574 



NA TURE 



[October 9, 1S90 



There is some difference of opinion as to the original mean- 

 ing of the word "kangaroo." At the meeting of the Linnean 

 Society of New South Wales on August 27, the question was 

 discussed whether, in the dialect of the blacks of the Endeavour 

 River, the word signified " I don't know," and was so used in 

 answer to the queries of Captain Cook's party, or whether, as 

 Cook supposed, it really was the name of the animal in use 

 among the aborigines of the locality. 



At the same meeting Mr. A. J. North criticized the statement 

 of the late Mr. Gould that the gay attire of the members of the 

 genus Malurus "is only assumed during the pairing season, 

 and is retained for a very short period, after which the sexes 

 are alike in colouring " (" Hand-book to the Birds of Australia," 

 i. 317). According to Mr. North, full-plumaged males, more 

 particularly in the section of the genus in which blue predomin- 

 ates, are to be met with all the year round. 



A VALUABLE contribution to the subject of atmospheric elec- 

 tricity has been lately made by Prof. L. Weber, who, in experi- 

 ments at Breslau, used a sensitive, earth-connected galvano- 

 meter, instead of the electroscope in Exner's method. Using 

 Exner's metallic rod and flame, he found that the currents were 

 extremely small, about a micromilliampere (or the thousand- 

 millionth part of an ampere). They were increased with a 

 longer rod and bigger flame ; but much better results were got 

 with a kite or captive balloon. The edge of the kite was coated 

 with silver paper, and the tail was formed with tassels of the 

 paper. A line of fine steel wire was used, and about 12 feet 

 at the upper end were of non-conducting string. Experi- 

 ments were made on 12 cloudless days. Taking the intensities 

 of current as ordinates, and the heights to which the kite (or 

 balloon) rose as abscissae, the curve of intensity had its convex 

 side to the axis of abscissa. On but few days was the current 

 negative, this effect being probably due (the author thinks) to 

 dust charged with negative electricity which it gave to the line. 

 This might neutralize some of the positive electricity set flowing 

 in the wire by the earth's induction. Prof. Weber considers 

 that any experiments on the earth's surface with short conductors 

 can at best give relative values and determine periodical changes. 

 His values differ not inconsiderably from Exner's. At a height 

 of 350 m, (1166 feet) the potential was found to be 96,400 

 volts ; and, assuming a regular increase of potential with height, 

 the fall of potential would here be 275 volts. The potential of 

 the earth is estimated at the enormous value of 1720 . lo** volts. 

 Supposing the volt to be about the electromotive force of a 

 Daniell element, a huge battery of this number of elements 

 would be needed to produce the earth's potential, the zinc pole 

 being connected with earth, and the copper led into space. 

 Prof. Weber considers the question of possible electric repulsion 

 from the earth, and is led to some instructive remarks on rain 

 particles, clouds, &c. Some very interesting effects were ob- 

 tained from thunder-clouds ; but for these and other matters we 

 may refer to the original (an account of these researches appears 

 in Humboldt for September). 



The Smithsonian Institution is publishing some interesting 

 reports of the results of explorations by the U.S. Fish Commis- 

 sion steamer Albatross. In one of these reports Mr. Charles 

 H. Townsend deals with birds from the coasts of western North 

 America, and adjacent islands. Mr. Townsend, referring to 

 several of the islands visited by the Albatross, points out that a 

 rich field awaits the naturalist who may explore them. " The 

 islands of the Santa Barbara group," he says, " have hitherto 

 been very imperfectly explored with regard to their fauna. 

 Clarion and San Bcnedicte Islands, of the Revillagigedo group, 

 had never before been visited by naturalists. Socorro, an 

 island of the same group, and one abounding in peculiar species 

 of vertebrates, had not been visited since the type specimens 

 NO. 1093, ^OL. 42] 



were collected by Grayson, about the year 1870. The flora of 

 all the Revillagigedo Islands is practically unknown, as the 

 Albatross brought back only a small collection of flowering 

 plants." 



The Royal Meteorological Society have published the fir- 

 part of vol. X. of the Meteorological Record, containing the result^ 

 of observations for the quarter ending March 31 last, with 

 remarks on the weather by W. Marriott, Assistant Secretary, 

 containing a large amount of useful information, compressed 

 into 20 pages. The remarks show at a glance whether tempera- 

 ture, rainfall, &c., have been above or below the average ; for 

 the period in question the temperature of January was, on the 

 whole, very mild, while cold spells occurred from February 3-15, 

 and from February 20 till March 5. During the first few days 

 of March, temperatures were lower than in any other March for 

 nearly 50 years ; but, on the whole, the temperature of the 

 quarter, and also the rainfall, were above the average. The 

 tables contain the values of bright sunshine for 31 stations ; 

 monthly results of observations at stations of the second order 

 (for 9 a.m. and 9 p.m.) at 25 stations ; abstracts of climato- 

 logical observations, chiefly temperature and rainfall (for 9 a.m.) 

 at 73 stations ; earth temperatures observed between 3 inches 

 and 6 feet at various stations ; and, lastly, the observations from 

 the Quarterly Reports of the Registrar-General, with remarks on 

 the weather by James Glaisher. 



The second part of the Annual Report of the Chief Signal 

 Officer (U.S.) for 1889 contains a treatise entitled, "Prepara- 

 tory Studies for Deductive Methods in Storm and Weather 

 Predictions," by Prof. Cleveland Abbe. The object of the 

 paper is to consider the physical principles that are involved in 

 the formation and motion of storms, and that have guided the 

 author in predicting storms in his official capacity in the Signal 

 Service, and it is an able and most instructive exposition, with 

 very few mathematical formulae, of the progress made in 

 meteorological science during the last thirty years. The author 

 distinguishes between matters that are important, such as the 

 earth's rotation, gravitation, and solar radiation, and those that 

 are unimportant, such as lunar influence, atmospheric electricity, 

 and magnetic disturbances. The general idea that underlies the 

 work is that a storm centre moves towards the region where 

 conditions produce the greatest precipitation of aqueous vapour. 

 Objection is urged against the idea that high westerly currents 

 carry the storms of America eastward. The work is obtainable 

 in a separate form. 



A new theory of sea-sickness has been recently offered by M. 

 Rochet. Accepting the view that the symptoms are those of 

 cerebral anaemia, he accounts for this anaemia by the disorder 

 brought into muscular contractions through not being used to 

 such sudden movements as those of vessels. He points out the 

 enormous capacity of the reservoir formed by the muscular and 

 perimuscular venous system, and the considerable rdle of tonicity 

 and voluntary or reflex muscular contractions in the action of 

 emptying it ; also the predominance of reflex muscular actions 

 over voluntary, in keeping one's balance, and in most move- 

 ments. In the movements of a vessel, the relaxation of muscular 

 tonicity and suppression of reflex movements result in a con- 

 siderable increase of the peripheric reservoir, and, as a con- 

 sequence, in cerebral anaemia. Hence it is that the descent of 

 the ship is the most trying motion ; and one can understand the 

 benefit of the horizontal position, compression of the abdomen, 

 fixing the body in a tight position, &c. Very young children are 

 not ill, because the education of the reflexes in them is not yet 

 accomplished. On solid ground they reel as on deck. M. 

 Rochet's advice is, not to look to anaesthetics, soothing drugs, 

 &c., for relief, but rather to muscular excitants, and above all to 

 seek in voluntary movements a compensation for the reflex 



