September 23, 1920] 



NATURE 



«35 



phan«, n mineral not hitherto reported as containing 

 this metal. — E. Bourquelot : Remarks on the bio- 

 chemical method of examining hydrolysable gluco- 

 sides by emulsin, with reference to the note by M. P. 

 Delauney. Historical account of the results obtained 

 since 1901 by the application of this method. Gluco- 

 sides have been discovered and isolated in fifty-si.\ 

 ■ L'ies of plants. — E. Couerat : Stars the annual 

 per motion of which exceeds 0-5*. -An addition of 

 I ■, I) stars to the list published on September i in the 

 ( onxples rendus. — 1.' Fredholm : The reduction of a 

 problem of rational mechanics to a linear integral 

 equation. — P. Humbert : The function 



Wx-, >■,, mj • • • M'. (•''i' ■*» -''j' • • • -*■•)■ 

 W. Swyngedauw : The supertensions created by the 

 three harmonics of saturation in triphasc trans- 

 formers.— P. Bary : Colloidal sulphur.— P. Delauney : 

 The extraction of glucosides from two indigenous 

 orchids : the identification of these glucosides with 

 joroglossin. Details of the extraction of the gluco- 

 sides from Orchis simia and Ophrys aranifera 

 are given ; the melting points, rotatory power, 

 colour reaction with sulphuric acid, and pro- 

 ducts of hydrolysis proved the identity in each case 

 with loroglossin. — A. Krcmpt : .-V new planariform 

 'i^tenophore, Coeloplana gonocterm. — J. Feytand : The 

 estruction of ants by chloropicrin. Chloropicrin has 

 destructive effect on the wood-mining ant, Leuco- 

 rtnes lucifugus, and particulars are given of the best 

 ethod of applying this substance for the disinfection 

 lof houses. — A. Palllot : Coccobaciltus insectorum. 

 lemarks on a recent note on the same subject by MM. 

 lollande and Vernier. 



Sydney. 



Linncan Society of New South Wales, July 28. — Mr. 



J.J.Fletcher, president, in the chair. — .A. .A. Hamilton: 



fotes from tlw Botanic Gardens, Sydney. Species of 



pidosperma and Prostanthera and varieties of 



revillea punicea, Hakea saligna, and Prostanthera 



ticola are described as new. New locality records 



re made for several other species. — J. Mitchell and 



S. Dnn : The '.Atrypidse of New South Wales, with 



|rcfer«'nces to those recorded from other States of 



Australia. In addition to the three species of Atrypa 



llready known from New South Wales, three species 



: described as new. Specimens from Molong, Yass, 



nd Bowning, which externally resemble Meristina, 



lit the internal structure of which shows them to 



tlong to the .Atrypidse, are referred to a proposed 



BW genus. The records of .Atrypa from Queensland, 



Victoria, and Western .Australia are revised.- — Marjoric 



C«IUiu : Note on certain variations of the sporocyst 



a species of Saprolcgnia. In the species of Sapro- 



Jnla examined, I.eptolegnia, Pyihiop'sis, and .Achlya 



.nditions of the sporocyst occurred rarely, while tne 



fctyuchus and .Aplanes conditions were frequent ; the 



iriations occurred in both club-.shapixl and cylindrical 



Drocysts, but were not observed arising from resting 



orocysts. Composite sporocysts were observed com. 



ning the features of Dictyuchus and .Anlanes. Evi- 



ice is given in favour of the suggestion that the 



planes condition has ari-sen from the Dictyurhus bv 



iHurc of the protoplast to escape from the germ-tube 



Bring its earlv growth.— Prof. W. N. Benaon, W. S. 



and W. R. Browne : The geology and petrology 



the Great Serpentine Belt of New .South Wales, 



ix. The geology, palaeontology, and petrography 



the Currabubula district, with notes on adjacent 



Biflons. The relationship structurallv and strati- 



iihir.-illy liefween this region nnd that formerlv 



' ribed hy the writer in the Burindi and Horton 



Kivrr districts is indicated. In the Currabubula di«- 



NO. 2656, vol.. 106] 



trict the oldest formation is the Burindi mudstone 

 with tuffs, followed by the Middle Carboniferous Kut- 

 tung, series, largely composed of keratophyre-tuff_ and 

 conglomerates, but containing two or three horizons 

 of contorted, seasonally banded " varve-rock " of 

 fluvioglacial origin, accompanied by tillite containing 

 striated, and occasionally faceted, erratics. This 

 series is 9500 ft. in thickness, and contains Rhacopteris 

 and other fossil plants. It is followed by the Werrie 

 series of basalt-flows, which are invaded by a very 

 varied series of sills and dykes radiating from Warra- 

 gundi Mountain, related to which is an extensive 

 series of keratophyric, andesitic, doleritic, and basaltic 

 sills and dykes which invade the Burindi, and 

 especially the Kuttung rocks. 



vVashington, D.C. 



National Academy ol Sciences (Proceedings, vol. vi., 

 No. 2, February).— -Messrs. Harkins and twing : An 

 apparent high pressure due to adsorption, the heat of 

 adsorption, and the density of gas-mask charcoals. 

 In addition to the volume "of the pores and density 

 of the active charcoal, the effect of the compressibility, 

 viscosity, and surface tension of the liquid are dis- 

 cussed. — H. J. Spinden : Central .\merican calendars 

 and the Gregorian day. Rules are set up for turning 

 Mayan and Mexican dates into the Gregorian calendar 

 so that .Vmerican history is made more exact than 

 that of Egypt, Greece, or Rome. — C. Barns : The 

 torsional magnetic energy absorption of an iron con- 

 ductor. — Y. Henderson : The adjustment to the baro- 

 meter of the haematorespiralory functions in man. It 

 appears that the blood-alkali is controlled by the dis- 

 solved CO,, the amount of CO, by preliminary ventila- 

 tion, and the ventilation by the oxygen partial pressure 

 of the air. — A. S. King : A' study of absorption 

 sf>ectra with the electric furnace. The tube-resistance 

 furnace hitherto used for the study of emission spectra 

 offers interesting possibilities also in the field of 

 absorption spectra. — A. S. King : A study of the 

 effect of a magnetic field on electric-furnace spectra. 

 Lines common to furnace and to spark spectra show 

 no difference in number of components nor in separa- 

 tion ; the furnace may thus be used to supplement the 

 spark. — D. F. Jones ; Selective fertilisation in pollen 

 mixtures. Experiments on maize show that there is 

 a definite receptiveness of the plant to its own kind 

 of p<3llen, and that in proportion as the cross-fertilisa- 

 tion benefits the progeny the less effective are the 

 germ-cells in accomplishing fertilisation. The writer 

 believes that the assumption that heterogeneity in 

 protoplasmic structure is favourable to developmental 

 efficiency is founded on fallacious reasoning and not 

 supported by the facts. — G. A. Miller : Groups 

 generated by two operators, S,, S,, which satisfv the 

 conditions S,"' = S,«, (S,S,)*=i, and S,S, = S,S,. 

 Results useful in the studv of the generalised groups 

 of the regular polyhedra.— W. E. Castle: Model of 

 the linkage system of eleven second-chromosome 

 genes of Drosophila. Continuation of the discussion 

 of the spatial versus linear arrangement of the genes 

 with the conclusion that in this case the arrangement 

 appears linear.— G. A. Baltsell : The development of 

 connective tissue in the amphibian embryo. The 

 origin of connoctix-e tissue lies in an intercellular 

 secretion of the embryonic cells which constitutes the 

 ground substance of the connective secretions from 

 the cells. Under various chemical and mechanical 

 factors this substance forms connective tissue-fibres 

 by consolidation of its minute elements. — F. P. 

 Uaderhlll, J. A. HonelJ. and L. J. Bogert : Calcium 

 and magnesium metabolism in certain diseases. 

 Clinically, in leprosy tliere is loss of bone-salts; 



