[anuary 27, 19 1 6] 



NATURE 



613 



the winged-disc symbolism in substantiation of the 

 ience of Egypt and Asia, attention was directed to 

 fact that a great part of the ancient Indian 

 itheon, centred around the god Indra, had been 

 iily adopted by the Maya people of Central America, 

 idence was adduced to explain the details of the 

 cess of transmission (which probably began some- 

 ;re about 200 B.C., and continued tor many 

 Inturies), and the confusion which was introduced 

 •during the migration. Particular attention was 

 directed to the great influence exerted by the late 

 nventionalised form of the Indian Makara, as a sea- 

 phant, in determining the design, not only of the 

 pan elephants in the tar east, but also of the early 

 ;ristian and pre-Christian representations of the 

 phant upon the sculptured stones of Scotland and 

 mdinavia in the far west. The fact was again 

 phasised that practically every element of the early 

 \ilisations of America was borrowed from the Old 

 World. Small groups of immigrants from time to 

 time brought to America certain of the customs, be- 

 liefs, and inventions of the Mediterranean area, Egypt, 

 Ethiopia, Arabia, Babylonia, India, Indonesia, eastern 

 Asia, and Oceania, and this confused jumble of prac- 

 •tices became assimilated and "Americanised" in their 

 new home across the Pacific, as the result of the 

 domination of the great uncultured aboriginal popu- 

 lations by small bands of more cultured foreigners, 



January 11. — Presidential address. — Prof. S. J. 

 Hickson : Animal symmetry and the differentiation of 

 •species. The attempt made by Cuvier, at the begin- 

 ning of the nineteenth century, to separate into one 

 -division of the animal kingdom — the Radiata — all 

 those forms of animal life that show a radial sym- 

 metry from the other divisions that included animals 

 with a bilateral symmetry never met with much suc- 

 cess. The advance of knowledge has shown that these 

 symmetries cannot be used as a basis of classification. 

 But it is worth while to consider the conditions which 

 led to the development of the radial symmetry of the 

 organs in some animals, and the bilateral symmetry of 

 the organs in others. Radially symmetrical animals 

 are usually sedentary or floating in habit, and have 

 a feebly developed muscular system. Bilaterally sym- 

 metrical animals, on the other hand, have usually the 

 power of moving rapidly and powerfully from place to 

 place, and are provided with a well-developed muscular 

 system. Nearly all the radially symmetrical animals 

 show considerable variability even as regards the num- 

 ber and disposition of important organs. In bilaterally 

 symmetrical animals, on the other hand, there is far 

 less variability in important organs. In consequence 

 of this difference in variability of the two kinds of 

 animals, the systematic zoologist finds greater difficulty 

 in arranging the former into discontinuous specific 

 groups than the latter; and it may be a question for 

 consideration whether in radially symmetrical animals 

 wo find any such discontinuity as that indicated by the 

 species of bilaterally symmetrical animals. In the 

 Pennatulacea we have a group of animal colonies 

 which show a series of stages from radial symmetry 

 to bilateral symmetry. In the radially symmetrical 

 forms there is very great variability in all the important 

 leatures of the colony, and definite discontinuity be- 

 tween specific groups is difficult to find. In the bi- 

 laterally symmetrical Pennatulacea, however, vari- 

 ability in these features is greatly reduced, and definite 

 species are more clearly disclosed. 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, January 10.— M. Camille Jordan 

 in the chair. — Gaston Darboux : An extension of Ponce- 

 let's theorems relating to polygons inscribed in, or 

 circumscribed about, conies. — G. Bigourdan : The 

 manuscripts of the works of Jean de Ligni^res. A 



NO- 2413, VOL. 96] 



continuation of a catalogue commenced in an earlier 

 communication, including MSS. at Erfurt, Florence, 

 London, Melk, Milan, Munich, Oxford, Padua, Paris, 

 Prague, and Rome.— G. Humbert : The convergents of 

 Hermite.— D. Eginitis : Observations of Mellish's 

 comet (19 150) made at the Athens Observatory with 

 the Doridis equatorial (Gautier 40 cm.) Positions 

 given for September 17 and 18, November 13, 15, r6, 

 and 17.— G. A. Le Roy : The preservation of solutions 

 =^f sodium aluminate by cold. At ordinary tempera- 

 tures solutions of sodium aluminate are unstable, de- 

 positing alumina. At a temperature of — 1° C. to 

 — 2° C. no change in composition was found after one 

 month. — MM. Russo and Tussau : Geological journeys 

 through Central Morocco.— Alfred Angot : Value of the 

 magnetic elements at the Observatory of Val-Joyeux 

 on January i, 1916.— O. Lignier and Adr. Toison : 

 Ephedra possessing a closed ovary and an included 

 ovule. — M. Pontio : The analysis of textiles. A modi- 

 fication of the V^tillard method of microscopical exam- 

 ination.— Robert Levy : The toxins of Epeira and 

 Tegenaria.— E. Gley and Alf. Quinquaud : The rela- 

 tions between the secretion of the suprarenals and the 

 vasomotor function of the splanchnic nerve. Contrary 

 to the generally accepted view, from the experiments 

 described it would appear that the stimulation of the 

 splanchnic vasomotor arises from a neuro-muscular 

 action and does not produce its effect by the inter- 

 mediary of the adrenalin secretion. — M. Cazin and 

 Mile. S. Krongold : The methodical use of antiseptics 

 based on the bacteriological examination of the pus 

 in the treatment of septic wounds. Regular bacterio- 

 logical examination of the pus is necessary, with 

 corresponding change in the antiseptic solution, for the 

 successful treatment of infected wounds. Wounds con- 

 taining the pyocyanic bacillus, or in which staphylo- 

 cocci predominate, are best treated with a i in 200,000 

 silver nitrate solution. Gangrenous wounds contain- 

 ing Bacillus perfringens or the septic vibrion are best 

 treated with weak solutions of sodium hypochlorite. 

 In very weak solutions its prolonged use does not 

 cause irritation, and the bactericidal power is not 

 greatly affected by high dilution. Tlie serum of 

 Leclainche and Valine can be used with advantage 

 when streptococci are present. — MM. Santamaria and 

 Salonne : Apparatus for the reduction of simple or 

 compound fractures of the eight segments of the limbs. 

 — E. Vasticar : The terminations of the acoustic nerve. 

 M. Delphy : A remarkable deformation of the mouth 

 of a specimen of Trigla gurnardus. 



BOOKS RECEIVED. 



Board of Agriculture and Fisheries. Fishery Inves- 

 tigations. Series ii. : Sea Fisheries. Vol. ii.. No. 2, 

 pp. 79. Vol. ii., No. 4, pp. 18 + 8 plates. Vol. ii.. 

 No. 5, pp. 34. (London : H.M.S.O. : Wyman and 

 Sons, Ltd.) 55., 4s., and is. respectively. 



An Elementary Manual of Radiotelegraphy and 

 Radiotelephony for Students and Operators. By Prof. 

 J. A. Fleming. Third edition. Pp. xiv4-36o. (Lon- 

 don : Longmans and Co.) 75. 6d. net. 



Neolithic Dew-Ponds and Cattleways. By Dr. A. J. 

 Hubbard and G. Hubbard. Third edition. Pp. xxiv + 

 116. (London : Longmans and Co.) 45. 6d. net. 



Water Purification Plants and their Operation. By 

 M. F. Stein. Pp. viii + 258. (New York: J. Wiley 

 and Sons, Inc. ; London : Chapman and Hall, Ltd.) 

 los. 6d. net. 



Annuaire pour I'an 19 16 publie par le Bureau des 

 Longitudes. Pp. vi + 502. (Paris : Gauthier-Villars et 

 Cie.) 1.50 francs. 



A Concordance to the Poems of Edmund Spenser. 

 Compiled and edited by Prof. C. G. Osgood. Pp. 

 xiii + 997. (Washington: Carnegie Institution.) 



