July 8, 1920] 



NATURE 



591 



research fellow of Sydney University, has been ap- 

 p>ointed chief. He will be assisted by Miss K. M. Curtis 

 as mycologist and Mr. A. Philpott as assistant entomo- 

 logist. We understand that members of the scientific 

 staff of the institute will have full freedom as to 

 research and publication. 



A Committee, composed of the following members, 

 has been appointed by the Ministry of Health to con- 

 sider and report on the legislative and administrative 

 measures necessary to secure adequate protection for 

 the health of the people in connection with the 

 slaughter of animals and the distribution of meat for 

 human consumption in England and Wales : — Sir 

 H. C. Monro (chairman), Mr. W. G. R. Boys, Mr. 

 R. B. Cross, Mr. J. Edwards, Dr. W. J. Howarth, 

 Dr. A. W. J. MacFadden, Mr. T. Masheter, Mr. 

 .A. W. Monro, Mr. T. Parker, Mr. R. J. Robinson, 

 and Mr. P. Taylor. Mr. H. F. O. Jerram is the 

 secretary of the Committee, and communications 

 should be addressed to him at the Ministry of Health, 

 Whitehall, S.W.I. 



It was stated by Mr. Bonar Law in- the House of 

 Commons on Monday last, with reference to the 

 question of scientific war inventions, that the Lord 

 President of the Council is about to appoint an 

 inter- Departmental Committee with the following 

 terms of reference :— (i) To consider the methods of 

 dealing with inventions made by workers aided or 

 maintained from public funds, whether such workers 

 be engaged (a) as research workers or (b) in some 

 other technical capacity, so as to give a fair reward 

 to the inventor and thus encourage further effort, to 

 secure the utilisation in industry of suitable inven- 

 tions, and to protect the national interest; and (2) to 

 outline a course of procedure in respect of inventions 

 arising out of State-aided or supported work, which 

 shall further these aims and be suitable for adoption 

 by all Government Departments concerned. 



A SPECIAL meeting- of the Rontgen Society is to be 

 held at University College, Gower Street, at 9 o'clock 

 on Thursday evening, July 15, when an address will 

 be delivered by Dr. W. D. Coolidge, of the Research 

 Laboratories of the General Electric Co., Schenectady, 

 New York. An invitation to the meeting is given to 

 the members of other scientific and medical societies. 



A FREE public lecture on "Oil Storage, Transport, 

 and Distribution " is to be delivered by Mr. H. 

 Barringer at 6 o'clock on July 14 in the Canada 

 Building, Crystal Palace, under the auspices of the 

 Institution of Petroleum Technologists. The institu- 

 tion has also arranged for the delivery of four lec- 

 tures, as follow, in September, the actual dates for 

 which will be announced later: "Oil Prospecting," 

 Mr. G. Howell; "Petroleum Refining," Dr. A. E. 

 Dunstan; "Utilisation of Volatile Oils," Dr. W. R. 

 Ormanby, and "Utilisation of Heavy Oils," Prof. 

 J. S. S. Brame. 



The annual Oxford Ophthalmological Congress will 

 take place in the Department of Human Anatomy in 

 the University Museum, Oxford, on July 15 and 16. 

 Among the promised com^nunications are the follow- 

 ing : The Doyne memorial lecture, by F. R. Cross, 

 NO. 2645, VOL. 105] 



on "The Nerve Paths and Centres concerned with 

 Sight": A. S. Percival, "Light Sense"; Dr. Van 

 der Hoeve, " Eye Symptoms in Tuberose Sclerosis of 

 the Brain " ; Dr. L. C. Peter and others, " Perimetric 

 Methods"; M. Barton, "Examination of the Eyes 

 of Pit Ponies, particularly with reference to Miners' 

 Nystagmus"; A. H. Thompson, "Physiological and 

 Glaucoma Cups"; R. D. Batten, "Premonitory 

 Symptoms of Glaucoma " ; and Dr. L. Sambon, 

 "Ancient Eye Instruments." 



The Research Association for the Silk Industry has 

 been approved by the Department of Scientific and 

 Industrial Research as complying with the conditions 

 laid down in the Government scheme for the en- 

 couragement of industrial research. The secretary of 

 the committee engaged in the establishment of this 

 association is Mr. A. B. Ball, the Silk Association 

 of Great Britain and Ireland, Kingsway House, 

 Kingsway, W.C.2. 



The jubilee of the American Fisheries Society 

 will be celebrated at Ottawa on September 20-22 

 next. In connection with the meeting prizes will 

 be offered for papers on the following subjects : 

 Advance in practical fish cultural work ; biological 

 work connected with fish problems in general ; and the 

 solution of problems affecting commercial fisheries 

 work. The competitive essays should be received by, 

 at latest, August 20. Further information can be 

 obtained from the executive secretary, Prof. R. C. 

 Osburn, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio. 



A PROPOSAL is on foot by the Swedish Linnean 

 Society to restore the old botanic garden at 

 Upsala, together with the house in it, the former 

 residence of Carl von Linn^, and subscriptions towards 

 this object are solicited. Particulars of the suggested 

 memorial can be obtained from the General Secretary 

 of the Linnean Society of London, Burlington House, 

 W.I, and donations sent to him or direct to the 

 Swedish Linnean Society at Upsala. 



Architects, timber merchants, firms engaged in 

 the building and furniture trades, railway companies, 

 and, in fact, all users and consumers of wood, paper, and 

 other forest products, should visit the British Empire 

 Timber Exhibition, which is open to the public at the 

 Holland Park Skating Rink, London, until July 17. 

 Tlie exhibition has been organised to display the forest 

 wealth of the British Empire. Before the war the 

 greater part of the immense importations of timber 

 into the United Kingdom, some 10,000,000 tons 

 annually, came from foreign countries, and many of 

 these were closed during the war. This necessitated 

 a considerable development of the sources of supply 

 within the Empire and a greater demand on our 

 home forests. The main object of the exhibition is 

 a patriotic one, namely, to show that our timber 

 requirements can be met in great measure from our 

 Dominions and Colonies, thus extending Imperial 

 trade. The specimens of timber include very many 

 beautiful, valuable, and useful woods, of which only 

 a few may be mentioned as examples, such as rose- 

 wood, satinwood, mahogany and its various sub- 

 stitutes, teak, greenheart, jarrah, ironwood, and the 



