6 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 128 



maximum forms of curves in figure i. The curves A^, A^, A^ are 

 the summaries, and the curves B^, Bo, B^ the mean forms of the pe- 

 riods of one-third of 7 months. Subtracting the latter from the for- 

 mer leaves Ci, Co, C3, which are the 7-month summaries deprived of 

 the periodicities 1/117 X 22f years. The results are tabulated in column 

 3 of table 2. We now perceive in curves Ci, C2, Cz a period of one- 

 fourth their length. Removing it, as before, we obtain curves D^, D2, 

 Ds, and columns 4 and 5, table 2. There is now seen, indistinctly it 

 is true, except in Di, a period of one-seventh of 7 months. Removing 

 it as before, the curves Ei, E^, £3 result, and also columns 6 and 7 of 

 table 2. No other superriders being seen in curves Ex, Eo, Es, and 

 all three of these curves being in the same phase and of similar forms, 

 we conclude that there is no further correction required to the period 

 7,0 months. The three curves £1, E2, £3, are therefore combined 

 into the general mean curve F and column 8 of table 2. So there is 

 clearly shown a period of exactly 7 months (1/39x273 months) in 

 solar variation. The 7-month period has a range of 0.08 percent of 

 the solar constant. In association with it there are discovered three 

 periods, 1/117, 1/156, and 1/273 o^ 22| years, having lengths of 

 2^, if, and I month, and ranges of about 0.06, 0.04, and 0.02 percent 

 of the solar constant. The last of these three periods is perhaps 

 doubtful, both on account of its small range, and of the divergence of 

 phases in the three determinations of it. The other two superriders 

 seem well determined, having similar forms and nearly similar phases 

 and ranges in the three determinations. These superriders are, to be 

 sure, less strongly developed in range in the middle curves than in 

 the first and third sets, but the phases are nearly alike in all three. 



Seven months in days is 7/12x365,2564 days, or 213.07 days. It 

 is therefore interesting to note that, quite independently, my friend 

 Dr. F. P. Marshall found a period of 212 days in a graph of 3 years 

 of daily basal pulse rates. Dr. Marshall also found more than a dozen 

 shorter periods, all aliquot parts of 212 days. Several of these periods 

 I now find, as just said, to be also solar. It would seem to be interest- 

 ing to physiologists to know that basal pulse rates are found to present 

 regular periodic variations agreeing, within less than i percent, with 

 periods found in solar variation. As my studies of weather elements 

 show,^ the family of periods that relate integrally to 273 months is 

 also active in the control of temperature and precipitation. It may 

 therefore well be that solar variation affects weather, and weather 

 affects basal pulse rate. 



3 See Smithsonian Misc. Coll., vol, 128, No, 3, Publ, 421 1, Apr, 28, 1955, 



