — Investigation in this field has been in progress under the direc- 

 tion of Professor W. R. Miles. Five expert male typists, three of 

 whom were "touch" operators, were secured for subjects in an investi- 

 gation on the effect of small doses of alcohol upon the skilled muscular 

 processes of typewriting. Each subject was provided with the kind 

 and model of typewTiter which he used in his regular work as a sten- 

 ographer. The experimental periods were ordinarily 5 hours in length, 

 the entire series of experiments for each subject lasting 6 to 10 days. It 

 was found that the diversion of spending about one-third of the total 

 test time in taking other measurements helped the subject to keep his 

 attention on the work and dispelled the tendency to fatigue. The co- 

 operation on the part of the subjects was of a high order. The mass of 

 typewTiting records secured in these experiments has required a very 

 large amount of time for elaboration. 



The amount of alcohol necessary to produce a measurable psycholog- 

 ical effect has been variously given by different investigators; in this 

 laborator}' from 30 to 50 c.c. of absolute alcohol has been used. 

 Scattered observations concerning the relationship between a dose of 

 this size and the content of the stomach have led us to commence a 

 series of experiments on the problem of a stimulating dose and its 



