38 



NATURE 



[March 9, 1916 



address; the one on past and present relations 

 between geology and mineralogy, the other on 

 those between mineralogy and palaeontology, 

 where he attributed life to crystals, or his study 

 of the borings in the Nile Delta, his petrological 

 investigations of the rocks ejected from Krakatoa 

 in 1883, and his studies of the materials from the 

 Funafuti borings, all published by the Royal 

 Society. The last involved much organisation, of 

 which he took the lion's share. The Survey 

 memoir on the geology of Rutland (1875) was 

 written by him, and a small but excellent book 

 on volcanoes in 1878. He twice revised and added 

 much to Lyell's "Students' Elements of Geology " 

 {1896 and 191 1), and contributed the "Coming of 

 Evolution " to a Cambridge series. In this small 

 volume he tells the story, brightened by his re- 

 miniscences of the chief actors, in a most attractive 

 way. He was a man whose like will not readily 

 be found. T. G. Boxnev. 



DR. PIERRE CHAPPUIS-SARASIN. 



PHYSICAL science has suffered a severe loss 

 in the death of Dr. Pierre Chappuis-Sarasin, 

 formerly of the Bureau International des Poids et 

 Mesures at Sevres, who passed away at Basle on 

 February 15, 



Dr. Chappuis was born in Switzerland in 1856, 

 and his early youth was spent in his native 

 country. In 1881 he joined the staff of the Bureau 

 International, then under the directorship of Dr. 

 O. J. Broch. One of the most important early 

 tasks of the newly-founded International Com- 

 mittee of Weights and Measures was to place 

 upon a proper basis the whole system of the 

 measurement of temperature, to define with pre- 

 cision the temperature-scale to which all measure- 

 ments relating to length and mass were to be 

 referred, and to set up the necessary ultimate 

 standards. The classic work of Regnault and of 

 Rowland had shown that practical realisation of 

 temperatures by the gas-thermometer depended 

 on the working limits of pressure adopted and 

 the choice of the gas selected as thermometric 

 substance. It was to the solution of the problem 

 of a satisfactory ultimate thermometric standard 

 that Dr. Chappuis at once devoted himself, and 

 his brilliant investigations carried on at the Bureau 

 over a perioB of more than twenty-two years have 

 won him a place in the very front rank of physi- 

 cists concerned with the science of exact measure- 

 ment. His classic memoir on the gas-thermo- 

 meter published in vol. vi. of the "Travaux et 

 Memoires" describes his researches on the coeflfi- 

 cient of expansion of different gases suitable for 

 thermometric substances, and led to the adoption 

 by the International Committee in 1884 of the 

 fundamental hydrogen scale of temperature. 



Among other investigations may be mentioned 

 his determination of the volume of the kilogram 

 of water, employing the optical methods of Benoit 

 and Michelson, and measurements to very high 

 precision of the expansion of mercury and of 

 water. 



Family claims and the call of his native moun- 



NO. 2419, VOL. 97] 



tains l6d Chappuis to resign his connection with 

 the Bureau and return to Switzerland in 1903, 

 adopting the additional name of Sarasin, to which 

 well-known family his wife belonged. He built 

 himself a tine private laboratory at his house at 

 Basle, where until quite lately he continued his 

 researches. His last considerable piece of work, 

 hitherto unpublished, was a redetermination of 

 the sulphur boiling point. In these experiments 

 the quartz reservoir of the gas-thermometer was 

 directly immersed in sulphur vapour. 



M. Chappuis was of a retiring disposition, dis- 

 liking self-advertisement, and rarely appeared on 

 scientific platforms. He visited the British Asso- 

 ciation at the Dover meeting. It is impossible 

 for one who knew him well to conclude this 

 memoir without a tribute to his genial disposition, 

 his indomitable energy and high personal charac- 

 ter. All who knew him in his hospitable home at 

 Sevres or Basle will feel they have lost a true 

 friend. J. A. Harker. 



A COMMONWEALTH INSTITUTE OF 

 SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



WE have just received a copy of the report 

 of a committee appjointed in pursuance of 

 a motion passed at a conference convened by the 

 Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia 

 that "An Advisory Committee be constituted to 

 formulate proposals to the Government to estab- 

 lish a Commonwealth Bureau of Science and 

 Industry." The members of the committee were: 

 Representatives of universities :- — Sydney — Sir 

 T. Anderson Stuart; Melbourne — Prof. Orme 

 Masson ; Queensland — Prof. A. J. Gibson ; Ade- 

 laide — Sir Douglas Mawson. Interstate Com- 

 missioners : — Mr. A. B. Piddington, the Hon. 

 G. "Swinburne. The Associated Chambers of 

 Commerce of Australia :■ — Mr. W. T; Appleton. 

 The Associated Chambers of Manufactures of 

 Australia : — Mr. W. W. Forwood, Messrs. G. D. 

 Delprat, W. P. Wilkinson (Commonwealth ana- 

 lyst), W. S. Robinson, J. M. Higgins, W. Rus- 

 sell Grimwade, E. W. Knox. Ex-officio Mem- 

 bers : — Prime Minister of the Commonwealth ; 

 the Hon. F. Hagelthorn, Minister of Agriculture, 

 Victoria; the Hon. W. Lennon, Minister of Agri- 

 culture, Queensland; the Hon. C. Goode, Minis- 

 ter of Agriculture, South Australia. 



It will be noticed that the committee includes 

 representatives of commerce and manufacture as 

 well as of science and departments of State. Wc 

 understand that the committee's report, which is 

 subjoined, has the approval of the Federal 

 Government, and that it is probable a Bill will 

 be laid before the Federal Parliament to give 

 efifect to the recommendations after the Prime 

 Minister's return from his present visit to Eng- 

 land. The proposals of the committee are on 

 lines somewhat similar to those of the British 

 Government's scheme for the organisation and 

 development of scientific and industrial research. 

 Primary as well as secondary industries are in- 

 cluded, and particular notice may be directed to 

 the recommendations as to the governing body 



