548 



NA TURE 



[Afril 5, 1894 



undergoing only a very slight and almost imperceptible deviation 

 in direction at the junction. But in addition to this the quartz 

 is often found to act as a centre of strain, the inner cracks of 

 the perlite being wholly in quartz, the next traversing both, and 

 tne outer ones in glass only. In other examples the outer cracks 

 of i". matrix perlite sometimes enter the quartz, while in others 

 polygonal cracks occur, and join up, in the quartz, and give oft" 

 radial cracks precisely like those of the matrix. These observa- 

 tions lead to the conclusion that the quartz and glass must have 

 contracted at about the same rate, and that the observation of 

 perlitic structure in a rock with trachytic or felsitic matrix by 

 no means proves that the rock is necessarily a devitrified glass. 

 — Mr. Rutley, Mr. Harker, and Prof. J. F. Blake spoke upon 

 the subject of the paper, and the author replied to their 

 remarks. 



Parks. 



Academy of Sciences, March 27. — M. Loewy in the 

 chair. — A study of the crystallised acetylides of barium and 

 strontium, by M. Henri Moissan. Nearly pure crystalline 

 CoBa and C.jSr are produced by heating the oxides of barium 

 and stiontium (or carbonates) with sugar charcoal in the electric 

 furnace. These bodies are immediately decomposed by water, 

 and give pure acetylene. Their properties and reactions resemble 

 those of calcium acetylide. When exposed to the action of 

 halogens at a slightly raised temperature they become in- 

 candescent, the barium compound being most readily attacked. 

 — Electric registration of the movements of the semilunar valves 

 determining the opening and closing of the aortic orifice, by M. 

 A. Chauveau. — On two isomeric methylcyanocamphors, by 

 M.M. A. Haller and Minguin. The preparation and properties 



of a-methylcyanocamphor, CsHij<' | 



XMeCy 



cyanocamphor, C8H14 



/CCy 



<il 

 ^COMe 



\co 



are described. 



and /3-methyl- 



By hydrolysis 



with alcoholic potash the former yields a dicarboxylic acid, the 

 latter gives a hydroxymonocarboxylic acid and methyl alcohol. 

 — Occultation of Spica Virginis, March 22, 1894, observed at 

 Paris Observatory, by M. G. Bigourdan.- — -Observations 

 of the planet BC, made at the Paris Observatory, by 

 M. G. Bigourdan. — Note by M. Ch. Trepied on photo- 

 graphic observations of planets, made by MM. Rambaud 

 and F. Sy, at the Algiers Observatory. — On the ap- 

 proximate development of the perturbation function in the case 

 of inequalities of a high order. — Applications to Mercury and 

 Venus, by M. Maurice Hamy. — On a corollary of Catalan's 

 theorem, by M. Maurice Moureaux. An extension proving 

 a theorem of which Catalan's is a special case. " It a 

 sum of n squares be raised to any power which is itself 

 a power of 2, there results a sum of n squares." — 

 Results obtained by new arrangements for diminishing the 

 vibrations of vessels, by M. Auguslin Normand. — On the mini- 

 mum electromotive force requisite for the electrolysis of elec- 

 trolytes, by M. Max Le Blanc. A discussion of the remarks 

 made by M. Berthelot on a previous paper, followed by further 

 remarks by the latter. On the mutual solubility of salts, by M. 

 H. Le Chatelier. — Action of nitrogen, nitrous oxide, and nitric 

 oxide on alkaline ammoniums, by M. A. Joannis Nitrogen 

 has no action on sodammonium or potassammonium. Nitrous 

 oxide, not in excess, reacts in accordance with the equation : 



N20 + K2N2H6 = KNH2 + NH3 + KOH-hN2; 

 if the oxide be in excess a further action takes place : 

 2NH2K + N20 = N3K + KOH-t-NH3. 



An alkaline salt of hydrazoic acid is thus produced from purely 

 inorganic materials. Nitric oxide forms the alkaline hypo- 

 nitrites KNO and NaNO with KoNgH,; and NajNaHg dissolved 

 in liquid ammonia. — On the mode of action of the pancreas in 

 the regulation of the glucose-forming function of the liver. New 

 facts concerning the mechanism of pancreatic diabetes. Note 

 by M. M. Kaufmann. — On physiological antiseptics, by M. 

 A. Tripier. — Properties of the serum of animals protected by 

 inoculation against the poison of serpents, by M. A. Calmette. 

 The great value of such ?erum as a therapeutic agent is empha- 

 sised. Injections of the protected serum together with solution 

 of chloride of lime possess great therapeutic power. — On the 

 copulation of some Cephalopoda— 5f/-i£j/a Rojidehlii (Leach), 

 Rossia macrosoma (d. Ch.), and Octopus vulgaris (Lam.), by 



NO. 1275, VOL. 49] 



M. Emile G. Racovitza. — On the seismic rose of a place, by 

 M. de Montessus. 



GuTTINGE.X. 



Royal Society of Sciences. — In Nos. 15 to 21 of the 

 Nachrichten appear the following papers of scientific interest : — 



November i. — Gauss, de integratione formulae differentialis 

 (i -f- n cos (p) '' <^ <p , edited (in Latin) by E. Schering. The 

 paper was found by Prof. W. Meyer in the archives of the 

 Society, and probably dates from 1795. 



November 8. — W. Voigt, contributions to the molecular 

 theory of piezo-electricity. 



November 15. — A. Peter, experiments on the cultivation of 

 " resting " seeds. J. Thomae, on the differentiation of a definite 

 integral with regard to its upper limit. 



December 13. — Robert Fricke, on indefinite quadratic forms 

 with three and four variables. H. Weber, the equalisation of 

 temperature between two heterogeneous bodies in contact. O. 

 Wallach, on the behaviour of the oximes of cyclical ketones (I. ). 



December 20. — A. Brill, on symmetric functions of pairs of 

 variables. W. Nernst, a method for the determination of 

 dielectric constants. 



December 27. — Robert Haussner, the. theory of Bernoulli's 

 and Euler's numbers. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



Books. — Royal University of Ireland, Calendar for tfie Year 1894 

 (Dublin, Thorn). — Fauna of Britisfi India, including Ceylon and Bui ma; 

 Mollis, Vol. 2 : G. F. Hampson (Taylor and Francis). — A Monograph of 

 Lichens : Rev. J. M. Crombie, Part i (London, Briiish Museum, Natural 

 History). — Papers and Notes on the Glacial Geology of Great Britain and 

 Ireland : H. C. Lewis (Longmans) — The Health Results of Europe : Dr. 

 T. Linn, 2nd edition (Kimpton). — Biological Lectures delivered at the 

 Marine Biofogicaf Laboratory of Wood's Holl in the Summer Session of 

 iSg3(Boston, Ginn).— Disease and Race: Jadroo (Sonnenschein). — Annals 

 of the Royal Botanic Garden, Calcutta ; Vol. iv., the Anonacese of British 

 India: Dr. G. King (Calcutta). 



Pamphlets. — Notes on Polarised Light : A. E. Munby (Newcastle-on- 

 Tyne, Reid). — Investigations of Recent Typhoid-Fever Epidemics in 

 Massachusetts : Prof. W. 1'. Sedgwick (Boston). — A New Story of the 

 Stars: A, W. Bickerton (Christchurch, N.Z.). 



Serials. — Bulletin of the New York Mathematical Society. March 

 (New York. Macmillan). — Science Progress, No. 2 (Scientific Press). — 

 Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society of England, Vol. v. Part i. 

 No. 17 (Murray). — Internationales Archiv fiir Ethnographie, Band vii. 

 Heft 2 (K. Paul). 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



The New PharmacopcEia of the United States . . 525 



Two Books on Forestry. By Prof. W. R. Fisher . 526 

 Recent Researches on Saccharomycetes. By Dr. 



A. A. Kanthack 527 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Browne: " .\ Year amongst the Persians " .. 528 

 Mawer and others: "Nature Pictures for Little 



People" 529 



Letters to the Editor :— 



The Foundations of Dynamics. — A. B. Basset, 



F.R.S. 529 



The Artificial Formation of the Diamond. — ^J. B. 



Hannay ; Dr. J. Joly, F.R S 530 



The New Comet.— W. F. Denning 531 



Sun-spot Phenomena and Thunderstorms. — Rev. W. 



Clement Ley ... 531 



A Lecture Experiment. — J. C. Foye 531 



Centipedes and their Young. — F. W. Uriah . . . 531 



Prof. Ira Remsen on Chemical Laboratories . . . 531 



The Teaching University. By F. Victor Dickins . 536 

 William Pengelly. By Prof, W. Boyd Dawkins, 



F.R.S 536 



The Late Captain Cameron 538 



Notes 538 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



The Reckoning of the Astronomical Day 54^ 



The Height of an Aurora 54^ 



An Annular Eclipse of the Sun 54^ 



The Satellite of Neptune 543 



Science in the Magazines . . 543 



Dust and Meteorological Phenomena. By John 



Aitken, F.R.S 544 



University and Educational Intelligence 54^ 



Scientific Serials 54^ 



Societies and Academies 547 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received 54^ 



