August 17, 19 16] 



NATURE 



503 



On the initiative of the Royal Society, a Board 

 of Scientific Societies, consisting at present of repre- 

 sentatives of twenty-seven scientific, including tech- 

 nical, societies, has been established for the further- 

 ance of the following objects : — Promoting the co- 

 operation of those interested in pure or applied 

 science; supplying a means by which the scientific 

 opinion of the country may, on matters relating to 

 science, industry', and education, find effective ex- 

 pression ; taking such action as may be necessary to 

 promote the application of science to our industries 

 and to the service of the nation ; and discussing 

 scientific questions in which international co-opera- 

 tion seems advisable. An executive committee has 

 been appointed, consisting of the following mem- 

 bers : — Sir Joseph Thomson (chairman), Dr. Dugald 

 Clerk, Sir Robert Hadfield, Mr. A. D. Hall, Prof. 

 Herbert Jackson (hen. secretary), Sir Alfred Keoe''' 

 5ir Ray Lankester, Prof. A. Schuster, Sir John Snell, 

 Prof. E. H. Starling, Lord Sydenham, and Mr. R. 

 Threlfall. The first meeting of the Board w^s held on 

 July 20, when important questions relating to scien- 

 tific, educational, and industrial matters were. under 

 consideration, with a view to effective steps being 

 taken for co-ordinating the work carried out at pre- 

 sent by a number of independent bodies, or initiating 

 action in the case of other matters of national import- 

 ance. 



It is announced that the Discovery, with the 

 Shackleton Relief Expedition, left Plymouth Sound 

 last Thursday. She will proceed to Port Stanley, 

 Falkland Islands, to embark Sir Ernest Shackleton, 

 and then leave for Elephant Island. It is hoped that 

 she will reach the Falkland Islands by the end of Sep- 

 tember, and Elephant Island a week later. The 

 Discovery should have no difficulty in penetrating the 

 pack and reaching the stranded men. On the other 

 hand, it is quite possible that the conditions will be 

 so favourable in October that little or no ice will be 

 •encountered. Lieut.-Commander J. Fairweather, 

 R.N.V.R., is in command of the Discovery. He has 

 had long exp^ience among Arctic ice, although this 

 is his first visit to the Antarctic. 



It is stated in the Times that the sum of 2500Z. is 

 being raised by the Archangel Society for the study 

 of the Russian Far North, in furtherance of the 

 search for the two Russian expeditions which sailed 

 in 19 12 under, respectively, Lieut. Brusiloff and M. 

 Rousanoff. The rtloney in question is to be used as 

 rewards for information obtained as to the fate of 

 '^.e explorers. 



A COLLECTION of British-made laboratory apparatus 

 "is on view at the Institute of Chemistry, 30 Russell 

 Square, \V.C. The exhibition will remain open until 

 the end of September. 



A WARNING against the suggested use of benzoate 

 of, soda as a substitute for sugar in jam-making has 

 been issued bv the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries. 

 It is pointed out that serious results may follow if 

 "he substance in question is used for the purpose 



imed. 



The programme of the celebrations on June 13 in 

 connection with the centenary of the Botanic Gardens, 

 Sydney, has just reached us. Speeches were delivered 

 on the occasion by the Governor of New South Wales, 



"le Premier, and the Minister for Agriculture, and a 



: ief historical address was given by Mr. J. H. 

 \taiden, F.R.S., the director of the gardens. Three 



Istas were named respectively after Capt. Cook, 



NO. 2442, VOL. 97] 



Sir Joseph Banks, and Governor Phillip, and a rosery 

 is to be known in future as the "Centenary Roser}." 

 The following memorial trees were planted simul- 

 taneously by representatives of the Empire and 

 the Allies : — Great Britain and Ireland, the British 

 Oak [Quercus pedtinculata); .Australia, the Bunya 

 Bunya {Araucaria Bidwilli) and the Flame Tree 

 {Brachychiton acerifolia); Sydney, the Port Jackson 

 Fig {Ficus rubiginosa); New Zealand, the Kauri 

 {Agathis australis); South Africa, the Cape Chestnut 

 {Calodetidron capensis); Canada, the Sweet Gum 

 {Liquidambar styracijlua) ; India, Indian Date Palm 

 (Phoenix sylvestris); Belgium, Black Belgian Poplar 

 {Populiis monilifera) ; France, Nettle Tree, or Per- 

 pignan Wood {Celtis australis); Russia, the Aspen 

 (Popiilus tremula) ; Italy, Lombardy Poplar (Populus 

 nigra, var. pyramidalis) ; Serbia, the Carob {Ceratonia 

 siliqua) ; Montenegro, the Olive {Olea europaea) ; 

 Portugal, Portugal Laurel {Prunus lusitanicus) ; Japan, 

 Japanese Maple (Acer japonica) ; after which a memo- 

 rial stone of a proposed museum of botany and horti- 

 culture was laid. 



We regret to record the death of Mr. Charles 

 Dawson, which occurred, after a long illness, at 

 Lewes on August 10. Mr. Dawson was born in Lanca- 

 shire on July II, 1864, but spent most of his early 

 life at St. Leonards-on-Sea, where he soon became 

 interested in the geology and archaeology of the neigh- 

 bourhood. Encouraged by the late Mr. S. H. Beckles, 

 he devoted attention especially to the fossil remains 

 of reptiles found in the Wealden formations quarried 

 round Hastings, and made a large collection, which 

 he placed in the British Museum, and continually 

 enriched almost until the end of his life. He dis- 

 covered some new species of iguanodon, of w-hich 

 one was named after himself by Mr. R. Lydekker. 

 After persistent search in the bone-beds for many 

 years, Mr. Dawson also found the first tooth of a 

 Wealden mammal (Plagiaulax dawsoni). His interest 

 in archaeology gradually led him to studies of pre- 

 historic man, and for many years he searched the 

 gravels and other superficial deposits of southern 

 Sussex for traces of man and his handiwork. He was 

 ultimately rewarded, in 1912, by the discovery of the 

 now famous skull and mandible of Eoanthropus 

 daii'soni in a ver\' old gravel at Piltdown, near Uck- 

 field. During his busy professional career as a 

 solicitor Mr. Dawson never neglected any opportunity 

 of contributing to the knowledge of the geology- and 

 archaeology of the district in which he resided, and 

 his comparativelv earlv death is a distinct loss to 



The death is announced, in his sevent>--third year, 

 of Dr. William Simon, professor of chemistry at the 

 Baltimore College of Physicians and Surgeons since 

 1880. He was president of the Marv'land Pharma- 

 ceutical Association in 1887. Dr. Simon was the 

 author of a manual of chemistry, and had done special 

 work in autochromatic photography. 



The death is announced, at the age of seventy-four 

 years, of Dr. Ferdinand Fischer, professor of chemical 

 technology in the University of Gottingen. 



The report of the Advisory Committee for Aero- 

 nautics, 1915-16, contains a summan." of the work 

 carried out by the Advisory Committee during the 

 past year, and shows in a striking way the effect that 

 the war has had upon aeronautics in general and 

 upon experimental aeronautics in particular. The ex- 

 perimental work at the National Physical Laboratory 

 is first dealt with, and the extent of the developments 

 in this branch of the work is very marked, the aero- 

 nautical department at the laboraton,- having prac- 



