March 13, 19 19] 



NATURE 



37 



Livingston, of the Johns Hopkins University, "Some 

 Responsibihties of Botanical Science"; Section H 

 Prof. E. L. Thorndike, "Scientific Personnel Work in 

 the United States Army"; Section L, Prof. E. F. 

 Buchner, of the Johns Hopkins University, " Scientific 

 Contributions of the Educational Survey'"; and Sec- 

 tion M, Prof. H. J. Waters, of the 'University of 

 Kansas, 'The Farmers' Gain from the War" (Prof. 

 Waters was unable to be present, and the address was 

 not read). 



The effect of the meeting on those who attended 

 was inspiring, and the emphasis which the war has 

 placed upon the value of scientific investigation was 

 trongly shown throughout the whole list of papers. 



The council arranged for a permanent committee on 

 -rants, to consist of nine members, of which Prof. 

 Henry Crew was made chairman, and Prof. Joel 

 Stebbins secretary, both of the University of Illinois. 

 The council, through its committee on policy, also 

 proposed at the general session a complete revision of 

 the constitution of the association, which reorganises 

 and simplifies the work of the association to a ven,' 

 great degree. The full revision will be published in 

 the journal Science, and acted upon at the next 

 meeting of the association. 



.\t the meeting of the general committee Dr. Simon 

 Flexner, of the Rockefeller Institute for Medical 

 Research, was made president of the association for 

 the coming year, and St. Louis was chosen as the 

 meeting place, the next meeting to begin on Decem- 

 ber 29 next. The following officers were also elected : 

 — Vice-presidents (chairmen of sections) : Section B, 

 Prof. Theodore Lj-man, of Harvard University; Sec- 

 tion C, Prof. B. F. Lovelace, of the Johns Hopkins 

 University; Section E, Prof. C. K. Leith, of the 

 University of Wisconsin ; Section F, Prof. William 

 M. Wheeler, of Harvard Oniversity ; Section G, Prof. 

 L. H. Pammel, of the Iowa State College; Sec- 

 tion H, Prof. R. M. Yerkes, of the University of 

 Minnesota; Section L, Prof. V. A. C. Henmori, of 

 f the L^niversity of Wisconsin; and Section M, Dr. 

 A. F. Woods, president of the Maryland Agricultural 

 College. Elections of vice-presidents of Sections A, 

 D, I, and K were postponed to the spring meeting of 

 the council. 



Dr. George T. Moore, director of the Missouri 

 Botanical Garden, was elected general secretary, and 

 Prof. James F. Abbott, of Washington University, was 

 elected secretary of the council. ' 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 'INTELLIGENCE. 

 Cambridge. — ^Sir J. J. Thomson has expressed his 

 desire to resign the Cavendish professorship of experi- 

 mental physics, and at the same time has generously 

 offered to continue his services in the promotion and 

 direction of research work in physics without stipend. 

 It is considered of such great importance for the 

 school of physics that Sir J. J. Thomson should con- 

 tinue to be associated With it as a professor that the 

 ndicate to which the question has been referred 

 ommends that a new professorship without stipend, 

 '" be called the professorship of physics, should be 

 -lablished for him. It is proposed that this professor- 

 sliii) should terminate with, his tenure of the office 

 unless the University should meanwhile determine 

 'itherwise. The Cavendish professorship of experi- 

 mental physics has accordingly been declared vacant, 

 atul the election of a professor will take place on 

 April 2. Candidates for the vacant professorship are 

 requested to communicate with the Vice-Chancellor, 

 and to send such evidence as the\- may desire to 

 submit to the electors on or before Wednesda\-, 

 March 26. 



NO. 2576, VOL. 103] 



The election to the professorship of mechanism 

 and applied mechanics will take place on March 28. 



Mr. R. A. Peters, of Gonville and Caius College, 

 has been appointed senior demonstrator of bio- 

 chemistry. 



Mr. A. J. Turner has been appointed to the chair 

 of textile technology in the College of Technology, 

 Manchester. Mr. Turner had a distinguished career 

 at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, and 

 during the latter part of 19 12 he was engaged in 

 research work in organic chemistry at Cambridge 

 under Sir William Pope. He later accepted an appoint- 

 ment upon the scientific staff of the National Physical 

 Laborator}', where he was chiefly engaged in research 

 work on fabrics and dopes for aeronautical purposes. 

 Following this he was appointed to the charge of the 

 fabrics laboratory- of the Royal Aircraft Establish- 

 ment. 



A STATEMENT for the year 1918 ais to the Rhodes 

 scholarships has just been issued. Only nine scholars 

 were in residence during the year. Of these four had 

 previously been on active service, two had been re- 

 jected for service on medical grounds, and three were 

 carrying on their medical studies with a view to 

 early qualification. There were also in residence in 

 the course of the past year fifteen holders of overseas 

 scholarships, granted by the Rhodes Trust and certain 

 other bodies. Of the fifty scholars elected for 19 17, 

 forty-six took military service, two were rejected on 

 medical grounds and accepted Government work 

 instead, and two have been otherv^-ise employed. The 

 election of scholars, postponed on account of the war, 

 will be resumed in October of the present year (19 19). 

 It is hoped that by that time the demobilisation of the 

 armies will be so far completed that intending candi- 

 dates who have taken military service will have an 

 opportunity to compete. It is proposed to fill up in 

 October of this year only the 19 18 and 1919 postponed 

 scholarships. During the years 1917 and 1918 the 

 organising secretary of the Trust, Dr. G. R. Parkin, 

 visited most of the States of the American Union and 

 the provinces of Canada, and made an exhaustive 

 study, in consultation with university and college 

 authorities, of the operation in those countries of the 

 system pursued in the selection of scholars since the 

 foundation of the Trust. As a result of this investiga- 

 tion certain changes in the methods of selection have 

 been under consideration, .\mong other changes it 

 has been decided that candidates in the United States 

 who are otherwise eligible shall no longer be required 

 to pass a qualifying examination, but shall be selected, 

 with due reference to the suggestions of Mr. Rhodes, 

 on the basis of their university or college standing, 

 subject to any further test which the committees of 

 selection may, in their discretion, impose. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 London. 

 Royal Society, February 27.— Sir J. J. Thomson, 

 president, in the chair.— Hon. R. J. Strutt : Scatter- 

 ing of light by solid substances. Glasses of all kind> 

 show a strong internal scattering of light. The beam 

 viewed laterally is strongly, but not completely, 

 polarised. Yellow and smoky quartz also show a 

 strong scattering. One specimen gave a polarisation 

 so nearly complete that an analysis set for minimum 

 intensity transmitted only 07 of i per cent, of the 

 scattered light. If a polarised beam is passed along 

 the axis of such a quartz crystal, there are for a given 

 wave-length maxima and minima of scattered light 

 along the length of the beam. This is due to the 



