May II, 1916] 



NATURE 



235_ 



Young : Note on functions of upper and lower type. — 

 Mrs. G. C. Young : The derivates of a function. 



Manchester. 



Literary and Philosophical Society, March 21. — Prof. 

 S. J. Hickson, president, in the chair. — Prof. F. E. 

 Weiss : Recent views concerning the nature of so-called 

 "graft hybrids." The author gave an account of the 

 recent researches made on graft hybrids, describing, 

 among others, the curious form of Cytisus Adami, 

 obtained early last century by grafting the purple 

 Cytisus on the yellow Laburnum, and the more 

 recent productions resulting from grafting shoots of 

 the tomato upon young plants of the nightshade. In 

 this, as in the purple Laburnum, reversions to both 

 parental forms are common. Other cases of so-called 

 hybrids are known between the hawthorn and medlar, 

 the quince and pear, and the almond and peach. A 

 summary was given of the various views put forward 

 to account for the production of these curious inter- 

 mediate forms, and the relationship of the graft 

 hybrids to ordinary seed hybrids was discussed. 



April 4. — Prof. S. J. Hickson, president, in the 

 chair. — Prof. G. Elliot Smith : The origin of the cere- 

 bral cortex. The cerebral cortex was called into exist- 

 ence during the process of evolution of the verte- 

 brates, and, though difficult to detect in certain fishes, 

 is to be regarded as a distinctive and inherent feature 

 of vertebrate structure. The microscopic formatio 

 pallialis of the Cyclostomes represents the undiffer- 

 entiated rudiment of the whole of the pallium (hippo- 

 campal formation, piriform area, and neopallium of 

 the highest vertebrates), and not merely the hippo- 

 campus. The cerebellum grew up around the central 

 terminations of the nerves which bring into the 

 nervous system special information concerning the 

 animal's position in space; and its cortical mechanism 

 developed in response to the need for bringing this 

 information under the control of other influences, such 

 as the nerves of vision, touch, the muscular sense, 

 etc., before it is transmitted to the muscles of the 

 body as a whole. The cerebral cortex grew up in a 

 similar way around the central terminations of the 

 olfactory nerve. — Prof. G. Elliot Smith : The com- 

 mencement of the Neolithic phase of culture. Evidence 

 pointed to the introducers of the Azilian culture as 

 representing an early wave of the Neolithic people, 

 coming probably from Africa into Europe. The author 

 suggested that sporadic bearers of the same culture 

 probably made their way into Europe for many cen- 

 turies before the close of the Palaeolithic epoch there. 

 This would explain many similarities of Magdalenian 

 to Azilian implements, and of both to those of Pre- 

 dynastic Egypt. — J. W. Jackson : The geographical 

 distribution of the use of pearls and pearl-shells. The 

 special appreciation of pearls is intimately associated 

 with the geographical distribution of elements of a 

 culture, including, amongst other things, the use of 

 shell-purple for dyeing and of conch-shells for trum- 

 pets. Through Phoenician trade the knowledge of the 

 pearl spread from the eastern Mediterranean vid the Red 

 Sea and Persian Gulf to India and Ceylon, China and 

 Japan, Indonesia and the Pacific Islands, and, finally, 

 the New World.— J. W. Jackson : The use of shells for 

 the purposes of currency. No form of shell-money 

 has been used so extensively as the money-cowry, 

 Cypraea moneia. and this is used in a natural state. 

 The date of the introduction of this cowry-currency is 

 unknown, but it was in use in Egypt in Predynastic 

 times. Shell-currency has been recorded from the 

 Sandwich Islands, New Hebrides, and New Caledonia, 

 and it was extensivelv used in China and on the 

 Pacific coast of North America. Portuguese voyagers 

 refer to its use in West Africa in the fifteenth century, 

 and it is at present in vogue in tropical Africa. 



NO. 2428, VOL. 97] 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, April 25.— M. Camille Jordan 

 in the chair.— The president announced the death of 

 M. Emile Jungfleisch, member of the Academy.— G. 

 itigourdan : Monthly distribution of average cloudiness 

 in France. A discussion of observations from thirty- 

 five stations in France and foreign stations close to 

 the French frontier. In the scale adopted o indicates 

 blue sky, and 10 a completely clouded sky, and the 

 results are' shown in thirteen charts, one for each 

 month, and one for the yearly average, giving the 

 isonephs, or lines of equal cloudiness. More ob- 

 servation stations are required before full conclusions 

 can be drawn. — T. Levi-Civita : The regularisation of 

 the problem of three bodies.— W. Sierpinski : A can- 

 torian curve which contains a biunivocal and continu- 

 ous image of any given curve. — E. Baticle : Calcula- 

 tion of the thrust on a supporting wall by a powdery 

 mass with free plane surface.— Gabriel Sizes : Pr9per- 

 ties of the law of resonance of vibrating bodies. — J. 

 Deprat : The structure of the internal zone of the 

 preyunnan sheets.— Emile Belot : Contribution to the 

 study of the causes of volcanoes. An experiment 

 showing the production of a miniature crater by the 

 action of locally applied heat to a mixture of water 

 and sand, showing why the vapour is evolved at a 

 considerable distance from the source of heat. Assum- 

 ing a connection between volcanoes and the influx of 

 sea-water, this explanation removes the difficulty of 

 the South American volcanoes situated a considerable 

 distance from the sea.— E. Mathias : Three observa- 

 tions of globular lightning made at the summit of the 

 Puy de D6me. — F. Jadin and A. Astruc : The man- 

 ganese in some springs connected with the central 

 massif and some stations in the plain of Languedoc. 

 The amounts of manganese found van,- between 0001 

 and 04 mgr. per litre. The data confirm the con- 

 clusions given in previous communications on the 

 amounts of manganese in French mineral waters. — 

 Henry W. BrSlemann : An evolutive process in Diplopod 

 Myriapods. — E. Kayser : Contribution to the study of 

 the ferments of rum. A study of the fermentation 

 products produced from beetroot, molasses, and cane- 

 sugar molasses by various yeasts. Figures are given 

 for the higher alcohols, volatile acids, aldehydes, and 



ethers. F. Garrigou : The hygienic, rational, and 



economical treatment of human excreta. — M. Marage : 

 True and simulated deaf-mutism resulting from 

 wounds received in battle. The medical examination 

 of such cases should avoid experiments causing pain 

 to the patient, and in the case of a painful treatment, 

 involving possibly negative results, the consent of the 

 patient should always be obtained.— H. Bnsqnet : The 

 rapid immunisation by small doses of nucleinate of 

 soda, or " chaulmoogra oil, against the hypotensive 

 action of large doses of these substances. 



BOOKS RECEIVED. 



Statics : A First Course. By C. O. Tuckey and 

 W. A. Nayler. Pp. 299. (Oxford : Clarendon Press.) 

 35. 6d. 



Historical Introduction to Mathematical Literature. 

 By Prof. G. A. Miller. Pp. xiii + 302. (London: 

 Macmillan and Co., Ltd.) ys. net. 



The Principles of Agronomy. By Prof. F. S. 

 Harris and G. Stewart. Pp. xvi4-45i. (London: 

 Macmillan and Co., Ltd.) 6s. net. 



The Influence of Ancient Egyptian Civilization in 

 the East and in America. By Prof. G. Elliot Smith. 

 Pp. 32. (Manchester : University Press ; London : 

 Longmans and Co.) is. net. 



Annual Report of the Director, Kodaikanal and 

 Madras Observatories for 1915. Pp. 24. (Madras : 

 Government Press.) 



