December 29, 192 1] 



NATURE 



591 



I 



Conidia in soil may retain their vitality under natural 

 conditions for more than three weeks, and under 

 artificial conditions for at least six weeks. Some of 

 the more important factors governing this process, 

 e.g. nature of soil, humidity, and temperature, were 

 determined. The longer life of the conidia in soil 

 as contrasted with air is attributed to the greater 

 proportion of carbon dioxide and lack of oxygen in 

 the former. Conidia and their products on germina- 

 tion were observed for periods of from two to five 

 weeks under conditions tallying with those occurring 

 in the soil ; during these periods many remained alive 

 and capable of infecting potatoes. The life of the 

 fungus in water and soil is much extended when 

 germ-tubes are formed ; the same end is attained 

 when zoospores result, for these can give rise directly 

 to diminutive conidia. 



Sydney. 



Linnean Society of New South Wales, October 26. 



Mr. G. A. Waterhouse, president, in the chair. — 

 Vera Irwin-Smith : Studies in Hfe-histories of Aus- 

 tralian Diptera Brachycera. Pt. i : Stratiomyiidae. 

 No. 3 : The structure of the mouth-parts and pharvnx 

 of the larva] Metoponia rubriceps. .Morphological 

 studies of the mouth-parts and pharynx of larval M. 

 rubriceps, which lives on the juices' in the roots of 

 grasses, are described. — R. J. Tiliyard : A new genus 

 and species of May-fly (order Plectoptera) from Tas- 

 mania, belonging to the family Siphluridae. The new 

 genus is closely allied to the genus Oniscigaster found 

 in New Zealand, from which it differs in its smaller size, 

 in the complete absence of the appendix dorsalis in both 

 sexes, and in the larval habit of living in still water. 

 — G. F. Hill : New and rare Australian termites, 

 with notes on their biology. Ten species are described, 

 five of them being new. The number of described 

 species of Australian termites is now approximately 

 115- — R- J- Tiliyard: Two fossil insect wings in the 

 colleg;ion of Mr. John Mitchell, from the Upper 

 Permian of Newcastle, N.S.W., belonging to the 

 order Hemiptera. The impressions are in association 

 with Glossopteris fronds. The smaller belongs to a 

 new family, genus and species of the division Sternor- 

 rhyncha of the sub-order Homoptera. The larger is 

 a hindwing of a new genus and species allied to 

 Prosbole from the Upper Permian of Russia, and 

 belonging to the sub-order Palaeohemiptera, now ex- 

 tinct. Evidently in Upper Permian times the sub- 

 order Hornoptera was already divided into its two 

 main divisions, whereas th° Heteroptera proper had 

 not vet appeared, being represented onlv bv the Palaeo- 

 hemiptera.— T. Steel : Chemical notes :' Botanical. 

 .Analyses are recorded of some Australian fruits and 

 of Fijian wild sugar-cane and the roots of the dragon- 

 tree. Notes on the deposit of calcium carbonate in 

 timber of Geissois Bertthami. F. v. M., and the per- 

 centage of nitrogen in Australian fungi are also given. 



Royal Society of New South Wales, November 2. 



Mr. E. C. Andrews, president, in the chair. — A. R. 

 Penfold nnd M. B. Welch : Two oinnate-leaf Boronias 

 and _ their essential oils, with description of a new 

 species. Boronia pinnata, common on the sandstone 

 ridses north and south of Svdney. and B. Ihtijona, 

 with thin velvety leaves, found onlv in dense under- 

 growth in moist situations, were" described. The 

 principal constituent of the essential oil of B. pinnata 

 is an unidentified terpene, resembling limonene, 

 whilst the oi"l of B. thujo'm consists essentially of 

 a- and ^-thujone. — F. R. Morrison : The occurrence 

 of rutin in the leaves of the Boronia CN. O. Rutaceae). 

 The vellow dye material was obtained from the leaves 

 of the native rose, B. serrulaia, and from B. pinnata 

 NO. 2722, VOL. 108] 



and B. thujona. The yield of crude rutin varied from 

 07 to 1-6 per cent. The colours produced on mor- 

 danted clotti were similar to those produced by rutin 

 from other sources. This dye was first isolated from 

 Kuta graveolens, which belongs to the same natural 

 order as the Boronias. — T. H. Harrison : Note on the 

 occurrence in New South Wales, Australia, of the 

 perfect stage of a Sclerotinia causing brown rot of 

 fruits. Review of climatical conditions leading to pro- 

 duction of apothecia. Apothecia arose from mum- 

 mified apricots in an orchard at Pennant Hills, near 

 Sydney, N.S.W. Inoculations of loquat with cultures 

 from an apothecium produced typical brown-rot 

 lesions. The organism is probably Sclerotinia fructi- 

 gena. 



Lahore. 



Philosophical Society, June 15. — Dr. B. Sahni, presi- 

 dent, in the chair. — S. K. Pande : Some observations 

 on a rust on Euphorbia tibetica. The diseased plants 

 were collected in Ladakh (Kashmir). In its structure 

 and its effects on the host the fungus resembles some 

 species of Uromyces. The fungus causes marked 

 changes in the habit of the host ; the growth becomes 

 stunted, the leaves become broader, and the produc- 

 tion of flowers is retarded. — B. Sahni : Preliminary 

 account of a petrified palm-stem (Palmoxylon sp.) 

 from the Tertiarj- rocks of Jammu. The transverse 

 section shows numerous scattered fibro-vascular 

 bundles in a loose parenchyma. There are no fibrous 

 bundles between the vascular strands. 



June 20.— Dr. B. Sahni, president, in the chair. — 

 G. Matthai : General account of a marine biological 

 excursion to Karachi during December, 1920, and 

 January, 192 1. The different groups of animals in the 

 collection were described as follows : — I. M. Puri : The 

 Nemerteans. — H. Singh: The birds. — A. Kumar; The 

 sponges, polyzoa, and ascidians. — G. R. Kohly : The 

 brachyura and anomura. — A. Chand : The polvchaetes 

 and gephyreans. — G. Matthai and M. L. Bhatia : The 

 nudibranch mollusca. — I. Ali : The fishes. — G. Sondhi : 

 The lamellibranch mollusca. — D. Ram : The chaeto- 

 gnatha. — G. Matthai : The hydrozoa and anthozoa. — 

 S. Singh : The entomostraca. 



Diary of Societies. 



THURSDAY. December 29. 

 BOTAL IxSTiTTTiox. at 3. — Prof. J. A. Flemina' : Electric Wayes 



and Wireless Telephony : Surface Waves on Liqnids. 

 Health. MATERXiTr. axd Child Welfare LEAcrE fat UniversitT 



Colleeel. at 5. — Prof. Winifred Cnllis : The Sig-nificance and 



Problem of Growth. 

 RoTAT. Drawing Societt fat Fniversity Colle?e>, at 5.30. — Miss D. M. 



Wilkins : The AfBnitv of Science with Art. 

 Health. Matersitt. .*>"d Child Welfare Leagfe fat UniTersity 



Collepe), at 6.— The Growth of the Mind. 

 IxsTTTrxioN^ or ArTOMOBiiE EvGTXEERS fat 28 Victoria Street), at 



7.30. — .-idjonrned Discussion on Paper bv.H. F. L. Orcutt : 3fotor- 



car Gear-boxes. 



FRIDAT. Deceiiber 30. 



HE.4LTH. M.4TEESITT. AND CHILD WELFARE LE-tGCE fat Universitv 



Colles-e). at 5. — The Phvsiolo^T- of Adolescence and its Physical 

 Requirements : at 6. — The Psychology and Mental Manag-ement 

 of the Adolescent. 

 Institctiox or PBODrcriox KxGiyEEBS fat Institution of Mechanical 

 F.n'rineersV at "..30.— G. H. Hales: The Costing System and its 

 Relation to Production. 



JCNIOR IXSTITrTIOX OF EXGIXEERS. at 8. 



S.iTURDAT. December 31. 

 CovFEREXCT OF EorCATiox.tL .A ssoci-ATlOKS f Joint ConfeT°n^n> ,nt 



Unirersitv Collesre). at 10 30 a.m.— Dr. J. C. Maxwell Garnett 



and Prof. J. Stron? : Edncation as a Science. 

 RoTAL TxsTiTrTi'^v. nt 3. — '"'•of. J. A Fleming- : Electric Ware? 



and Wireless Telephony : Waves in Air. 



MOXDAT. Jantabt 2. 

 British Pstchological Societt fEducation Sec+ionl fat TTniTersity 



College), at 2.30.— Prof. T. H. Pear: Mental Tests and Mentalitv. 

 Rotal Geographical Sociwt fChristma* Lectures to Young' People! 



fat JSolinn HalD. at 3.30.— Miss Ella Sykes : A Ride on the 



Roof of the World. 

 Cextbal Association for the Care of the Mestallt DErEcrrvE fat 



