.64 



NATURE 



fjvi.v II, 1895 



presence ol' moi.-iure. ami arc n.) iluubl of voliaic orison. (S) 

 Perfectly dry Se is below )>latinum in the thermo-electric series. 

 IVof. Minchin (communicateill suggested that the selenium 

 ••cell"" should be called a selenium •'resistance. A gnd 

 ha\-ing one terminal made of aluminium and the other of copper, 

 mii;ht form a true cell, and might generate an E.M.F. when 

 light fell on it. He (Prof. Minchin ( would like to know if the 

 author had tried any such cell in which light simply and solely 

 generate.1 an E.M.K. He could not .igree that chemical action 

 must necessarily follow the action of light in a cell. tor. take ; 

 the case of the .Mdest photo-electric cell— the thermopile— what 

 chemical action can we show here for all the energ>- of the 

 inoident heat. Chemical action due to light may, or may not, 

 .jccur ac-or.ling to the nature of the cell. Mr. Applej-ard 

 asketl whether the author had submitted these selenium resist- | 

 ances to the action of electric oscillations. Prof. Mmchin s ; 

 •'impulsion" cells were greatly influenced by electric o.scilla- , 

 lions. The great variation in the resistance with time ol 

 the authors cells pointe<l rather to an eflecl of contact between I 

 the selenium and the electrwles. than to an elementary change 

 in the structure or composition. He (Mr. Appleyartl) had 

 recently tried to crjstallise a siiiiersaturaied solution of sodium 

 sulphate by electric oscillations, as well as by direct si>arks. an. 

 by currents of several amperes, but no crystals could l>e induced 

 to form. Change of contact, rather than change of structure, 

 appeared to him to l)e the most promising direction m which to 

 look for an adequate theory of selenium resistances. Prof. 

 Ramsey said the quantity of Se litwrated in the eleclro- 

 Ktic e\iieriment was much too great to he. accounte<l for by 

 oNvgen dissolve.! in the water. The study of Se was verj- 

 interesting, for this substance was on the borderiand between 

 those l»Klics in which the electric conduction was met.-illic, and 

 those in which it was known to Iw electrolytic. The author, in 

 his reply, saitl he agreed that the name "selenium cell was not 

 an appropriate one. He had n.n trie«l the effect of electric 

 .■scillations.— The Society then adjourned till the autumn. 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, Fulv i. — M. Marey in the chair.— 

 The Prc-ident announced the decease of Prof. Huxley, Corrc- 

 spondant of the .\natomy and Zoology Section.— On photographs 

 of the moon and new.jbjects discovere.l by means of them, by .M.M. 

 I^ewy and Puiseux.— (Jn an extensive cla.ss of linear partial 

 .lifferential cjuations, of which all the integrals are an.ilytical, 

 by M. Emile I'icard.— Laws of extinction of a simple wave on 

 the high seas, by M. 1. Houssinesq. The coefficient of exlmc- 

 •: — (with the dLstancc) of a simple wave is inversely proiior- , 

 I 10 the fifth (lower of its. lemii)eri<Kl T.— On the estimation j 

 ■ iiiule quantities of arsenic, by .M. .\d. Carnot. The arsenic I 

 IS sciarate.l in the usual manner as sulphide, this is ..issolved , 

 in free ammonia an.l treated with silver nitrate and liydrogen 

 l«roxide. The solution is then precipitated by bismuth nitrate, 

 followed by ammonia, the accom|mnying bismuth hydrate is .lis- ] 

 vjlved out by nitric acid ( ,'. nitric acid of sp. gr. 1-33), and, 

 linally, the bismuth arsenate is >lrieil|at 1 10 .in.l weighed.— 

 Truffles (Terfislfrom Mor.icco and Sar.linia. by M. .\d. Chalin. 

 —Comparison of the healing .if the muscles in the cases ..f iwsi- 

 livc an.l negative work, by -M. A. Chauveau. During nega- 

 tive work, descent or lowering, the temperature ..f the muscles 

 conccme.1 was rai.se<l to a notably less degree than .luring corre- 

 sponding prsitive work, .iscent or raising. -Conlributum t.) the 

 study of arable soil. (Quantities .)f .air and water contained in 

 cI.hIs of earth, by M. V. 1'. Deherain.— On the products of 

 ..xidalion of lienzylidcnccamphfir and Ixn/ylcamph.ir. ■^'•f"' 

 sate <jr nitronitritc of lK'n/.yli.lenecamph.)r, by M. .\. llaller.— 

 \ new instrument (tache.)graph) serving to survey an.l trace 

 .lircctly from the earth's surface, by M. Schrader. -On curves 

 \ , surface, of which the osculating sphere is tangential 

 ml to the surface, by M. K. .Cosserat.— On linear 

 i>L, derive.1 larlials, by M. Ktienne DeKssus.— On 

 the .f or.linary .lifferenlial equations, by.M. .yf- 



(lul,, he propagati.Mi of sound in a cylindrical tube, 



by M.M. J. \iolle ami Th. Vautier.— On the apimrent attrac- 

 tions an.l repulsions of electrified con.lucL.rs in a .lielc-ctric 

 llui.l, by M. ilouy. The ap|)arent forces exercise.l lielwcen 

 I ..mluclors wilh given charges in a liquid dielectric result: (I) 

 from their mum .1 .i!i.u tn.ns and repulsions, the same a.s in a 

 vacuum ; (2) b Irostatic pressiure iir.idured by the 



force which attr.. trie in the sense where the intensity 



of Ihe field increa.»e.^ iiiu,l rapidly. — New method of measure- 

 ment of electric capacilies Icised .jn the sensitiveness of the skin, 



by M H Bordier.— On the solubility of superfused liquids. In 

 M. Louis Kruner. The author finds that superfused sodium 

 thiosulphate is much more soluble in alc.ihol than the corres- 

 ponding solid compound.— On the specific heat of superfused 

 salts, by M. Louis Kruner. The curve of specific heats at 

 diflferenl temperatures for sodium thiosulphate shows a maximum 

 near the point of fusion, 48' C— On iiaratungstic aci.l. l>y -M. 

 L \. Hallopeau.— On the estimation of alumina in phosphates, 

 by M. Henri Lxsne. -V method of precipitation of pure 

 aluminium phosphate is described, which avoids the complica- 

 tions introduced by the use of molybdate or citrate in estimating 

 alumina. The precipitation is accomplished by the use or 

 ammonium thiosulphate.— On sodammonium, by .M. .le 

 Forcrand. A thermo-chemical sludy.-On the phosphoric 

 esters of allyl alc0h.1l. allylphosph.iric acid, by M. 1. tavaliev. 

 — rreparati.m and con.Uictibility a{ new methyl alkylcyan- 

 acetates. by M. I. Guinchant.— \'erificalion of Ischeimak s aw 

 relative to plagioclases, and a new process .)f orieiitation and ol 

 diagnosis ,if felspars in thin plates, by M. A. Michel-Levy. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



liooKS.-.Ma.ricuUtion Directory. No. xviii June, >«"?('• "'^'••3-V'>"Vh: 



Came Birds Vol. 1 : W- R- Ogilvie-t.ranl (.\llen).-M's^o"r' •ot--.n"^-il 

 . aSen Six h .\nnual Rcpo.t (Sr l.ouis Mo.).-Iowa Geo log.cal ;,..rvey. 

 Vol - -nd \nnual Report. 1803 (U<--s Moines). -.\nAnalysi> of .Ulro- 

 ,«S«icarMotion: Pr. I?, l^ra.t (Norman).--Repor. of .he ln'"na.K,na 

 M^eoroloKical Congress held a. Chic.-.fio. 111.. -^"8"*. ;=.-=4. .89 • •• "J 

 (Washington).-lce-Hound on K..lguev : .\. Trevor- Bat. ye (Con,...bM 

 Wild Fneland of To-day: C. I. Cornish (Seclcy).— 1 h rlcenlh -Wnn-^l 

 ReporroT.he Fishei^Boid for Gotland. P.-.r. .. General Repo.. (Ed.n- 



''"p;''MVHLb;Ts.-Report on ihe Loss of Cold in the Reduction of .\nriferou4 

 Vei.t..o."eti. Victoria : H. Ros.-,les {.Melbour,ie).-Royal Gardens. Ke«;, 

 Hand-hs' of Herbaceous PI.-.n,s(K>Te). -Great Ea^.ern Raihv.ay Company s 

 Tourisi Guide to the Continen. (JO Kleet .s.treet). ^ .. .^ M.Bxiine 



Serials -Geologic.il Mag.T7ine. July (Dul.au).— bcrilmer s .M.igazine, 

 Ju^^ (Uw).-:jahrbuch der K.K. . iologischen Re,chs.^ns>aU Jahr„ng 

 ■^S,^. V iv. Band, 2. 3, and 4 Hef. (\Vien).-I..\n.hropolog.e, T'^" ^ •^•'- -j. 

 (Pii s).-Science Progress, July (Sc.ennhc P'?^*; '• ^.-'r-i^r'f"/'"*' "] 

 .he Bath Xatur.al Hislorv- and .\nt14uar1an tleld Llub, Vol- 8, >''■ 2 

 H^.h - WsSf s"i..ish Nalural H.slory, July (KJ'nburgh. l.ouglas).- 

 Journal of .he Sani.ary bis.i.u.e, J.;ly (^'- V'~i?'Tr'; .'"c.ions if .hi 

 (Herlin).-Blackw«odsM.-.g.-uine. Ju'V <P-'^^^»».°?>-7.^™ ^'I'S-^d , ,,' 

 Leicester Li.erarv- and Philosophical Society, -^P"' < ';^\''-f V^'ATr,^,'- "'^ 

 (\ViUi.-u..s).-l!otinische Jahrbacher, Zwanz.gster Band, 5 Heft (l-eipng). 



I 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



The Teaching of Pathology. By Dr. A. A. Kanthack 241 



The Natural History of Aquatic Insects 4- 



Our Book Shelf:— 



••The Uoyal Natural History . . . .. ; .- • • • -^- 



Brunhes : •• Ciurs Klementaire d'tlectncite . . . . -4j 



Browne : " Off the Mill : Some Occa-sional Papers . ::4j 

 Letters to the Editor:— . • , 



\ Cyclonic Indraught at the Top of an Anticyclone. 



(//VMZJw^T.t'/'.l-H. Helm Clayton -4j 



Kffects of a 1 jghtning Klash in Hen Nevis ( )bserv;ilory. 



William S. Bruce . . . . • • ■ • • •_•_•„■ ;■*'' 



The Kinetic Theory of (..scs.-G. H. Bryan, F.R^. 244 

 Vn .\bnormal Rose. Newnham Browne: W. 



Bolting Hemsley.F.R.S.. . . -4-J 



Mincralisc^l Diatoms. W. H. Shrubsole . . .!45 



Sir John Lubbock and the Teaching University for ^^^ 



Th^e°Eleclricai Measurement of Starlight^ (///">■ 



/r,,/,,/) liv Prof. George M. Minchin. F.R.S. . . -4'' 



Funeral of Professor Huxley -■^• 



Notes 



Our Astronomical Column: — 



Short-1'erio.l Variable Stars . . . O- 



The Nice Obscrvalory . . "^ 



K..ucault's Pendulum Kxperiment ... . • • ■ • • i 

 The Sun's Place in Nature. VHI (////»//-.»/.•"'•) ») 



I Norman Lockycr, C.B., F.RS. . . . . - ■ .^ ^53 

 The Fluorescence of Argon, and its Combination 



with the Elements of Benzene . • • • • ^.J> 



The Reform of our Weights and Measures .... 250 



Science in the Magazines .••,','■ ;•„'„' 



The Relation of Biology to Geological Investiga- 



lion. P.y Charles A. White ^5» 



Scientific Serials • • • • •,•,■,• ; /, ^62 



Societies and Academics. (Il/ustralol.) 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received -M 



NO. 134'. VOL. 52] 



