270 



NA TURE 



[January 18, 1900 



o exist between the chemicar constitution of a substance 

 and the degree of its rotation. The fact that such re- 

 lations do exist in the case of other optical properties, 

 such as molecular refraction, dispersion, and magnetic 

 rotation, no doubt gave rise to the expectation that some 

 similar connection would be found in regard to this 

 rotatory power. In the above cases the optical differences 

 depend mainly on the nature and number of the ele- 

 ments composing the substance, though modified to a 

 certain extent by the manner of combination. But here 

 it seems to depend almost entirely on the mode of group- 

 ing. Such able experimenters as Guye, Chavanne, 

 Walden, Tchugaeff, Nasini, van 't Hoff, and in our own 

 country Frankland and Crum Brown, have investigated 

 the question. The problem has not yet been solved ; 

 but a number of suggestive results have been obtained 

 which will no doubt lead to further research, and the 

 clearing up of the relationships between composition and 

 amount of rotation which unquestionably do exist. 



J. H. G. 



Science and Faith; or Man as an Animal and Man as a 

 Member of Society: with a Discussion of Animal 

 Societies. By Dr. Paul Topinard. Translated from 

 the Author's Manuscript by Thomas J. McCormack. 

 (London : Kegan Paul, Trench, Triibner and Co., 

 Ltd., 1899.) 



The editors of the Monist, some four years ago, 

 invited discussion on the main problems of the 

 philosophy of science and the reconciliation of science 

 and faith. This book is Dr. Topinard's answer — the 

 longest and fullest received — to their question. Man is 

 regarded from the standpoint of anthropology ; at the 

 outset a creature merely selfish, but ultimately actuated 

 by the sense of duty to the community. Thus he is a 

 battlefield of opposing influences, egoism and altruism. 

 Can we then explain the development of the latter on 

 scientific principles, or must we have recourse to some 

 external influence or impulse ; in other words, assign a 

 part to faith. In a series of chapters the author sketches 

 man's development, as a member not only of the animal 

 kingdom, but also of societies, seeking to trace in the 

 lower forms of life the rudiments both of structures and 

 of ideas. Finally, he arrives at the conclusion that 

 Science and Faith mutually exclude each other. This 

 perhaps would be generally admitted, even by those who 

 would maintain that neither science nor faith alone could 

 give a complete explanation ; for each investigates 

 different aspects of the problem and by a different 

 method. Thus far the two are exclusive ; nevertheless 

 both may be necessary in order to obtain complete 

 knowledge. For on many minds a problem presses to 

 which Dr. Topinard offers no reply, namely, " Why " is 

 all this ? What is the cause of all these phenomena ? 

 Of what kind of power are they an expression ? To 

 answer this, he might reply, is not the province of 

 science. That may be true, but the question remains, 

 and not a few hold that to ignore it is an arbitrary 

 narrowing of the field of investigation. In other words, 

 whether Dr. Topinard's book will or will not satisfy 

 inquirers is very much a question of temperament. 

 Grant certain postulates — for such they are, and not 

 axioms — in regard to the field of investigation, and 

 it will ; repudiate them, and it will not. He maintains 

 " that the two domains of science and faith are two con- 

 trary poles " ; others will say that each is necessary if a 

 globe is to be complete, and that a very large zone exists 

 between the circumpolar regions in which each of these 

 apparent opposites plays a part, now the one, now the 

 other dominating. But the book is worth reading, 

 whether we are or are not satisfied with its conclusions, 

 whether we regard it as a real or only a forensic 

 success. 



NO. 1577, VOL. 61] 



Who's Who. 1900. An Annual Biographical Dic- 

 tionary. Pp. xviii -f 1002. 

 The Englishwoman's Year- Book and Direcioiy. 1900. 

 Edited by Emily James. Pp. xxi + 340. (London : 

 Adam and Charles Black, 1900.) 

 "Who's Who " is now in its fifty-second year of issue 

 and as a handy work of reference containing biographical 

 particulars and addresses of persons of greater or less 

 prominence in science, art, and literature it stands alone. 

 Tested by several years of use, the publication has been 

 proved to be a dictionary of biography which can be 

 referred to with confidence. Science is fairly well repre- 

 sented, every Fellow of the Royal Society from whom par- 

 ticulars could be obtaioed being included, and also other 

 workers in the scientific world. A complete list of 

 Fellows of the Royal Society is given among the useful 

 miscellaneous information which precedes the bio- 

 graphical sketches. Curiosity induced us to see how 

 many of these names also occur in the list of members 

 of the Privy Council, and we found that although 25 of 

 the 265 members of the Council have been admitted 

 into the Royal Society, only two or three can with the 

 most liberal interpretation be considered as engaged in 

 scientific work. 



"The Englishwoman's Year-Book " shows the numer- 

 ous opportunities which now exist for women to exercise 

 their activities, and testifies to the abundant use made 

 of them during last year. There are fourteen sections, 

 each concerned with opportunities and progress in a 

 particular branch of work, among them being education, 

 medicine, and science. Under the latter head is given 

 lists of scientific articles and papers contributed by 

 women to magazines and learned societies during last 

 year, and also of women science lecturers and demon- 

 strators. The volume should be of service in promoting 

 the best interests of women by exhibiting their intellectual 

 accomplishments. 



Le Phenomene de Zeenian. Par A. Cotton. Pp. 100. 

 (Paris : Georges Carrd and C. Naud, 1899.) 



This is the fifth number of the physical series of 

 "Scientia," under which title is appearing a collection of 

 handy volumes dealing with recent advances in science, 

 and intended primarily to enable specialists in one de- 

 partment to keep themselves abreast of the times in 

 regard to the work being done in other departments. 

 A concise account of the Zeeman phenomenon will be 

 valuable to many. 



M. Cotton has limited his treatment to the experi- 

 mental aspect of the phenomenon. He commences with 

 a summary of recent progress in spectroscopy, and of the 

 different causes which tend to modify the spectral rays. 

 The history of Zeeman's discovery is then introduced, 

 and in the next chapters M. Cotton discusses the changes 

 in the rays emitted parallel and perpendicular to the 

 lines of force, and the absorption effects dependent 

 on the Zeeman phenomenon. In the last chapters M. 

 Cotton describes the experiments of Righi, of Macaluso 

 and Corbino, and of Voigt. The author is to be con- 

 gratulated on the amount of information he has been 

 able to convey in so small a compass. 



Dictionnaire des Termes de Medecine., Frattqais- Anglais. 



By H. de Meric. Pp. vi -f- 243. (London : Bailliere, 



Tindall and Cox, 1899.) 

 The English-French part of this dictionary has already 

 been noticed (vol. lix. p. 484). We hardly see the neces- 

 sity of giving, in a technical dictionary, the English 

 equivalents of such common words as civilisation, classe, 

 concave, doctrine, division, idee, intelligence, reptile, 

 visage, nuit, and many others. This, however, will not 

 make the volume any the less serviceable to physicians 

 and students of medicine. 



