5&8 



NATURE 



[December 30, 1920 



of data collectetl at the Sloane Maternity Hospital in 

 New York City. — O. Blackwood : The existence of 

 homogeneous groups of large ions. It is found that 

 for ionisation from spray and from hot wires the 

 gradation in the size of the ions is continuous, as 

 the mobility curves do not show sharp, separated 

 peaks. The conclusion favours the hypothesis of Sir 

 J. J. Thomson.— E. J. Cohn : The relation between 

 the isoelectric point of a globulin and its solubility 

 and acid-combining capacity in salt solution. \ de- 

 tailed discussion of the effect of sodium chloride upon 

 the solubility of tuberin and tho effect upon its acid- 

 combining capacity. — H. P. Armgby, J. k. Fries, and 

 W. VV. Braman : The carbon dioxide : heat ratio in 

 cattle. Within a range of 5 to 27 prams of feed 

 per kg. live-weight a simple equation mav be used 

 for computing the (CO^ : heat) ratio when the live- 

 weight and the amount of feed consumed are known. 

 Thus the heat production may be computed from the 

 observed COj production. — H. S. Vandiver : Kummer's 

 memoir of 1857 concerning Fermat's last theorem. 

 It is shown that the proofs given by Kummer are 

 inaccurate and incomplete in several respects. — D. I^. 

 Webster : An improved form of high-tension direct- 

 current apparatus. A description of an improvement 

 in apparatus previously •described.^ — R. W. Glazer : 

 The effect of the concentration of nitrates on the 

 reducing powers of bacteria. \ number of species of 

 micro-organisms were tested in Witte's peptone media 

 contninint! various molecular concentrations of NaNO, 

 and KNO,. 



Books Received. 



The National Physical Laboratory. Collected Re- 

 searches. Vol. xiv., 1920. Pp^ iv-l-308+plates. 

 (London : H.M. Stationery Office.) 2:;x. net. 



Annual Report of the' Board of Regents of the 

 Smithsonian Institution, Showing the Operations, 

 Expenditure, and Condition of the Institution for the 

 Year ending June 10, iqi8. (Publication 2540.) Pp. 

 xii + 6i2 + plates. (Washington : Government Printing 

 Office.) .'' 



Smithsonian Institution. United States National 

 Museum. Bulletin inq. Contributions to a History 

 of .American State Geological and Natural History 

 Surveys. Edited by G. P. Merrill. Pp. xviii + 540-H 

 ■XI plates. (Washington : Government Printing 

 Office.) ^ 



Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collfections. Vol. Ixxi., 

 No. I. Smithsonian Physical Tables. (Publication 

 ?;io.) Seventh revi.sed edition prepared bv F. E. 

 Fowle. Pp. xIyi + 450. (Washington : Smithsonian 

 Institution.) 



DiatTT of Societies. 



,s:.4rr.'Rn.ii-. .iaxiabt 1. 



.\XNl*L COXFERE.VCE OF Edvcatioxal AssociATioss (at University 

 College, Gower Street), at 10.30 a.m.— .\ Joint Conference on The 

 Use of Psycho-aualysis in Education. 



RorAi, iNSTiTVTiON OF Grut Bbitain, at .3.— Prof. J. Arthur Thorn- 

 son : The Haunts of Life : The Open Sea (Juvenile Lectures) 



GlLBETiT White Fellowship (at 6 Queen Square W C 1) at 3 — 

 Lecture. 



MOHTiAT, JisrABT 3. 



RovAL GEOiiBAPHicAL SociEir (at .Eolian Hall), at 3.30.— F Kine-- 

 don Ward : The Travels of a Plant-Colleetor on the Borders of 

 China (Christmas Lecture). . 



EoTAL I.vsTiTVTE OF Bbitish Abchitecis, at 8.— Discussion • Pro- 

 fessional Questions. 



Abisioteliax Societt (at University of London Club, 21 Gower 

 Street), at 8.— C. A. Richardson; The New Materialism. 



SociETr OF Chemical I.VDrsTBT (at Chemical Society), at 8.— G. H 

 Thurston : The Smith Continuous System of Carhonisation — Dr 

 I. Masson and T. L. McEwan : (1) The Ueeovervof Solvent Tapo"rs 

 from Air. Part I., The Use of Cresol for Ether-Alcohol; Part II 

 The Use of Sulphuric Acid for Ether-Alcohol. (2) The Analvsi-i 

 of Liquid and Gaseous Mixtures of Ether, Alcohol, and Water. 

 TVESDAY. jAStiABT 4. 



KoTAL IxsTiTriTox OF Gbeat Bbitaix, at 3.— Prof. J. Arthur Thom- 

 son : The Haunts of Life; The Great Deeps (Juvenile Lectures). 



NO. 2670, VOL. 106] 



BoiAL Photoubafhic Societi of Gbiai Bbitai.<(, at 7.—S. B. 

 Luboshei : The Kesults of the Demonstration of Portraiture by 

 Artificial Light of October 5, 1920. 



llATHEMAiicAL .ASSOCIATION (Annual ileetinjf) (at London Day Train- 

 ing College).— Prof. A. 8. Eddington : Relativity.— Dr. 8. 

 Brodetsky : Aeroplane Mathematics. — The Rev. S. H. Clarke; 

 The Teaching of -Mathematics to Boys whose Chief Interest! are 

 Non-ilathcmatioal.— Prof. E. T. Whittaker : Some Unsolved Quet- 

 tions and Topics for Research.- Hiss E. -M. Head ; Result* of 

 Visits Paid to LyciSes of Paris and other Centres, and the Study 

 of Education there, particularly from the point of view of 

 Mathematics. 



The -Association or Science Teachers (at University College).— 

 .Miss M. B. Thomas : Presidential Address.— Dr. J. C. Drnm- 

 mond ; Vitamincs. 



WEDNESDAT. jA.vrAsr 5. 



ROTAl SOCIETT OF Abts, at 3. 



Phisicai Societi AND OPTICAL SOCIETY'S EXHIBITION (at Imperial 

 College of Science), from 3 to 10. At 4.— Sir W. H. Bragg: 

 Sounds in Nature. At 8.— Prof . A. Barr : The Optophone. 



Geological Societi of Lonbo-v, at 5.30.— Prof. S. H. Reynolds : 

 The I.ithological Succession of the Carboniferous Liiuestone 

 (Avonian) in the .Avon Section at Clifton.— Miss E. Bolton : The 

 Carboniferous Limestone of the Wickwar-Chipping Sodbury Area 

 (Gloucestershire). 



TBURSDAV, Janfart 6. 



RCTAL Societt of ARTS, at 3.— Sir Frederick Bridge : The Cries of 

 London which Children heard in Shakespeare's Time (Juvenile 

 Lecture). 



RoTAL IxsTirrTiox OF Gbf,at Britain, at 3.— Prof. J. -Arthur Thom- 

 son ; The Haunts of Life : The Freshwaters (Juvenile Lectures). 



Physical Society and Optical Societi's Exhibition (at Imperial 

 College of Science), from 3 to 10. At 4.— Prof. A. Barr: The 

 Optophone. At 8.— -C. R. Darling: Some Unusual Surface Tension 

 Phenomena. 



FRIDAT. Jaxfart 7. 



RoTAL Geoc.baphical Soctetv (e.t -Eolian Hall), at 3.30.— Lt.-Col. C. 

 Smith : Life on the Gilgit Frontier (Christmas Lecture). 

 SATURDAY. Jancart 8. 



Rotal iNSTiTrTioN OF Gbeat Bbitaix, at 3. — Prof. J. Arthur Thom- 

 son ; The Haunts of Life : The Conquest of the Land (Juvenile 

 Lectures). 



CONTENTS. 



The Nile, Egypt, and the Sudan 



Poynting's Scientific Papers. By Sir J. J. Thomson, 

 . CM., F.R.S 



PAGE 

 557 



By Prof. J. W. 



559 



Scottish County Geograph-'es 



Gregory, F.R.S 



Conifers 



Physiology for Students and Practitioners . . . 



Our Bookshelf . 



Letters to the Editor: — 



The British Association.— Prof. Arthur Smithells, 



F.R.S 



Science and Fisheries. — Prof. W. C. Mcintosh, 



F.R.S. ; Henry G. Maurice, C.B 



Propagation of a Finite Number of Waves. — A 



Mallock, F.R.S 



Solar Variation and the Weather. — L. C. W. 



Bonacina 



Name for the Positive Nucleus. — Dr. E. B. R. 



Prideaux 



The Physical Meaning of Spherical Aberration. — 



L. C. Martin 



Man and the Scottish Fauna (Illustrated.) .... 568 

 Some Problems of Lubrication. By W. B. Hardy 

 F.R.S 



561 

 5«.1 

 56.1 



564 



565 

 5^5 

 567 

 567 

 567 

 567 



Obituary: — 



Prof. Italo Giglioli. By Dr. E. J. Russell, 

 F.R.S 



Dr. C. A. Sadler 



Notes 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



Skjellerup's Comet 



The January Meteors 



The Masses of the Stars . , 



Education at the British Association ... 

 Agriculture at the British Association. By Dr. 



Alexander Lauder 



Studies of Heredity ... 



The Pan-Pacific Scientific Conference 



Mathematics in Secondary Education 



University and Educational intelligence . . . 



Calendar of Scientific Pioneers 



Societies and Academies ... 



Books Received 



Diary of Societies 



569 



573 



573 

 574 



578 



578 

 579 



58' 

 582 



583 

 583 

 584 



58s 

 586 

 5^8 

 <;88 



