June 3, 1922] 



NATURE 



723 



extremely damaging to the prestige of British engineer- 

 ing and very unfair to the scientifically trained 

 engineers of this country. The war showed the 

 capabilities of British men of science and engineers 

 when they work hand in hand and with the necessary 

 resources placed at their disposal. It is the duty of 

 college-trained men to show their faith in science, 

 and to champion her cause when it is unfairly attacked 

 by men who are ignorant of her methods and mission. 

 The engineer can never lose sight of utilitarian ends, 

 but he should know enough of the spirit of science 

 and the recent liistory of industry and invention to 

 respect and encourage the work of the investigator 

 in pure science. 



The third International Congress of the History 

 of Medicine will be held in London on July 17 to 22 

 inclusive. The congress will be opened at 10.30 a.m- 

 on July 17 by the Minister of Health at the Royal 

 Society of Medicine, where the delegates will be 

 received and an address will be delivered by the 

 president. Dr. Charles Singer. In the afternoon 

 there will be a reception and an address by Sir 

 Norman Moore, President of Honour, at the Royal 

 College of Physicians. In the evening the President 

 and Mrs. Singer will receive the members of the 

 congress at the Royal Society of Medicine, when an 

 address will be given by Prof. Elliot Smith. The 

 sessions of the congress will be held on the following 

 days from 10.30 a.m. to 12.30 p.m., and from 2.30 p.m. 

 to 4.30 p.m., at the Royal Society of Medicine. 

 A committee of ladies has been organised to con- 

 duct ladies attending the congress to various places 

 of interest in London. The Wellcome Historical 

 INIuseum, 54A Wigmore Street, where a special 

 exhibition will be held, will be open from 10 a.m. to 

 5.30 p.m. daily. Objects of interest will also be on 

 view in the library of the Royal Society of Medicine. 

 Arrangements have been made for visits to the Royal 

 College of Surgeons, the Society of Apothecaries, the 

 Barbers' Hall, St. Bartholomew's Hospital, and other 

 places of medico-historical interest. Further in- 

 formation can be obtained on application to the 

 general secretary. Dr. J. D. RoUeston, 21 Alexandra 

 Mansions, King's Road, S.W.3. 



Exceptionally hot weather for the time of year 

 was experienced over the south-eastern and central 

 portions of England on the four days from May 21 

 to 24, and record temperatures occurred in many 

 places. At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, 

 observations of the highest order are obtainable for 

 the past 80 years, since 1841, and approximately 

 trustworthy observations can be obtained for as far 

 back as 18 14, embracing in all a period of 109 years. 

 In the recent hot spell the sheltered thermometer 

 at Greenwich registered 90°-2 on ]\Iay 22 and 90°-6 

 on May 24. The previous records for May since 

 1 84 1 show only eight days with a temperature so 

 high as 85°, the maximum being 87°-5 on May 26^ 

 1880, followed by 87°-o on May 19, 1868, and 86°-5 

 on May 25, 1920, while a temperature of 90° has 

 occurred only seven times during June since 1841, 

 and once only since 1897. The mean maximum 



NO. 2744, VOL. 109] 



shade temperature for the four consecutive hot days 

 was 88°-8, and the mean solar radiation temperature 

 was i48°-5, the maximum being 151° on May 23. 

 In May 1913 there were five consecutive days with 

 the temperature above 80°, the highest temperature 

 being 84°- 1 and the mean for the period 82°-2 ; 

 this is the record for consecutive hot days and also 

 for the number of hot days in the month, the total 

 days being five, the same as this )'ear, which includes 

 May 8 last. In 1870 there were four consecutive 

 days with the temperature above 80°, the mean for 

 the four days being 82°-4. On three consecutive 

 nights during the hot spell the minimum temperature 

 was above 58°, the temperature on the warmest 

 night being 58°-9, and the lowest temperature for 

 four days was 57°-9. Previous records from 1841 

 show three instances only of warmer nights, 6i°-5 

 on May 25, 1841, 6i°-3 on May 24 and 6o°-3 on May 

 29, 1847. The mean daily temperatures at Greenwich 

 for the three days May 22 to 24 were 74°-5, 73°-5, 

 and 74°-8 respectively, which is 20° above the average. 

 The previous highest day mean in May since 1841 

 was 7i°-3 on May 28, 1841, and going back to 1814 

 the highest day mean was 72°-4 on May 15, 1833. 

 Since the extreme heat of 9o°-6 at Greenwich on May 

 24 the day temperatures steadily decreased, reaching 

 73° by the end of the week. Thunder-storms ac- 

 companied by a heavy fall of hail and rain were 

 associated with the recent hot spell. 



At the annual general meeting of the Institute 

 of Physics held on May 23 in the rooms of the Royal 

 Society, the following Officers and Board were elected 

 to serve for the year beginning October i, 1922 : 

 President, Sir J. J. Thomson ; Pasi-President, Sir 

 R. T. Glazebrook ; Vice-Presidents, Sir Charles 

 Parsons. Prof. W. Eccles, Prof. C. H. Lees, Mr. 

 C. C. Paterson ; Non-Official Members of the Board, 

 Dr. R. S. Clay, Prof. C. L. Fortescue, Prof. A. 

 Gray, Major E. O. Henrici, Sir J. E. Petavel, Dr. 

 E. H. Rayner, Sir Napier Shaw, Mr. R. S. Whipple ; 

 Representatives of Participating Societies : Physical 

 Society— Mr. C. E. Phillips, Mr. F. E. Smith ; Faraday 

 Society — Mr. W. R. Cooper; Optical Society — Mr. 

 John Guild ; Rontgen Society— Dr. G. W. C. Kaye ; 

 Royal Microscopical Society — Mr. J. E. Barnard. 

 The Annual Report stated that there were 408 

 Members of the Institute at the end of the year, 

 of whom 258 were Fellows. The Institute is watching 

 the possibiUty of establishing a central library for 

 physics, although the financial difficulties in the way 

 of its reaUsation are stated to be considerable. In 

 the course of his presidential Address, Sir J. J. 

 Thomson, after dealing with the project to establish 

 a Journal of Scientific Instruments, spoke of the 

 present depression in industry, but he made the 

 reassuring statement that out of 67 students who 

 graduated with distinction in physics and chemistry 

 in 1 92 1, 46 had obtained suitable positions, while 

 14 were doing research work. He hoped that the 

 series of lectures on physics in industry which had 

 been established would act to some extent as " Re- 

 fresher Courses." Speaking of the difficulties which 



