March 23, 19 16] 



NATURE 



95 



Committee of the Board of Education, which, through 

 ie Solar Physics Observatory at South Kensington, 

 .vas concerned with the relation of solar and terrestrial 

 )henomena, especially rainfall, the committee of the 

 Vieteorological Office authorised the preparation of an 

 mnual statement of the meteorology of the globe begin- 

 ling with 191 1. The volume for that year is now 

 learly ready for issue. It gives particulars of pres- 

 sure, temperature, and rainfall for available stations 

 n all parts of the globe at the rate of two stations 

 or each io° square of latitude and longitude. It also 

 pves the differences from the normal in those cases in 

 vhich normals existed or could be compiled. The 

 ralues are given in absolute units for pressure and 

 emperature. Positive and negative signs are therefore 

 )niy used to indicate differences from normal, except 

 n two cases of negative sign in the column for height 

 vhich indicate that the stations are below sea-level. 

 V brief discussion of the meteorology of the year is 

 wsed upon the differences from normal. 



Manchester. 



Literary and Philosophical Society, March 7. — Prof. 

 5. J. Hickson, president, in the chair. — D. Thoday : 

 Optical properties of chlorophyll. The author referred 

 o the importance of chlorophyll, which enables green 

 )lant5 to utilise radiant energy from the sun in the 

 fvnthesis of organic food substances from the carbon 

 iioside of the atmosphere. On this process the whole 

 >rganic world, with few exceptions, directly or in- 

 iirectly depends. A few classes of bacteria, e.g. the 

 ron and the sulphur bacteria, are independent of 

 )rganic substances, making use of carbon dioxide in 

 hemosynihesis by means of chemical energy, liberated 

 n the oxidation of ferrous carbonate and sulphuretted 

 lydrogen respectively. In the green plant the direct 

 itilisation of sunlight in photosynthesis depends on 

 rhlorophyll, and this fact makes the optical properties 

 )f chlorophyll of especial interest. Mr. Thoday demon- 

 strated the red fluorescence of a chlorophyll solution, 

 emarking that the sensitising action of this and other 

 luorescent pigments on photographic plates, and their 

 oxicity to protozoa in extremely dilute solution only 

 n the light, suggest that such pigments when exposed 



light are especially active chemically. — Dr. H. G. A. 

 Sickling : Variation in the colour of coal streaks. The 

 xilour of coals varies in proportion to the different 

 imounts of carbon in the coals. The author exhibited 



1 number of samples of the fluorescent solutions obtained 

 3y washing finely-ground coal-powder with benzene. 

 He pointed out that the constituent of the coal dis- 

 solved bv the benzene appears to be more especially 

 rharacteristic of the bituminous or humic types of 

 ^oal, little or no colour being obtained w^hen the 

 -annel coals or anthracites are similarly treated. 



Edinburgh. 



Royal Society, Februar%- 7.— Dr. J. Home, president, 

 " *he chair.— J. M. Thompson; The anatomv and 

 ithnity of Platyzoma microphyllum. The paper dealt 

 ^•ith the anatomy of a single specimen of the plant. 

 Ihere were simply-pinnate unbranched leaves spring- 

 ng from the upper surface of the condensed and hori- 

 zontal rhizome, and small filiform leaves devoid of 

 3innae inserted on the sides and lower surface of the 

 -hizome. Between these two leaf tvpes transitions 

 ^vere found. The heterophvlv is considered a conse- 

 quence of the adoption of 'the rhizomatous habit. A 

 lichotomised pinnate leaf was described. The stele 

 ftas of a unique t>-pe, and the sporangia, of which 

 tnere were two types, large and small, were charac- 

 terised bv irregularities in form and variabilits^ in posi- 

 tion of the annulus. The systematic position of the 

 XO. 2421, VOL. 97] 



I Platyzoma cannot yet be determined, and until fuller 

 information regarding the nature of the spores is 

 obtained it is proposed to leave Platyzoma in the 

 Gleicheniaceae. — Dr. R. C. Davie : The leaf trace in. 

 some pinnate leaves. This was a continuation of the 

 former paper on the pinna trace in the ferns. Species 

 of Polypodium from the forests and of>en sea coast 

 in Brazil showed no variation in the method of giving, 

 off of the leaf trace, but modified the abaxial side of 

 the leaf trace, increasing the number of strands where 

 the leaves were long and heavily pinnate, decreasing^ 

 them in short leaves. In species of Aspidium, Dr\o- 

 pteris, Polystichum, and other genera collected in 

 Brazil it was found that the abaxial strands of the leaf 

 trace were used directly in the supply of the pinna? 

 where these were large. With few exceptions the type 

 of pinna trace is constant throughout a genus. The 

 abaxial side of the leaf trace is dependent on local and 

 individual peculiarities. Comparisons were made with 

 the leaf trace of Cycads and of Monocotyledons and 

 Dicotyledons. 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, March b.— M. Camille Jordan 

 in the chair. — Pierre Duhem : The electrodynamics of 

 conducting media. — M. Liapounoff was elected a corre- 

 spondant for the section of geometry- in the place of 

 the late Paul Gordan. — Ernest Lebon : A new table of 

 divisors of numbers. — Charles Rabut : New inverse in- 

 variants. — MM. Girardeau and Bethenod : The regula- 

 tion of the charging circuit in installations of wireless 

 telegraphy, using continuous high-tension current with 

 rotating contact-breaker. Commenting on two recent 

 notes of M. Bouthillon, it is pointed out that the pro- 

 posed regulation is not new. References made to 

 publications on this subject, dating from 19 10.: — ^A. 

 Bach : A new reaction of urine. Nitrates are reduced 

 in animal tissues by the joint action of a ferment 

 and a co-ferment, neither of which separately possesses 

 a reducing action. Both are present in fresh milk, 

 and it is now shown that normal urine contains appre- 

 ciable quantities of the co-ferment. — Jules Welsch : The 

 geological constitution of the Poitou marshes. — Stanis- 

 las Mennier : Obser\ations on the absence of the pelagic 

 facies in the sedimentary series. — F. Garrigon ; The 

 age and mode of formation of water at the surface of 

 the earth. — Fernand Gond : A new method of employ- 

 ing formol for disinfection at the front. Use is made 

 of the vapours given off when formol (40 per cent, solu- 

 tion) is poured into a saturated solution of potassium 

 permanganate. Direct experiment has proved that 

 sterilisation of clothes by this method is more rapid 

 than when day heat is used. Details of the process 

 are given. — C. Galaine and C. Honlbert : A sulphur 

 dioxide diffuser for disinfection and rat killing in the 

 trenches, in hulls of ships, and in houses. The appa- 

 ratus proposed consists of a vessel of liquid sulphur 

 dioxide, a heating coil and a fan. The apparatus is 

 claimed to be compact, easily manipulated, and 

 efficient in action. — Auguste Lomiere : The action of 

 the hypochlorites on pus. It has been shown by M. 

 Delbet that when pus is added to double its volume 

 i of Dakin's solution (o-6 per cent, sodium hypochlorite)- 

 j sterilisation is not usually effected, and, indeed, for 

 i some organisms, increased vitality results. Experi- 

 ; ments with pus containing various micro-organisms 

 1 (tetanus, streptococcus, staphylococcus, etc.) show that 

 I when a quantity of sodium hypochlorite is added to 

 ! pus insufficient for sterilisation, the organisms are 

 I rendered less virulent and their toxins are destroyed 

 j by oxidation. This destruction of toxins regenerates 

 j the culture medium (pus), hence the increased growth 

 j in M. Delbet's experiments. But the destruction of 

 j the toxins in vivo is favourable to the body resistance 

 since it permits the inter\'ention of the phagocytes. 



