55^ 



NAl URh 



[Al'KIL 4, 1895 



that the subject of seasonal ilimorphism, which had been first 

 investigatfd systematically by Weismann, wa'; receiving so 

 much aiteniion in this country. He was of opinion that the 

 result? hitherto arrived at were quite in harmony with Weis- 

 mann's theory of reversion to the glacial form, and all the evi- 

 dence recently accumulated by the excellent observations of Mr. 

 Merrifi' Id and others went to confirm this view as opposed to 

 that of the direct action of temperature as a modifying influence. 



Mathematical Society, March 14. — Major P. A. Mac- 

 Mahon, R.A., F.R.S., President, in the chair. — The President 

 announced that he had written letters of condolence to Lady 

 Cockle and Mrs. Cayley, and had received their acknowledg- 

 ments of receipt of the same, which he communicated to the 

 meeting. — Prof. Hill, F.R.S., communicated a paper, by Mr. F. 

 H. Jackson, entitled "Certain n Functions," and the President 

 (Mr. \. B. Kempe, F.R.S., in the chair) read a paper on the 

 perpetuant invariants of binary quantics. — Lieut. -Col. Allan 

 Cunningham, R.E., gave a proof lh.al 2'''"-l is divisible by 

 7487. — The President read a letter from the Rev. T. C. 

 Simmons, announcing what the writer believed to be a "new 

 theorem in Probability." 



Paris. 



Academy of Sciences, March 



■ M. Marey in the 



chair. — On the theory of surfaces and of algebraical groups, by 

 M. Emile Pic.ird. — New researches by Prof. Ramsay on argon 

 and on Helium, communicated by M. Berthelot. A letter from 

 Prof. Ramsay was read describing the spectrum of argon ob- 

 tained from cleveite and the discovery of Helium. — Remarks on 

 the spectra of argon and of the aurora horealis, by M. 

 Berthelot. During the author's recent experiments on the con- 

 densation of argon with benz-ne vapour under the influence of 

 the silent di-chatgc, a magnificent greenish-yelliiw fluorescence 

 was observed. Its spectrum consisted of a series of lines and 

 remark,ible bands. So far as the experimental conditions 

 allowed of comparison, this spectrum recalled that of the 

 aurora borealis. It is suggested that thii phenomenon may 

 possibly be due to the formation of some fluorescent combination 

 of argon in the upper regions of the atmosphere under electrical 

 influence. — Researches on the metals of Cerite, by M. P. 

 Schiltzenberger. The preparation of cerium sulphate in a state 

 of such purity as to admit of accurate determinations ol the 

 atomic weight of cerium is described. The value 13945 '* °''' 

 tained for this constant by a special process of estimating the 

 sulphuric acid in this sulphate. It is shown that other methods 

 of obtaining the atomic weight give unreliable results. Taking 

 various fractions of the sulphate on recrystalli^ation, the later 

 fractions give a much less value for the atomic weight of 

 cerium than the earlier ones. — Observations "f Charloi'^' 

 planet BU, made at Toulouse observatorv, by MM. H. Bail- 

 land and Rossard. ^Observations of \V.)lfs planet BT (March 

 16, 1895), made at Uesanijon observatory, by M. H. Peit — A 

 gen'ral property of axoids, by M. A. Mannheim. — On lines of 

 curvature, by M. Thomas Craig. — On ttie theory of equations 

 to'the deiived parlials, by M. Wladimir de Tannenberg. — On 

 linear equations to the derived parlials, by M. Kmile Borel. — 

 On the movimcnt of pmjectilei in the air, by M. Clupel. A 

 scries of four equaticmsare given which supply a complete solu- 

 tion to the ballistic problem for speeds ranging between 300 in. 

 and I loom. — On the extension to magnesia of a method of 

 syn'hesising fluorides and silicates, by M. A. Duhoin. The 

 compounds MgKj. KF, ,MgF2. 2KF, and MgO . K5O. 3SiO„ 

 are described and their optical and chemical properties given. — 

 On a new method for the preparation of chlornplatinuus acid 

 and its sails, by M. Leon Pigeon. Reduction of chloro- 

 plalinic acid in accordance with the equation, 



BaPiCle + BaS,0„ -H H\^0 - lI.PlCI, -I- 2HCI -4- 2 BaSO^, 



is employed. Following the method given in detail, the yield 

 i» almost theoretical — Heat of formation of calcium aceiyUde, by 

 M. dc Forcrand. The heat c,f formation of .sulid CjCa Irom 

 diamond and «olid Ca is — 7'25(Jal,, substituting am rijhous 

 carbon it is -0'6s Cal., for gascms carbon it is +76 95 Cil. 

 — Action of oriho-amidobrnz ic acid on ben^nquinone, by MM. 

 ]. Ville and Ch A»lic. — Alterations in saccharine matters 

 during 'he ccminalion of barley, by M. P, Petit. The con- 

 clusions arc drawn : (1) There is a rcl.rlion between the quan- 

 Ii'ie« o( reducing sugars and of sacchato'te ex sling in barley 

 duiing its germintti'in. (2) The formition of siccharose com- 

 mences even during lhcdam|<ing, whereas icHuLin^ sugars re- 

 main nearly constant during the same period. (3) The variation 



NO. 1327, VOL. 51] 



of reducing power represents the activity of respiration, — 

 Chemical process for the purificalion of water, by MM. F. 

 Bordas and Ch. Girard. Calcium permanganate is employed 

 to oxidi-;e the organic matters, and the excess of this salt is re- 

 moved by treatment with lower oxides of manganese. The 

 treatment recommended removes organic matter also by physi- 

 cally precipita'ing it from the water, which, after treatment, 

 contains no micro-organisms, and very little calcium carbonate. 

 — » >n the wheat produced on a saliferous soil in Algeria, by 

 MM. Berthauli and Crochetelle, — On the abnormal fronds of 

 ferns by M. Ernest Olivier. — Origin and division of granular 

 nuclei in large sarcomatous cells, by MM. O Van der Stricht 

 and P. Walton. — A note, by M. Delaurier, concerning an easy 

 method of obtaining a perfect vacuum without mechanism, 

 deals with the production of a vacuum by absorption, as with 

 oxygen and iron at a red heat. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



Books.— Birds, Beasts, and Fishes of the Norfolk Broadland : P. H. 

 Emerson (Null). — Balisiiquc des Nouvelles Pnudres : K. Vallier (Paris. 

 Gauthier-Villars) — La Thtiorie dcs Proccdcs Photogmphiques : A. dc la 

 Baume PluvincI (P.iris, Gauthier-Villars).— La Oistillati.m : E. Sorel 

 (I'aris, Gauthier-Villars). — Dissections Illustrated: C. G Brodie, Part ^ 

 (Whittaker). — Methodisches Lchrbuch der Elementar ^L1thcmatik : Dr. G. 

 Holzmiillcr, Driticr Tcil (Leipzia:, Teubner). — A Primer of Evolution; E. 

 Clodd (Longmans). — Geometrical Conies; F. S. Macaulay (Cambridge 

 University Press). — Standard Diction.iry. Vol. 2 (Funk and Wagnalls). — 

 Outlines of Zoology : J. A. Thom-^on, 2nd edition (Pentland).— The Book 

 of the Dead. The Papyrus of Ani in the British Museum : Dr. E. A. W, 

 Budge (liriiish Museum). 



Pamphlets. - Report of the Meteorological Council to the Royal 

 Stcieiy for the Year ending March 31, 1S94 (Eyre and Spottiswoodc). — 

 Sionyhurst College observatory. Results of Meteorological .ind Majr* 

 netical Observations, 1894: Rev. W. Sidgrcaves (Clithcroc). — i8lh Kcpmt 

 of the State Eniomolopisi on the Noxious and Beneficial Insects of tlu 

 Slate of Illinois (Springfield, 1 II ). 



Serials— -CasseU's Magaaine, April (Cassell). — Chambers's Journal, 

 April (Chambrrs). — Century Magazine, April (Unwln)— Natural Science, 

 April (kail). — Zcitschrifi (iir Wissenschaftliche Zoologte. lix. Band. 1 Heft 

 (Leipzig. Engclniann). — Gazictta Chimica Italiann, 1895, Fa»c. 2(Rom.i).— 

 Humanitarian. April (Hutchinson). — Contemporary Review, Ap'il(Isbister). 

 — \ati inal Review. April (Arnold). — Fi rtiiighlly Review, April (Chapman). 

 Bulletin dc la Acad<imic Royale dcs Sciences, &c., de Belgique, tome 29, 

 No. 2 (Bruxelles). Geographical Journal, April'tStftiiford). —Journal of 

 the Royal Agricultural Society of England (third series), Vol. vi. Part 1 

 (Muriay). 



CONTENTS. p 



Verworn on General Physiology. l>y Dr. M. Foster, 



F.R.S 



Nernst's Theoretical Chemistry. By M. M. Patti- 



son Muir 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Il.iyward : "Bird Notes" • . . . . 



Gurncy : " Ca'alogue of the Birds of Prey {Acciptrcs 



and Strigei)" : • • 



Beazley : " Prince Henry the Navigator." — W. . . 

 Ziwet ; " An Elementary Treatise on Theoretical 



Mech.inics. " — G 



Letters to the Editor:— 



Dtstruclion of the Seismological Observatory at 



Tcikio, Japan. — Prof. John W. Judd, F.R.S. . 



On Mersenncr's Niimhers. — Lieut.-Colonel Allan 



Cunningham, R.E 



Tan-SpDis over Dugs' Eyes. — S. E. Peal ; Dr. 



Alfred R. Wallace, F.R.S. . . 



The Age of the Earth. By Prof. W. J. Sollas, 



F.R.S. ..... 



The Anniversary of the Chemical Society .... 



Sir Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Bart 



Notes 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



C-mct e 1S94 (Swifi) 



\ I'o^-iiih- Ni-vv S.iiellile of Neptune 



Prof Mendelecff on Argon 



Teirchtrial Helium (?) 



IsMlation of Free Hydrazine, NjHj. lly A. E. 



Tutton 



Science in the Magazines 



Preciou- Stones, and How to Distinguish them. l!y 



H. A Mieis 



The Observation of Earth-waves and Vibrations. 



r,y Piol John Milne, F R.S 



Societie ano Acadsn.ies 



BookH, Pamphlets, and Serials Received . . . . 



529 



530 



53- 



532 

 532 



53.i 



533 



53.) 



533 



533 



536 

 537 



542 

 542 

 543 

 S« 



544 

 545 



545 



54S 

 550 

 552 



