5-^b 



NA TURE 



[April 12, 1900 



messages being readily received from a station 30 kilometres 

 distant, and at the same time the regulation and adjustment of 

 the tube is rendered much more simple. — The auto-cohesion 

 of charcoal, and on the application of this discovery to tele- 

 phonic apparatus for receiving the signals in wireless telegraphy, 

 by M. Thomas Tommasina. A description of an instrument 

 for receiving the Hertzian waves by means of a telephone. The 

 apparatus is very sensitive, and works quite regularly even with 

 such a strong current as three accumulators in series. — On a 

 new radio-active element, actinium, by M. A. Debierne. The 

 new element is obtained from the residues of pitchblende, and, 

 except for its radio-activity, behaves as an impure thorium salt. 

 —Solubility of a mixture of salts having a common ion, by M. 

 Charles Touren. An experimental study from the Nernst 

 point of view of the solubility of mixtures of potassium 

 chloride and nitrate, and of potassium bromide and 

 nitrate, the results being given graphically.— Action of 

 hydrogen upon antimony sulphide, by M. H. Pelabon. The 

 interaction of hydrogen and sulphide of antimony in sealed 

 tubes at 440° showed that the composition of the gaseous mix- 

 ture, hydrogen sulphide and hydrogen, was constant and inde- 

 pendent of the amount ol solid sulphide or of antimony present. 

 At ^5° the results were similar, and the inverse reaction of 

 hydrogen sulphide upon antimony reached practically the same 

 equilibrium. — On an arsenide of nickel, by MM. Albert Granger 

 and Gaston Didier. Reduced nickel heated in a current of 

 carbon dioxide carrying the vapours of arsenic trichloride gives 

 an arsenide, NigAsg. — On the biphosphide of tungsten, by M. 

 Ed. Defacqz. By the action of dry hydrogen phosphide upon 

 tungsten hexachloride at 450° C. a new compound, WPg, is ob- 

 tained, the properties of which are given. A chlorophosphide, 

 a double phosphide, and another new phosphide were ob- 

 tained from this.— On a new terpenic alcohol and its deri- 

 vatives, by M. P. Genvresse. The new alcohol, pinenol, 

 CioHjgO, is obtained by the action of nitrous vapours 

 upon pinene or essence of turpentine. A new oxime, 

 pineononoxime, is obtained at the same time, the ketone 

 corresponding to which is readily obtained by the oxidation 

 with chromic acid of the pinenol. — Action of phenyl iso- 

 cyanate and isothiocyanate upon the dibasic acids, by M. 

 filophe Benech. The Haller reaction is a general one, and 

 allows of the preparation of azelaic dianilide ; phenyl iso- 

 thiocyanate behaves like the isocyatiate with fatty dibasic 

 acids, with the exception of the malonic acids. — Influence of 

 an active vegetation upon the formation of thuyone and 

 ihuyol, by M. Eugene Charabot. — Considerations on the dififer- 

 ,ences which exist between the fauna of the Opistobranchia of 

 the ocean coasts of France and of the Mediterranean coasts, by 

 M. A. Vayssiere. — On the zoological affinities of the Phoronidia 

 and Nemertinas, by M. Louis Roule. — On the embryonic 

 development of the Cestodia, by M. G. Saint-Remy. — Sounding 

 and analysis of the sediment of Lake Galescu in the Southern 

 Carpathians, by MM. de Martonne and Munteanu Muirgoci. — 

 On the strata near Bray, by M. Munier-Chalmas. — Contri- 

 bution to the study of the antileucocytic serums and their action 



1 on the coagulation of the blood, by M. C. Delezenne. — On 

 the fixation of alkaline bases in the mineral skeleton of the 

 human foetus during the last five months of pregnancy, by M. 

 L. Hugounenq. An analysis of the changes in the ratio of 

 soda to potash in the mineral skeleton of the foetus from the 

 fourth to the ninth month. ^ — On the physiological properties of 

 nitriles, by M. Edmond Fiquet. An experimental study of 

 the toxic effects of injections of acetonitrile, sodium cyanacetate, 



? cinnamic nitrile, and sodium a-cyanocinnamate. — Variations in 



■ the .amount of iodine present in the thyroid gland of the 

 f liewly-born under divers pathological influences, by MM. 



■ Charrin and Bourcet. — Experimental reproduction of caries of 

 • the teelh, by M. J. Choquet. — On a new pathogenic microbe 



in the rabbit. Bacillus myophagus cunictdi, by M. C. Phisalix. 

 The bacillus is found in a rare disease of the rabbit, chiefly 

 affecting the muscles. — Heterotopic differentiation. The tera- 

 tological process, by M. Etienne Rabaud. — Therapeutic action 

 of the acid phosphoglycerides, by M. G. Bardet. 



Amsterdam. 

 Royal Academy of Sciences, February 24. — Prof. 

 H. G. Van de Sande Bakhuyzen in the chair. — Prof. Van 

 Wyhe read a paper on a simple and quick method of preparing 

 picrocarmine.— Prof. W. H. Julius read a paper on solar 

 phenomena considered in connection with anomalous dispersion 



of light. — The following papers were presented for publication 

 in the Proceedings: — Entropy bf radiation (ii.), by Mr. J. D. 

 van der Waals, jun. — A paper on the formation of trisubstituents 

 of benzol from disubstituents,' by Prof. A. F. Holleman. — 

 Enantiotropy of tin (iv.), by Dr. Ernst Cohen. — Inquiries into 

 the system TlNOs-t- AgNO^, by Dr. C. van Eyk. Melted 

 mixtures of the two salts successively deposit : rhombohedral 

 and then rhombic TINO^ on the TINO3 side, and rhombohedral 

 and then rhombic AgNOj oil the AgNOg side, while out of 

 the mixtures of 48-52 mol. per cent, the double salt AgNOj 

 is deposited, which melts at 83°. Below 27° this salt undergoes 

 a change, either by passing into another modification or by 

 splitting up into its components.— -Rational curves in space, by 

 Prof Schoute. 



DIARY OF SOCIETIES. 



WEDNESDAY, April 18. 

 Royal Microscopical Society, at 8. — Demonstration on tbe Structure 

 of some Palaeozoic Plants, with Sections of the Plants thrown on the 

 Screen: Wm. Carruthers, F.R.S. 



THURSDAY, April 19. 

 LiNNEAN Society, at 8.— Alpine Vegetation of Tibet and the Andes : W. 

 Botting Hemsley, F.R.S. , and H. H. W. Pearson.— On some Mosses 

 from China and Japan : E. S. Salmon. 



FRIDAY, April 20. 

 Epidemiological Society, at 8.30. 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



Recent Books on Physics. By Prof. Hugh L. 



Callendar, F.R.S 557 



Two New Zoological Handbooks. By E. A. M. . 559 



The Teaching. of Meteorology 560 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Warington : " Lectures on Some of the Physical 



Properties of Soil."— W. S 561 



Maycock : "Electric Wiring, Fittings, Switches and 

 Lamps"; Powell: "Electric Bells and Alarms." 



— D. K. M 562 



" Report of the Marine Biologist for the Year 1898. 

 Cape of Good Hope Department of Agriculture." 



— E. J. Allen 562 



Robb and Mirguet : " Science Course for Secondary 



Schools " . , .... 562 



Leloutre : " L'Echappement dans les Machines a 

 vapeur " ; Jaubert : " Produits aromatiques ; arti- 



ficiels et naturels " . . . . 563 



Wettstein : '' Grundzuge der geographisch-morpholo- 



gischen Methode der Pflanzensystematik " . . . . 563 

 Kant : " Dreams of a Spirit-Seer, illustrated by 



Dreams of Metaphysics" 563 



Letters to the Editor:— 



On the Process of Dyeing with Woad Alone. — 



Dr. Charles B. Plownght 563 



Illogicality concerning Ghosts. — Kumagusu Mina- 



kata . . ., 564 



Fertilisation, of Flowers in New Zealand. — Geo. M. 



Thomson 564 



Jubilee of the Royal Meteorological Society . . . 565 

 Progress in North-Western America. {Illustrated.) 



By G. W. L 566 



Eugenio Beltrami. By Prof. G. H. Bryan, F.R.S. 568 



Prof. St. G eorge Mivart. By R. L 569 



Notes ..... 571 



Our Astronomical Column: — 



Rotation Period of Venus 574 



Elliptic Elements of the Variable Y Cygni 574 



Photometric Observations of Mercury during Solar 



Echpses 574 



Variation of Latitude 574 



Planetary Work at the Manora Observatory .... 574 

 The Development of Astronomy in America . . . 574 

 The Flightless Rail of New Zealand. {Illustrated.) 576 



University and Educationallntelligence 577 



Scientific Serials 577 



Societies and Academies 577 



Diary of Societies 580 



NO. 15ii9, AOL 61] 



