476 



NATURE 



[March 15 1894 



solar heat reaching the earth's surface during the months May- | 

 November. — Geodetical and astronomical survey work in Mada- \ 

 gascar, by Father E. Colin. — On the abelian integrals which i 

 can be expressed by logarithms, by M. E. Goursat. — On the \ 

 'aws of the errors of situation of a point, by M. Maurice < 

 d'Ocagne. — On the distribution of deformations in metals sub- 

 jected to stresses, by M. L. Hartmann. Several cases are con- 

 sidered, and the selective chemical action of acids on the lines 

 of deformation of metals under the action of applied forces ' 

 is noticed. — On the absorption of energy by an elastic 

 thread, by M. Lucien de la Rive. — Production of sound 

 in a microphone, under the action of an intermittent 

 thermal radiation, by M. Eugene Semmola. — Experimental 

 study on the expenditure of energy corresponding to the 

 chemical action of light, by M. Georges Lemoine. The t 

 results show that in the case of the exothermic mixture of ferric j 

 chloride and normal oxalic acid, the ratio between the absorp- i 

 lion corresponding to the molecular work and the total absorp- 

 tion does not exceed some ten-thousandths. Light seems to 

 act only as an exciting agent in this reaction. — On exact 

 atomic weights, determined with silver as secondary- standard ^ 

 substance, by M. G. Hinrichs. An abstract of a discussion of 

 some of the results of J. P. Cooke, Dumas, Stas, and others, 

 wherein the author concludes that he has shown reason for 

 regarding the following atomic weights: CI 35 5, Br 80, I 127, 

 and S 32, as correct if silver be taken as 108. — On alloys of 

 iron and nickel, by M. F. Osmond. The initial temperature 

 of the alloy and its speed of cooling have the same effect on 

 its properties as in the case of irons containing the same carbon 

 percentage, and are not of such importance as in the cases of 

 hard steels and alloys of iron with tungsten and chromium. — 

 Action of bromine on paraxylene, by M. J. Allain Le Canu. — 

 On cinchonifine, by MM. E. Jungfleisch and E. Le^er. — On 

 the isomerism of the nitrobenzoic acids, by M. Oechsner de 

 Coninck A study of the solubilities of these compounds in 

 dilute acetic acid, dilute hydrochloric acid, acetone, methyl 

 alcohol, and 92 per cent, ethyl alcohol. Great similarity is shown 

 between the ortho and meta acids as regards solubility, whereas 

 the solubility of the para acid is much less. — On dibromogalla- 

 nilide and its triacetyl derivative, by M. P. Cazeneuve. — Re- ■ 

 searches on the anatomy and development of the male genital 

 armature of lepidoptera, by M. Peytoureau.— On the nervous | 

 ?,ys,\.tmoi Dreissensia polymorpha, by M. Toureng. — On certain • 

 active principles in the Papayacese, by M. Leon Guignard. The 

 author shows that just as in the case of families nearly related 

 to theCruciferse botanically, so here in a widely differing family 

 the character and localisation of certain distinctive chemical 

 principles resembles that obtaining in the Crucifeice. — The 

 sexual reproduction of Mucorini, by MM. P. A. Dangeard and 

 Maurice Lcger. — Symbiosis of Heterodera radicicola with 

 slants cultivated in the Sahara, by MM, Paul Vuillemin and 

 Emile Legrain. — On some minerals of New Caledonia, by 

 M. A. Lacroix. 



Amsterdam. 

 Royal Academy of Sciences, Februaiy 24. — Prof, van 

 de Sande Bakhuyzen in the chair. — Mr. Pekelharing commented 

 upon a communication of Dr. Grijns, of Batavia, on the deter- 

 mination of the volume of blood corpuscles. In connection 

 with Eykman's researches on the question whether the sojoum 

 in tropical regions causes an alteration of the blood in Euro- 

 peans, Dr. Grijns has developed a new method of determining 

 the volume in question, and has also determined the influence 

 upon it of different substances in watery solution. Defibrinated 

 bl od was subjected to a whirling motion in small calibrated 

 tubes ; the height of the layer of cruor was measured, 

 the serum removed, the cruor mixed with the solution 

 in question, and again whirled. The solution in which 

 the height of the cruor was the same as in the serum, 

 was isotonic. The concentration of the solutions of 

 salt, cane-sugar, milk-sugar, oxalate of sodium, potassium 

 chloride, asparagin, that leave unaltered the volume of the 

 cruor, were really found to be in isotonic relation. Other 

 substances — urea, ammonium-chloride, ammonium-nitrate, 

 glycerine, alcohol — are in no concentration isotonic with 

 the blood corpuscles. Potassium bichromate and corrosive 

 sublimate affect the blood corpuscles considerably in each 

 concentration. On these preliminary results the author has 

 founded a new method for the determination of the volume of 

 the blood corpuscles. — Prof. Bakhuyzen read a paper on the 

 variation of latitude. He showed by discussing series of 



NO. 1272, VOL. 49] 



observations, made during the last thirty-five years at Green- 

 wich, Washington, Pulkowa, Leyden, Berlin, Potsdam, Stras- 

 burg, and Prague, that a variation in a period of about 430 

 days, as determined by Mr. Chandler, was manifest ; that there 

 was no evidence of a change in the length of the period, and 

 that its most probable value was found to be 4307 days, while 

 the resulting value for the coefficient was o" 168. — Prof. 

 Bakhuyzen also showed that the tidal observations, made at the 

 Dutch station of Helder in the years 1855-92, indicated a 

 marked variation of the sea-level in the same period with a ct- 

 efficient of about 8 millimetres. Adopting the theory of Prof. 

 Newcomb, based on the hypothesis that the earth is not abso- 

 lutely rigid, the two results are in accordance with one another, 

 and they seem to prove that the rigidity of the earth must be 

 about I "5 times as great as that of steel. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



Books. — Ostw aid's Klass ker der Exakten Wissenschaften, No 44, 48-51 

 (Engelmann, Leipzig). — The Country Month by Month: J. A Owen and 

 Prof. Boulger (Blis<i). — The History of Human Marriage : E. Westermarck 

 2nd edition (Macmillan) — Scottish Land-Names: Sir H. Maxwell (Black- 

 wood). — Aphorisms from the Writings of Herbert Spencer (Chapman and 

 Hall). — Principia Nova Astronomica : Dr. H. Pratt (Williams and Nor- 

 gate).— Surveying and Surveying Instruments: G. A. T. Middleton 

 (Whittaker). — Grundzuge einer Entwickelnngsgeschichte der Pflanzenwalt 

 Mitteleuropas : Dr. A. Schulz (Jena, Fischer). — Elemen'ary Melal Work : 

 C. G. Leiand (Whittaker). — Smithsonian Institution Annual Report to July 

 1 891 (Washington). 



Pamphlets. — Report on the Coal-Measures of Blount Mountain : A. iL 

 Gibson f Montgomery, Alabama). — The Problem of Man Flight: J. Means 

 (Boston). — The Average Elevation of ihe United States H. Gannett 

 (Washington). — On the Astigmati.sm of Rowland's Concave Gratings : Dr. 

 Sirks (Amsterdam, J. Miiller). — Di Alcune Esperienze di Radiofonia : E. 

 Semmola (Napoli). 



Serials — Seismological Journal of Japan, Vol. 2, 189? (Yokohama). — 

 Annaes de Sciencias Naturaes, No. i (Porio). — Medical Magazine, March 

 (Southvvood)— Illustrated Archseologist, March (C. J. Clark). — Interna- 

 tiona'es Archiv fiir Ethnographie, Band vii. Heft i (Leiden, Brill). — L'An- 

 thropolcgie, tome v. No. i (Paris, Masson). — Himmel und Erde, March 

 (Berlin, Paetel). — American Journal of Science, March (New Haven). — 

 Journal of the Franklin Institute. March (Philadelphia). — Engineering 

 Magazine, March (New York). — Psychological Review, No. 2 (Mac- 

 millan). 



CONTENTS. 



PAGE 



Tropical Botanic Gardens and their Uses. By 



J. B. F 453 



The Telephone. By Prof. A. Gray 454 



Giinther's Bacteriology. By Mrs. Percy Frankland 455 

 Our Book Shelf:— 



Klein: " Lectures on Mathematics " 456 



Hall and Knight : " Elementary Trigonometry " . . 456 

 Letters to the Editor : — 



Great Auk's Egg.— Prof. Alfred Newton, F. R S. . 456 

 The Decomposition of Liquids by Contact with Cellu- 

 lose.— C. Beadle ... 457 



Physiological Psychology and Psycho-physic^, — Dr. 



E B. Titchener ; The Writer of the Note , . 457 

 The Last Great Lakes of Africa, (Illustrated.) By 



H. R. M 457 



The Beetles of New Zealand. By W. F. Kirby . . 459 



Notes 459 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



A New Achromatic Object-glass 464 



Solar Magnetic Influences on Meteorology 464 



A New Telescope for Greenwich 464 



Occultation of Spica 464 



New Nebulas 4^4 



The Minute Structure of the Nerve Centres, By 



Prof. Ramon y Cajal * . . 4^4 



On the Irritability of Plants. By Prof. F. Elfving . 46b 



The New Iodine Bases. By A. E. Tutton .... 467 

 The Ethnography of the Aran Islands, County 



Galway 4^8 



Electrical Sanitation 4^9 



On Homogeneous Division of Space. II. [Illus- 

 trated.) By Lord Kelvin, P.R.S 4^9 



University and Educational Intelligence . ... 47' i 



Scientific Serials ... 472 | 



Societies and Academies. [Illustrated.) 472} 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received 47^ 



