December i, 1923] 



NATURE 



The voltage between anode and cathode is no volts, 

 the whole working in a vacuum of about o-oo2 mm. 

 of mercury. The lines of the spectrum given by 

 this apparatus are very line and give high orders of 

 interference, and less than 0-05 gm. of material can 

 be taken. — N. Perrokis : Study on the stability, in 

 the presence of water, of a certain number of binary 

 mixtures. Two groups of pairs of miscible liquids 

 were studied : ethyl alcohol with phenyl ether, 

 benzene, o-cresol, phenol ; benzene, with various 

 alcohols. The figure determined was the quantity 

 of water necessary to produce two layers when added 

 to 100 gm. of the binary' mixture. Some results are 

 given in a diagram. — N. D. Zelinsky : The poly- 

 merisation of acetylene by contact. — B. Darder 

 Pericas : The tectonic of the neighbourhood of 

 Sineu and of Ping de Sant Onafre (Island of Majorca). 

 — Jules Wolff : The conditions favourable or pre- 

 judicial to the germination of the seeds of orchids 

 and to the development of the seedlings. The seeds 

 of the orchid can be germinated aseptically in a 

 rich medium, and in the absence of fungi. The 

 seedling can then be planted out on mycelium, and 

 symbiosis is established normally. The presence of 

 tne fungus at the commencement of the germination 

 is not only unnecessary', but may prove injurious to 

 the seedhngs. — J. Dauvergne and Mile. Weil : The 

 culture of plants in a sterile liquid medium. A 

 development of Maze method, the seeds being 

 supported on perforated aluminium plates.— C. 

 Fromageot : Assimilation in the green cells and the 

 structure of the protoplasm. — Lucien Daniel and 

 Jean Ripert : Researches on the variations of chemical 

 action in grafted plants. — A. Maige : The metabolism 

 of the sugars in the cell and amylogenesis. It results 

 from the experiments described that even in cells 

 where amylogenesis requires only a very low con- 

 centration in sugar, the essential phenomena of 

 cellular metabolism which assure the continuity 

 of life and growth of the living material may be 

 efiected at still lower concentrations. — Chavastelon 

 and J. Luquet : Contribution to the study of the 

 edaphic conditions of the pastoral associations in the 

 massif of Mont-Dore. — Emile F. Terroine, R. Bonnet, 

 and P. H. Joessel : The composition of seeds and 

 yield of energy in germination. — Mme. L. Randoin 

 and H. Simonnet : The influence of the nature and 

 quantity of the glucides present in a ration deprived 

 of factor B on the precocity of appearance of the 

 accidents of polyneuritis in birds. In constructing 

 an artificial diet for experiments on diet deficiency, 

 it is very important to take into account the digestive 

 utilisation of each of the food materials composing 

 the diet. The experiments give some support to the 

 idea that the magnitude of the factor B requirement 

 is not absolute but is relative and in direct relation 

 with the degree of utilisation of one or several elements 

 of a ration, and, in particular, with the quantity of 

 sugars assimilated. — Paul Voukassovitch : The biology 

 of two parasitic Hymenoptera of Pyralis of the vine. 

 — Marc Bridel and Jean Charpentier : The bio- 

 chemical characterisation of galactose ir a mixture 

 containing galactose and arabinose. Galactose can 

 be detected in the presence of arabinose, by the 

 action of emulsin in 70 per cent, alcoholic solution. 

 The i!i-ethylgalactoside can be obtained in the 

 crystalline state, suitable for identification. — Andrd 

 Lwoff : A new free ciliated Infu.sorian, Stephanopogon 

 Mesntli. Its taxonomic importance. — Mile. M. Gau- 

 thier : The development of the egg and embryo of 

 Cyathoccphalus, a parasite of the trout. — Henri 

 Stassano : The double r61c of the heating plates in 

 apparatus for the sterilisation of liquids in continuous 

 circulation. 



NO. 2822, VOL. I 12] 



Washington, D.C. 



National Academy of Sciences (Proc, Vol. 9, No. 10, 

 October). — L. B. Loeb : The mobilities of electrons 

 in air. The mobilities of electrons in air at pressures 

 of 41, 51-5, 60, 66-5, and 92 mm. of mercury were 

 measured in an ion chamber. A constant field 

 superposed on the actuating alternating field was 

 used to neutralise the field produced by the accumula- 

 tion of ions. Plotting mobility constant (mobility 

 reduced to atmospheric pressure) against critical 

 voltage (static voltmeter) minus retarding potential, 

 curves are obtained showing breaks probably due 

 to attachment of electrons to molecules. Expressions 

 are given for the mobility constants for the distance 

 separating the plates in the ion chamber (i-955 cm.). 

 — P. W. Bridgman : The thermal conductivity of 

 liquids. A radial flow apparatus with the liquid 

 between two concentric metal cylinders was used. 

 The inner cylinder was the source of heat, and con- 

 ductivities were measured at 30° C. and 75° C, 

 and at atmospheric pressure, 6000 kg. /cm.* and 

 12,000 kg. /cm.* pressures. Water and fourteen organic 

 liquids were used. Conductivity decreases with rise 

 of temperature, at atmospheric pressure, except for 

 water. At constant temperature, it rises with in- 

 creasing pressure ; at 12,000 kg. /cm.*, the increase 

 is from 1-5 to 2-7 fold, the more compressible liquids 

 showing the greater increase. The absolute con- 

 ductivities at 30° C. range from 0-000505 (methyl 

 alcohol) to 0-000265 (ethyl iodide) ; for water the 

 value given is 0-00144. A formula connecting the 

 conductivity, gas constant, velocity of sound in the 

 liquid, and the mean distance of separation of the 

 centres of the molecules of the liquid, is derived. The 

 high value for water is referred to its low compressi- 

 bility and the closeness of the centres of its molecules. 

 — E. S. King : (i) Photovisual magnitudes of one 

 hundred bright stars. The Draper 8-inch refractor 

 was used and Cramer Isochromatic Instantaneous 

 plates with a yellow filter. All the plates were taken 

 1-25 cm. or more outside the focus. Results for 

 Ao stars agree with the photometric magnitudes. 

 In general, the photovisual colour index is greater 

 than the visual or photometric index. (2) Revised 

 magnitudes and colour indices of the planets 

 [v. Nature, November 24, p. 769). — R. H. Bowen : The 

 origin of secretory granules. Nassonov, working on 

 Salamander glands, showed that early secretory 

 granules are associated with the Golgi apparatus of 

 cells and afterwards have caps or girdles of Golgi 

 material. These results are confirmed. It is suggested 

 that the acrosome of the animal sp>erm, which arises 

 as a vesicle in close connexion with the Golgi apparatus, 

 and from which the Golgi apparatus is finally separated, 

 is a secretory granule applied to the head of the 

 mature sperm, whence its substance may be released 

 at fertilisation. Referred to other gland cells, the 

 hypothesis suggests that there is direct relation 

 between the Golgi cells and chemical synthesis, and 

 in particular enzyme formation. — R. R. Huestis : 

 The heredity of microscopic hair characters in 

 Peromyscus. Two geographic races (coast- and 

 desert-race) of two species of deer-mouse were used. 

 Each coast-race differed from the corresponding 

 desert-race in much the same way. It is concluded 

 that the differences observed between contrasted 

 races have been evolved in the wild state, and some 

 at least are the effect of environment. The results 

 indicate Mendelian inheritance of multiple factors. — 

 C. G. Abbot : Preliminary note on the variation of 

 the sun's visible features associated with variations 

 of solar radiation {v. Nature, November 17, p. 738). 



