144 



NATURE 



{Dec. 8, 1887 



veloped, which forms vanadates with a part of the vanadic acid 

 employed in the process. — Ammonical cyanides of zinc, by M. 

 Raoul Varet. The chloride, bromide, and iodide of zinc com- 

 bined with ammonia yield a relatively large number of compound 

 substances. But with the cyanide of zinc, whatever be the con- 

 ditions, the only substances obtained are ZnCy,NH3H0 when 

 the reaction takes place in the presence of water, and ZnCy, 

 NH2 in all other cases. — Application of a method of de Senar- 

 mont to the reproduction of celestine and anglesite by the wet 

 process, by M. L. Bourgeois. The process by means of which 

 de Senarmont obtained artificial crystals of barytine is here 

 applied to the production of the allied minerals, celestine and 

 anglesite. — On the importance of the nutritive function in 

 determining the distinction between plants and animals amongst 

 the lower organisms, by M. P. A. Dangeard. The Chytridinese 

 and the Chlamidomonadineae, the two primary groups of the 

 vegetable kingdom, are both connected below with the Flagellee, 

 branching off upwards one to the Algae the other to the Fungus 

 group. It is here shown that by the process of nutrition alone 

 is it possible to determine the point where plant and animal 

 become differentiated.— On the suckers of the Rhinanthese and 

 Santalacese, by M. Leclerc du Sablon. These hold an inter- 

 mediate position between non-parasitic and true parasitic plants, 

 drawing their nutriment both through their roots and through 

 suckers from other plants. The present observations deal ex- 

 clusively with the suckers and their various functions. — On the 

 discovery of carboniferous formations with marine and vegetable 

 fossils in the neighbourhood of Raon-sur Plaine, by M. Bleicher. 

 The recent discovery of coal in this district supplies the con- 

 necting link between the carboniferous measures of the Bruche 

 and Rabodeau valleys (Alsace and Lorraine). 



Berlin. 



Physiological Society, November 4. — Prof, du Bois 

 Reymond, President, in the chair. — Dr. Goldschneider spoke on 

 the fact, which has been known for a long time, that when carbonic 

 acid gas is allowed to come in contact with the skin it produces 

 a greater sensation of warmth than air of the same temperature. 

 He has carried out a prolonged series of experiments to deter- 

 mine the cause of this increased sensation of heat. He examined 

 first the purely physical factors which might have some influence 

 on the observed facts — namely, the moistness, specific heat, and 

 heat absorption by the gases. When he compared the sensation 

 of heat produced by moist air with that produced by dry air, he 

 found that the former always seemed the greater ; the difference 

 between the two might be as much as 5° C. to 6°C. when the air 

 was at a higher temperature than that of the skin. Thus, air at 

 35° C. whose saturation with moisture was 80 produced the same 

 sensation of heat as air at 41° C. whose saturation was only 30. 

 When experimenting with carbonic acid gas he found that a 

 difference of 40 in the saturation produced a difference in the 

 resulting sensation of heat corresponding to 2° to 3° of tempera- 

 ture. But even when equally moist or dry air and carbonic acid 

 gas were allowed to act on the skin the sensation of heat pro- 

 duced by the latter was always the greater. It does not seem 

 po sible to explain the greater sensation of heat with carbonic 

 acid gas by reference to the extremely small differences of specific 

 heat of air and this gas, still less by reference to their somewhat 

 greater coefficients of heat absorption. He also investigated the 

 effect of the more ready absorption of carbonic acid gas by 

 fluids, by removing the epidermis with a blister on a circum- 

 scribed portion of the skin and allowing the gas to act upon this 

 place. The carbonic acid gas was speedily absorbed by the 

 lymph, but it still produced a sensation of greater heat even 

 when all moisture was removed from the surface exposed by the 

 blister. He hence considers that the purely physical properties 

 of the gas will not suffice to explain its remarkable influence on 

 the sensory nerves for heat. Dr. Goldschneider next investigated 

 the physiological factors which might suffice to explain the 

 observed phenomenon. He proved that there is no recognizable 

 objective rise of temperature under the influence of the carbonic 

 acid gas. It is true that he observed now and again a distinct 

 dilatation of the blood-vessels, but this was by no means constant, 

 and not sufficient to account for the increased sensation of heat. 

 He proved however as has been observed by many physiologists, 

 that the carbonic acid gas has a direct effect upon the sensory 

 nerves ; but in contrast to the results of others, who attribute an 

 anaesthetic action to this gas, he observed that at first it produces 

 a hyperaesthesia of those nerves specially connected with the 

 production of heat sensations, and then this makes way for an 



anaesthesia. The nerves connected with heat sensations were 

 more strongly stimulated than those connected with sensations 

 of cold. The speaker summed up the results of his extremely 

 numerous experiments by urging that in addition to the greater 

 absorption of heat by the carbonic acid gas and its power of 

 producing hypersemia of the skin, its action is to be explained 

 chiefly by its direct chemical action on the endings of the nerves 

 concerned in the production of sensations of heat. This there- 

 fore is to be regarded as the cause of the observed phenomenon 

 that when carbonic acid gas is brought into contact with the skin 

 it produces a greater sensation of heat than does the contact of 

 equally warm and equally dry air. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



Thomas A Edison and Samuel F. B. Morse : D. B. Denslow and J. M. 

 Parker (Cassell). — Our Earth and its Story : Edited by Dr. R. Brown 

 (Cassell). — Stigmaria Ficoides : W. E. Williamson (Palaeontographical 

 Society). — Index Catalogue of the Library of the Surgeon General's Office, 

 United States Army, vol. viii. (Washington). — The Ethical Import of Dar- 

 winism : J. G. Schurman (Williams and Norgate). — A Manual of Orchid- 

 aceous Plants, Part i, Odontoglossum ; Part 2, Cattleya and Lcelia (Veitch). 

 — Osservazioni e Studii dei Crepuscoli Rosei 1883-86 : A. Ricco (Roma). — 

 Journal of the College of Science, Imperial University, Japan, vol. i. 

 Part 4 (Tokio). 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



Technical Education in Manchester 121 



Tridimensional Formulae in Organic Chemistry. By 



Prof. F. R. Japp, F.R.S 121 



The Mammoth and the Flood 123 



New Zealand Scale Insects 125 



Our Book Shelf :— 



Cochran: " Pen and Pencil in Asia Minor " .... 126 

 Bird wood : "A Catalogue of the Flora of Matheran 



and Mahableshwar " 126 



Debierre : " L'Homme avant I'Histoire" 126 



" Philips' Handy Volume Atlas of the British 



Empire" 126 



Bath: " The Young Collector's Hand-book of Ants, 



Bees, Dragon-Flies, Earwigs, Crickets, and Flies" . 127 



Letters to the Editor : — 



An Earthquake in England. — Worthington G. 

 Smith 127 



On the Constant P in Observations of Terrestrial 

 Magnetism. — Prof. Wm. Harkness ; Prof. 

 Arthur W. RUcker, F.R.S 127 



Instability of Freshly-Magnetized Needles. — G. M. 

 Whipple 128 



Gore's Railway. — Prof. Oliver J. Lodge, F.R.S. . 128 



The Highclere Bagshots. — Rev. A. Irving 128 



The Ffynnon Beuno and Cae Gwyn Caves. — Dr. 

 Henry Hicks, F.R.S 129 



Cloud Movements in the Tropics, and Cloud Classifica- 

 tion. — Captain David Wilson-Barker .... 129 



The Forms of Clouds. {Illustrated.) By Hon. Ralph 



Abercromby 129 



Fifth Annual Report of the Fishery Board for Scot- 

 land • 132 



Professor A. Weismann's Theory of Polar Bodies. 



By G. Herbert Fowler 134 



Siemens's Gas-Burners. {Illustrated.) 136 



Notes , 137 



Our Astronomical Column : — ^^ 



The New Algol Variables, Y Cygni and R Canis ^^| 



Majoris |^H 



Minor Planet No. 271 14O 



Astronomical Phenomena for the Week 1887 



December 11-17 140 



M. Potanin's Journeys in East Tibet and East 



Gobi 141 



Societies and Academies 142 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received I44 



