GENETICS 



3463 



GENEVA 



stories found in Babylonian and 

 ancient Egyptian literature. The 

 poem known as The Blessing of Ja- 

 cob (Gen. xlix, 1-27 ) is probably one 

 of the oldest pieces of composition 

 found in the Hexateuch. See Bible; 

 Hexateuch : Pentateuch. 



Genetics (Gr. genesis, origin). 

 One of the aspects of the problem 

 of organic evolution. It seeks to 

 describe the characteristics like- 

 nesses and differences as well as 

 the variations, which occur in ani- 

 mals and plants which are related to 

 each other, and to furnish theories 

 and explanations of the origin of 

 these. In other words, genetics 

 deals with the fundamental pro- 

 blem of biology, namely, heredity. 



Research in genetics may be 

 carried out by four methods: (1) 

 The biometric method, begun by 

 Francis Galton in his Law of In- 

 heritance, and greatly extended 

 by Prof. Karl Pearson. Observers 

 of this school deal with the facts of 

 heredity from a statistical stand- 

 point. They measure the degree 

 of resemblances and differences 

 between related individuals, plants 

 or animals. It is an indispensable 

 but limited aspect of the subject. 

 (2) The Mendelian method, as- 

 sociated with the names of Bate- 

 son, Hurst, Punnett, and others in 

 Great Britain. This is also in part 

 statistical, but in this case the 

 attention is directed not to the 

 ancestry, but to the progeny. The 

 biometric method looks back- 

 ward, the Mendelian forward. In 

 both the problem is that of 

 genetic relationship. The result of 

 this method is that it allows of the 

 application of experiments, and 

 this is its great advantage. It 

 enables the observer to determine 

 the distribution of differences 

 among the progeny of an indi- 

 vidual or a pair of individuals. (3) 

 The cytological method, which at- 

 tacks the problem from the aspect 

 of the cell. Cytology seeks to 

 ascertain what parts of the cell are 

 concerned with heredity and in 

 what way. This is a method of 

 observation, not experiment, and is 

 limited to the study of the dead 

 stained cell. (4) The embryo- 

 logical method, which has assumed 

 freater prominence in recent years, 

 t is from experimental embryo- 

 logy that progress from this side is 

 to be sought. See Biology; Cell; 

 Cytology ; Heredity ; Mendelism ; 

 Somatogenesis. 



Geneva. Canton of Switzer- 

 land, in the extreme W. of the 

 country. Except for a small strip 

 of 3| m. where it adjoins the 

 canton of Vaud, it is surrounded 

 by French territory. Area, 108 

 sq. m. The river Rhone flows 

 through it from Lake Geneva, at 



Geneva arms 



the S.W. end of which it emerges 

 and receives the river Arve. The 

 surface is fairly level and is mostly 

 covered by market gardens, vine- 

 yards, and orchards. Watch-making 

 and the manufacture of jewelry are 

 the chief indus- 

 tries of the leading 

 towns. Next to 

 Basel it is the 

 most densely 

 populated of the 

 S w i s e cantons. 

 The majority of 

 the inhabitants 

 are French-speak- 

 ing, and half are Protestants and 

 half Roman Catholics. The young- 

 est member of the Swiss Con- 

 federation, Geneva joined it in 

 1815. The capital is Geneva. 

 Pop. 170,000. 



Geneva. Largest lake of Central 

 Europe, called by the French 

 Leman. It lies between Switzer- 

 land and France. Its length is 45 

 m., its maximum width is 10 m., 

 and where narrowest, between 

 Pointe de Genthod and Bellerive, 

 it is 2 m. Crescent-shaped, the N. 

 shore measures 59 m. and the S. 

 shore only 45 m. Area, 225 sq. m. 

 Most of the S. shore belongs to the 

 dept. of Haute-Savoie, France, but 

 the remainder is bounded by the 

 Swiss cantons of Geneva, Vaud, and 

 Valais. The surface is 1,220 ft. 

 above sea level, the depth varying 

 between 240 ft. and 1,094 ft. It is 

 an expansion of the Rhone, which 



enters it as a silt-laden mt. stream 

 at the S.E. end and emerges at the 

 S.W. corner, clear and blue. 



The waters of Lake Geneva are 

 of a beautiful deep blue colour and 

 remarkably transparent, especially 

 near Geneva, the silt being gradu- 

 ally deposited and incidentally 

 diminishing the water area. Like 

 most of the Swiss lakes, it presents 

 the phenomenon of the " seiches " 

 or fluctuations in the level of the 

 water, phenomena which are caused 

 by sudden alteration in atmo- 

 spheric pressure. 



The level is higher in summer 

 than in Avinter, owing to the melt- 

 ing of the snows. It is not so rich 

 in fish life as many other lakes, but 

 lake salmon, trout, pike, and carp 

 are caught. Remains of lacustrine 

 dwellings have been discovered on 

 its shores. It is encircled by 

 rlys. and traversed by steamers, 

 the first being built at Geneva in 

 1823 by an Englishman. The most 

 important towns on its banks arS 

 Geneva, Lausanne, Nyon, Coppet, 

 Vevey, Montreux, Villeneuve, 

 Thonon, Evian - les - Bains, and 

 Ouchy. See Lac Leman, F. A. 

 Forel, 3 vols.. 1892-1904. 



Geneva (Fr. Geneve; Ger. 

 Genf). City of Switzerland, capital 

 of the canton of Geneva. It stands 

 at the S.W. extremity of the lake 

 of Geneva, near the confluence of 

 the Arve with the Rhone, 40 m. 

 N.E. of Chambery and 256 m. S.E. 

 of Paris. It is the third largest 



Geneva. Flan of the city and harbour on the Lake of Geneva 



