584 



NATURE 



[August 17, 1893 



Thornton Charles Lamb, Edward Arnold Medley, William 

 Henry Oates, William Gannon, Frederick J. Smale, Samuel 

 Henry Barraclough, David Hamilton Jackson, Edward Taylor 

 Jones, James Bernard Allen. The list of science scholars of 

 1893 is as follows : — Herbert William Bolam, George Edwin 

 Allan, James Wallace Walker, Arthur Lapworth, John Ellis 

 Myers, Arthur Walsh Titherley, Edward Chester Cyril Baly, 

 John Cannell Cain, Ella Mary Bryant, James Darnell Granger, 

 Mary O'Brien, Frederick George Donnan, James Alexander 

 MacPhail, Norman Ross Carmichael, Wm. Henry Ledger, 

 George Wm. Macdonald. The institutions to be invited to 

 nominate science scholars for 1894 are : — the University of Edin- 

 burgh, the University of Glasgow, the Univeisity of Aberdeen, 

 Mason College, Birmingham, University College, Bristol, 

 Yorkshire College, Leeds, University College, Liverpool, 

 University College, London, Owens College, Manchester, 

 Durham College of Science, Newcastle, University College, 

 Nottingham, Firth College, Sheffield, University College of 

 South Wales, Cardiff, Queen's College, Cork, Queen's College, 

 Galway, the University of Toronto, Dalhousie University, 

 Halifax, Nova Scotia, the University of .Adelaide, and the 

 University of New Zealand. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, August 7. — M. Loewyin the chair. — 

 On the periodic maxima of spectra, by M. Aymonet. — 

 On the heat spectrum of fluorine, by M. E. Carvallo. A 

 comparison between the results obtained by the author and 

 simultaneously by Messrs. Rubens and Snow, of Berlin. In 

 those portions which are common to all three observers, the 

 agreement is perfect, although the results were arrived at by 

 very different methods. — On the absorption of light by liquid 

 bromine, by M. Chailes Camichel. Liquid bromine absorbs 

 luminous rays very energetically, especially the most refrangible 

 ones. Thus, a thickness of bromine of a wavelength and a half 

 of D light exerts a considerable absorptive action upon the green 

 ray of thallium, and a layer of six times that thickness absorbs 

 the same radiation to such an extent that measurements become 

 difficult. A drop of bromine was introduced between two 

 pieces of glass constructed for observing Newton's rings. 

 These glasses were mounted in a screw frame resting upon the 

 carriage of a dividing engine, by means of which they could be 

 moved in front of one of the collimators of a Gouy spectro- 

 photometer. The thickness of the layer was measured by ob- 

 serving Newton's rings in monochromatic light. Two luminous 

 pencils proceeded from the same source, one traversing the 

 polarising collimator, the other the bromine glasses and then 

 the ordinary collimator. Two patches were thus produced, 

 which were equalised by the analyser when the bromine glasses 

 were full and empty respectively. It was found that the 

 absorption followed the exponential law between thicknesses of 

 o*5 and sixty times the principal wave length of sodium. — On the 

 origin of atmospheric oxygen, by Mr. T. L. Phipson. Various 

 plants, such as Poa, Trifolium, Antirrhinum, and Convolvulus 

 were placed under glass shades with their roots immersed in 

 water containing free carbonic acid and certain salts, shut off 

 from the light, and their upper portions exposed to a north 

 light in atmospheres of carbonic acid, hydrogen, and nitrogen 

 respectively. It was found that in carbonic .acid the plants 

 were able to live for some time, but did not prosper. In 

 hydrogen they fared better, but the gas gradually disappeared, 

 probably combining with the oxygen evolved by the plants. 

 Convolvulus throve very well in an atmosphere of "nitrogen, 

 especially if mixed with a third part of carbonic acid. After 

 several weeks the composition of the gas began to approach 

 that of our atmosphere, no change of volume having taken place. 

 The bearing of these facts upon the history of the earth's atmo- 

 sphere may prove important. — Of the isomorphism of anhydrous 

 alums, by M. T. Klobb.- — Influence of solar radiation upon 

 plants, by M. G. Landel. Variations of intensity of solar radia- 

 tion appear always to act in the same sense upon plants, as re- 

 gards the quantity of flowers and the proportion of red pigment 

 colouring the various parts. These variations differ much 

 according to the species. In some the red pigment is well de- 

 veloped in the shade, whilst others remain perfectly green. The 

 inflorescence in certain species does not seem to be sensibly 

 modified by shade ; in others the number of flowers is less. — 

 The young bulbs of the Dioscorea, by M. C. Queva. 



NO. 1242, VOL. 48] 



BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS RECEIVED. 



Books. — Mathcmatiques el Math^niaticiens ; Pensees et Curiositi-s deux 

 edition : A. Rebiere (Paris, Nony). — Solutions of the Exercises in Taylor's 

 Euclid, Books i to 4: W. W. Taylor (Cambridge University Pre>s).— A 

 Treatise on the Mathematical Theory of Elasticity, Vol. 2 : A. k. H. 

 Love (Cambridge University Press).— A History of tlie Theory of Elasticity 

 and of the Strength of Materials, V..|. 2, Parts i and 2 : the late 1. Tod 

 hunter, edited and completed by K. Pearson (Cambridge University Press). 

 —British Rainfall, 1802: G J. .Symons and H. S. Wa Us (Stanford).— Birds 

 in a Village : W. H. Hudson (Chapman and Hall).— Pocket-book ol Useful 

 Formula: and Memoranda for Civil and Mechanical Engineers, 23rd editijn : 

 Sir G_. L. Molesworth and R. B. Mulesworth (Spon) — Report of the Fourth 

 Meeting of the Australasian Association, held at H' bart in January, i8g2 

 (Sydney).— Royal University, Ireland, Examination Papers, 1892 (Dublin, 

 Thorn).— GrifHn's Electrical Engineer's Price Book : H. J. Dow sing (Griffin). 

 — Les Turbines : G. Lavergne (Paris, Gauthier-Villars).— Fourth Report of 

 the Department of Science and Art (Eyre and Spottiswoode).— Electric 

 Lighting and Power Distributi m : W. P. Maycock, Parts 2 and 3 (Whit- 

 taker). — Geology, an Elementary Hand-book ; A. J. Jukes-Browne (Whit- 

 taker). — Electricity and Magnetism ; S. R. Bottone (Whittaker). 



Pamphlets.— U.S. Department of .\griculiure, Report of the Chief of 

 the Weather Bureau for 1892 : M. W. Harrington (Washington). — Catalogs 

 of the Crabs of the Family Maiida: in the U S. National Museum : M. J. 

 Rathbun (Washington).- The Planet Venus : E. M. Clerke (Witherby).— 

 Notes on the Trunk Skeleton of a Hybrid Grouse : R. W. Shufeldt.- Re- 

 port upon the Scott-Moncrieff System for the Bacteriological Purification of 

 Sewage : A. C. Houston (Waterlow). — On the Distortion of Photographic 

 Star Images due to Refraction: Prof. Rambaut (Dublin).— A Preliminary 

 Report on the Aquatic Invertebrate Fauna of the Yellow>tone Natural 

 Park, &c., &c. : S. A. Forbes (Washington).- Notes on a Few Fossil Plants 

 from the Fort Union Group of Montana: F. H. Knowhon (WashingtonX 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



Old and New Astronomy. By A. T 361 



Earthquakes 363 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Hayes : " The Points of the Horse."— W. F. G. . . 364 

 Letters to the Editor : — 



Quaternions and Vector Analysis. — Prof. J. Willard 



Gibbs ... 364 



On Secular Variations of our Rainfall. ( IVilh 



Diagram.') — A. B. M 36^ 



The Non-Inheritance of Acquired Characters.- Dr. 



C. Herbert Hurst 368 



Echinocyamus pusillus. — E. W. MacBride ; The 



Writer of the Notice 369 



The .Supposed Suicide of Rattlesnakes — Prof. E. 



Ray Lankester, F.R S 369 



Imitation or "Instinct" by a Male Thrush?- E. 



Boscher 369 



Intrusive Masses of Boulder Clay. — Percy F. 



Kendall 370 



A Peculiar Discharge of Lightning. — William Brew 370 

 The Mean Density of the Earth.— Prof. J. H. 



Poynting, F.R.S 370 



The Grouping of Stars into Constellations. — M. A. B. 370 

 Numerous Insects Washed up by the Sea. — Sophie 



Kropotkin 370 



A Substitute for Ampere's Swimmer. — Hannah 



Adler 370 



A Correction. — Henry O. Forbes 370 



The Astronomical History of On and Thebes. II. 



By J. Norman Lockyer, F.R.S 371 



Apparatus Illustrating Michelson's Method of Ob- 

 taining Interference Bands. {With Diagrams.) By 



Edwin Edser . . 37* 



The August Meteors, i?93. By W. F. Denning . 374 

 Cholera and Articles of Diet By Mrs.PercyFrankland 375 



Notes . . 375 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



The Origin of New Stars 379 



The Spectrum of the Rordame-Qu^nisset Comet . . . 379 j 

 Atmopheric Refraction and Star Photographs . . . 379 i 



Astronomy Popularised ... 3S0 



Comet Appearances in the Year 1892 3^° 



Geographical Notes .380 



Charpentier's Experiments Demonstrative of an 

 Oscillatory Process in the Organ of Vision and of 

 its Dimensions. {With Diagram.) By A. D. W. . 380 



The Position of Scientific Experts 381 



Science Classes in Connection with the London 



County Council 383 



University and Educational Intelligence 383 



Societies and Academies 384 



Books and Pamphlets Received 384 



