682 



NATURE 



[January 20, 192 1 



Paris. 



Academy of Sciences, December 27. — M. Henri 

 Deslandres in the ciiiii.— H. Douvilli : The Eocene 

 of Peru. From the examination of a number of 

 fossils sent by Prof. Lisson (of Lima) it is concluded 

 that the views of GrzybowsUi, published in 1899, 

 must be modified. Only the upper portion of the 

 Payta strata can still be attributed to the Pliocene; 

 the remainder of the Tertiary Peruvian layers repro- 

 duces very closely the constitution of the Californian 

 Eocene, and, like the latter, contains lignite and oil. 

 —P. Termier and W. Killan : The age of the glisten- 

 ing schists of the Western Alps. The age of these 

 deposits has been much discussed with widely varying 

 deductions. The authors, after a survey of the exist- 

 ing data, conclude that there is certainly Lias in these 

 strata, and very probably some of the Upper Trias. — 

 C. Richet and H. Cardot : The hereditary transmission 

 of acquired characters in micro-organisms. A study 

 of the influence of toxic substances (antiseptics) on 

 the lactic bacillus, of the immunity acquired by suc- 

 cessive generations, and of the transmission of this 

 acquired immunity to antiseptics. — G. Charpy and J. 

 Durand : The melting point of coal. It is well known 

 that with certain coals a rise of temperature produces 

 a softening, sometimes called the melting point. This 

 agglomeration point is very important from the point 

 of view of coke manufacture, but it would appear 

 that no exact measurements of this temperature have 

 been made. . A description is given of the method 

 devised to give definite readings, with results for eight 

 cpals. The "melting point" is characteristic for a 

 given coal, and is independent of the amount of vola- 

 tile matter present. — L. E. Dickson : Polynomials 

 equivalent to determinants. — S. Bays : Cyclic systems 

 of Steiner. — G. Giraud : Reply to a note by M. Fubini 

 on automorph functions. — P. Humbert : Hvpertoroidal 

 functions and their connection with hyperspherical 

 functions. .^T. Varapoulos : The zeros of the integrals 

 of a class of differential equations. — R. Birkeland : 

 Resolution of the general algebraical equation by 

 hvfjergeometrical functions of Several variables. — B. de 

 Fontviolant ': Calculation of the strengths of circular 

 bridges. — H. Godard : Observation of the Skjellerup 

 comet made at the Bordeaux Observatory (38-cm. 

 equatorial). Position given for December 17. The 

 comet isl a nebulositv of about i' diameter without 

 visible nucleus: iith magnitude. — M. Miclikovitch : 

 Observation of the Skjellerup comet made at the 

 Marseilles Observatory (26-cm. Eichens equatorial). 

 Position given for December 20. — \. Hansson and H. 

 Jelstrup : Spectrum of Nova Aquilae IIL in Julv, 1920. 

 The two photographs, one of two hours' and the other 

 of one hour's exposure, showed a large number of 

 bright lines on a background of continuous spectrum, 

 and, consequently, the identification of the bright lines 

 proved to be difficult, k table of the wave-lengths of the 

 lines identified is given, and includes lines attributed 

 to calcium, helium, iron, hvdrogen, and to the element 

 characteristic of nebulae. — I,. Bloch : Comparison of the 

 theories of Lorentz and Mie. — P. Vaillant : The varia- 

 tions in the electrical conductivitv of calcium sulphide 

 with temperature. When a thin la\ier of calcium sul- 

 phide previously exposed to sunlight is heated its elec- 

 trical conductivitv rapidly increases, passes through a 

 very marked maximum, and then decreases almost to 

 zero. The phenomenon is closelv connected with the 

 state of phosphorescence. — G. Contreraoulins and E. 

 Pnthomme : The determination of the time of exposure 

 in radiograph v.-^P. Lebeau and A. Damlens : The 

 composition of some coke-oven gases. Analyses of 

 four ^samples of coke-oven gas made by a method 

 described in an earlier publication. Compared -with 



NO. 2673, VOL. 106] 



coal-gas, the main differences are the lower percentage 

 of hydrogen and the high proportion (20 per cent.) of 

 nitrogen. — H. Le Cliatelier : Remarks on the pre- 

 ceding paper. — M. Godchot : The catalytic addition of 

 hydrogen to subcrone. Bv the action of reduced 

 nickel and hydrogen at 175° C. suberone is converted 

 into suberol. .Attempts to form a six-carbon ring from 

 suberone by the action of active nickel at 240° C. 

 were unsuccessful, differing in this respect from cyclo- 

 heptane. — P. H. Frltel : The presence of the genera 

 Phragmites and Nephrodium in the Pleistocene clays 

 of Benenitra (Madagascar). — A. Nodon : Solar action 

 and the recent atmospheric disturbances. — P. Mazi : 

 Researches on the assimilation of carbon dioxide by 

 green plants. The fresh leaves were heated to 60° C. 

 under reduced pressure and the distillate was received 

 in an ice-cooled receiver. In no case could formaldehyde 

 be detected, but nearly all plants gave ethyl alcohcJ, 

 acetaldehyde, and nitrous acid. Beans and maize col- 

 lected in fine weather gave acetylmethylcarbinol, elder 

 leaves gave hydrocyanic acid and glycoUic aldehyde, 

 ■whilst lactaldehyde was obtained from poplar leaves. — 

 K. Desgrez and'H. Blerry : Nitrogen equilibrium and 

 carbohydrates in the food ration. Below a certain 

 limit no other food can replace carboh\drates. — \. 

 Mayer, M. Plantefol, and F. Vlis : Poisoning by the 

 nitrohalogen methanes. Chloropicrin has the most 

 powerful toxic effect ; bromopicrin and dichlorodinitro. 

 'methane are from eight to ten times less active. — 

 R. Anthony : Tubular pseudo-hermaphroditism in male 

 Cetaceans. — k. Dehorne : The spermatogenesis of 

 Corethra plumicornis and eupyrene chromosomes. — 

 M. Doyon : Participation of the cellular nuclei in the 

 phenomena of secretion. The anti-coagulating pro- 

 perties of the nucleinic acid of the intestine.- — \. 

 Malaquin : Sexual and asexual reproduction. — L. 

 Cavel : The purification of sewage by the activated- 

 sludge method. 



Sydney. 



Royal Society ol New South Wales, December i. — 

 Mr. J. Nangle, president, in the chair. — ^Dr. J. A. 

 Pollock : The stethoscope, with a reference to a func- 

 tion of the auricle. Various forms of stethoscope are 

 considered; the acoustic determination of surface 

 vibrations has a definite dynamical aspect when the 

 disturbances are very small. Detection in all the 

 instances described depends on the movements of the 

 surface relative to a steady mass elastically connected 

 with it. In detecting small movements with the old- 

 fashioned stethoscope, or after the manner of the 

 trackei, the mechanism is supplied by the head and 

 ear, the auricle having the very definite function of 

 acting as the elastic connection between the mass and 

 the surface. In other cases where the air disturb- 

 ances are led by tubes directly into the ear passages 

 the mechanical action is recognisable as associated 

 with the instruments.- — A. R. Penlold : The essential 

 oils of Leptospermum odoratutn and L. grandiflorum. 

 The principal constituents of the former are eudesmene 

 and aromadendrene (sesquiterpenes), eudesmol (ses- 

 quiterpene alcohol), a- and ,8-pinpne, Avith smaller 

 amounts of a rose-odour alcohol, esters, and 

 phenols. This is the first time that eudesmena has 

 been found occurring in Nature. Leptospermum 

 grandiflorum consists principally of the same two 

 sesquiterpenes with an unidentified sesquiterpene 

 alcohol. — M. B. Welch : Eucalyptus oil-glands. The 

 oil was formerly considered to be present as a single 

 globule contained in a small cavity, but it would now 

 appear that it is rather in the form of an emulsion in 

 cavities which usually approach the surface. Oil 

 occurs also in the stems, buds, fruit, and, in rare 

 .species, in the barks. The glands are often more or 



