254 



NATURE 



[April 21, 192 1 



intensity of the spark is not less than 160 times that 

 of the electric arc. — M. Dussaud : An apparatus for 

 projecting an image of any object on a screen 3 metres 

 square in a lighted room, with a current of 3 amperes. 

 — P. Jolibois : A photographic method of registering 

 chemical reactions accompanied by a variation in 

 pressure. The mercury manometer tube has a fine 

 platinum wire stretched throughout its length, and 

 the variations in the resistance of this wire serve as 

 a measure of the height of the manometer. The tem- 

 perature at which the reaction under study is pro- 

 ceeding is measured by a thermo-couple, and the 

 double galvanometer of Le Chatelier and Saladin is 

 employed to record the temperature and pressure 

 simultaneously. Some possible applications are 

 described. — H. Joly : The geology and physical geo- 

 graphy of the Rio Guadiato depression (Sierra 

 Morena, Spain). This depression is due to the tec- 

 tonic structure of this part of the Sierra Morena, 

 which recalls that of the Franco-Belgian coal basin. — 

 A. Carpentier : Discovery of the genus Plinthiotheca 

 in the Westphalian in the north of France. — J. de 

 Yilmorin : The crossing of peas with coloured pods. — 



A. A. Mendes-Correa : Some sexual differences in the 

 skeleton of the superior limbs. A discussion of the 

 problem of determining the sex of a skeleton. — M. 

 Doyon : The physiological properties of the nucleic 

 acids of the lymphatic ganglia and of the thymus. 

 The conditions for obtaining a thymo-nucleic acid 

 very active on blood. The lymphatic ganglia of the 

 ox and the thymus glands of the calf are specially 

 recommended as sources of nucleic acids. Full details 

 of the technique of extraction are given. — J. Legendre 

 and A. Oliveau : The rdle of the domestic rabbit in 

 the attraction and nutrition of Anopheles maculi- 

 pennis. This Anopheles during its period of activity 

 in the spring seeks the blood of mammals as food, 

 with a marked preference for the blood of the 

 domestic rabbit. In the presence of man, cattle, 

 horses, pigs, fowls, and rabbits, the preference for 

 the rabbit amounts to protection for man and other 

 animals. 



Rome. 

 Reale Accademia nazionale dei Lincei, January 2. — 

 Prof. V. Volterra, vice-president, in the chair. — G. 

 Ciamician and C. Ravenna : Influence of organic sub- 

 stances on plant development. The substances ex- 

 perimented on include pvrocatechin, guaiacol, morphine, 

 codeine, theobromine, caffeine, atropine, and cocaine.- — 



B. Grassi : Can Anopheles propagate malaria directly? 

 At Fiumicino a baby a few months old caught malaria 

 in a house visited eight days previously by an infected 

 youth. In another case a woman recovering from the 

 fever was visited by two friends, who stayed only a 

 few hours in the house, but developed symptoms on 

 returning to Rome. From examinations of the Ano- 

 pheles in the district the author considers it doubtful 

 whether infection could have taken place otherwise 

 than by direct transmission, and hopes to test tTie 

 matter by experiment with some individual who is 

 willing to undergo the necessary tests. — F. Bottazzi : 

 The posterior salivary gland of the Cephalopod, iv. 

 Secretive activity of the gland under various experi- 

 mental conditions. — O. Lazzarino : Equations of rota- 

 tion about a fixed point of a solid with cavities filled 

 with viscous liquids. — C. Severini : Integral equations. 

 — L. Tonelli : Two propositions of Lindeberg and 

 Levi in the calculus of variations, i. — V. Sabatini : 

 Unity of the Vulsinio system. This svstem con- 

 sists principally of two large craters', one of 

 Latera and the other of Bolsena, the latter 

 having no equallv large counterpart in Europe. The 

 probability of these having a common focus or com- 

 municating foci appears better justified than in the 



NO. 2686, VOL. 107] 



parallel case of the Cimini system. — G. Cotronei : 

 Causal morphology of eye development in the toad. — 

 E. Remotti : Variations in the specific weight of eggs 

 of Teleosteans during development in shallow or deep 

 water. — S. Sergi : Vertebro-meduUary topography of 

 chimpanzee, ii. — Prof. Castelnuovo was elected secre- 

 tary of the Academy. 



January 16. — Prof. F. D'Ovidio, president, in the 

 chair. — G. Pellizzari : Synthesis of o-phenylenedicyano- 

 guanidine from o-phenylenediamine. — A. Comessatti : 

 Geometric theory of binary forms, iv. Typical repre- 

 sentation of co-variants. — S. Lefschetz : " Sur le 

 th6oreme d'existence des fonctions ab^liennes." — G. 

 Castelnuovo : Abelian functions, i. Intermediary 

 functions.^ — E. Bompiani : Metric invariants and co- 

 variants in deformations of surfaces, iv. — R. Serini : 

 Dirichlet's symmetrical cylinder problem. — N. Parra- 

 vano and C. Mazzetti : Transformation of light into 

 heavy magnesia. It is found that the change takes 

 place at comparatively low temperatures, but the rate 

 of transformation increases continuously with increase 

 of temperature. 



February 6.- — Prof. V. Volterra, vice-president, in the 

 chair.^ — Original contributions by fellows ; — C. Segre : 

 Foci of second order of infinite systems of planes, and 

 hvperspatial curves with a double infinity of plurisecant 

 planes. — G. Ciamician and R. Ciusa : Constitution of 

 benzol and heterocyclic nuclei.^ — G. Bruni : Solubility 

 of crystalline substances in caoutchouc. Caoutchouc 

 can be regarded as a thick liquid and its solvent power 

 varies, being greatest for the aromatic series and 

 least for minerals. Vulcanised rubber has the char- 

 acter of a saturated solution of sulphur in presence 

 of free sulphur. — F. Millosevich : Minerals of Latian 

 province. During excavations in the Peperino at 

 Albano melilite was discovered in some blocks in 

 crystals of somewhat exceptional purity. — Papers com- 

 municated by fellows : — Prof. A. Lo Surdo : Synthetic 

 helium and neon. — Dr. M. Ferrari : Beryl from Piona 

 Con the left bank of the Lake of Como near Colico). — 

 C. .Jucci : Uratic deposits in the fat of Termites. — 

 The chairman. Prof. Volterra, announced the death of 

 Prof. Giuseppe Colombo on January 16. The Academy 

 has also lost the foreign fellows. Profs. Waldeyer 

 and Federow. Prof. Mattirolo contributed a notice 

 of the work of the late Prof. Pier Andrea Saccardo. 

 For the Royal prize for astronomy four candidates 

 submitted lists of papers. The chairman announced 

 that a prize had been offered bv the King in com- 

 memoration of the late Prof. .Augusto Righi for the 

 best work on experimental phvsics contributed by 

 one of Prof. Righi 's former pupils at Bologna. 



Books Received. 



Tidal Power. By A. M. A. Struben. (Pitman's 

 Technical Series.) Pp. xii+115. (London: Sir I. 

 Pitman and Sons, Ltd.) 2S. 6d. net. 



Continuous Wave Wireless Telegraphy. By Prof. 

 W. H. Eccles. . Part i. Pp. vii+407. (London: 

 Wireless Press, Ltd.) 25s. net. 



Social Decay and Regeneration. By R. Austin 

 Freeman. Pp. xx+345. (London : Constable and 

 Co.. Ltd.) iSs. 



The Alpha, Beta, Gamma Navigation Tables. By 

 H. B. Goodwin. Pp. iv+54. (London : J. D. Potter.) 

 8s. 



Annuaire de 1 'Academic Royale des Sciences, 192 1. 

 Pp. 4:^2. (Bruxelles : M. Lamertin.) 



Diagnosis of Protozoa and Worms Parasitic in 

 Man. ' Bv Prof. R. W. Hegner and Prof. W. W. 

 Cort. Pp. 72. (Baltimore, Md. : Johns Hopkins 

 Universitv.) 



