550 



NATURE 



[April 6, 1905 



conception of the atoms as a system of electrons, and in 

 this way the formation of the bands is placed in the same 

 category as other spectral phenomena. — Esterification 

 constants of substituted acrylic acids : J. J. Sudborough 

 and D. J. Roberts. The esterification constants of some 

 twenty-two substituted acrylic and allied acids with methyl 

 alcohol have been determined. The results indicate that a 

 substituted acrylic acid is esterified less readily than the corre- 

 sponding saturated acid, and more readily than the corre- 

 sponding acetylenic acid, and that the effect of introducing 

 substituents into acrylic acid is to lower the rate of esterili- 

 cation. — o-Chlorocinnamic acids: J. J. Sudborough and 

 T. C. James. — Diof//jo-substituted benzoic acid, part vi., 

 conversion of methyl into ethyl esters : J. J. Sudborough 

 and T. H. Davies. — Simple method for the estimation of 

 acetyl groups : J. J. Sudborougrh and W. Thomas. The 

 acetyl derivative is hvdrolysed with benzenesulphonic acid 

 and the mixture subjected to steam distillation. — Gyno- 

 cardin, a new cyanogenetic glucoside : F. B. Povweir and 



F. H. Lees. This substance, obtained from the seeds of 

 Gynocardia odorata, has the formula C,.,H,(,03N, and is 

 readily hydrolysed by gynocardasc, the enzyme present in 

 the seeds, and with difficulty by boiling 5 per cent, hydro- 

 chloric or sulphuric acid yielding rf-glucose, hydrogen 

 cyanide, and an undetermined aldehvde or ketone. With 

 alkalis it yields gynocarditiic acid, C|,H,,05.C0,H. — 

 Catechin and acacatechin. Supplementary note : A. G. 

 Perkin. — The action of ethyl dibromopropanetetra- 

 carbo.xylate on the disodium derivative of ethyl propane- 

 tetracarboxylate. A correction : \\'. H. Perkin, jun. — 

 Glutaconic acid and the conversion of glutaric acid into 

 trimethylenedicarboxylic acid : \V. H. Perkin, jun., and 



G. Tattersail. — The transformations of highly substituted 

 nitroaminobenzenes : K. J. P. Orton and A. E. Smith. — 

 .An asymmetric synthesis of quadrivalent sulphur : S. 

 Smiles. It is shown that the two isomeric d- and /-methyl- 

 pthylthetine /-menthyl ester bromides are produced in equal 

 amount from the interaction of methylcthyl sulphide and 

 /-menthyl bromoacetate. — The action of a-halogen ketones 

 on alkyl sulphides : S. Smiles. It has been found that 

 certain a-lialogen-substituted ketones interact with alkyl 

 sulphides, forming the halides of sulphine bases. Descrip- 

 tions of the products formed in several cases are given. — 

 Pinene wonitrosocyanide and its derivatives : W. A. 

 Tiiden and H. Burro>ws. Pinene I'sonitrosocyanide is 

 shown to be a nitrile, and from it has been obtained the 

 corresponding pinene lionitrosocarboxylamide, 



C,„H,j( : NOH).CO.NH,, 

 which on hydrolysis with hydrochloric acid yields an oily 

 substance which is probably the ketonic acid 



O :C,„'h,,,.CO,H. 

 — Some interactions of metallic cyanides with organic 

 bases: R. de J. Fleming-Struthers. Descriptions of a 

 number of compounds produced by the interaction of 

 phenylhydrazine with various metallic cyanides are given. 



Royal Microscopical Society, March 15 — Mr. A, D. 

 Michael in the chair. — A review of the work done by 

 metallographers : J. E. Stead, F.R.S. Illustrations were 

 shown of the changes produced in metals by strains, a 

 diagram of the apparatus by which rapid reversals of 

 strains were effected being exhibited in illustration of this 

 portion of the subject. The effect of the continued heating 

 of an alloy of copper and tin in boiling mercury, and also 

 that produced by immersion in liquid air, were demon- 

 strated. Slides were also shown to illustrate " surface 

 flow " in antimony, and the microscopic structure of the 

 new silver standard. 



Linnean Society, M?ich 16. — Prof. W. A. Ilerdman, 

 F.R.S., president, in the chair. — Exiiibits. — Animated 

 photographs of plants taken by the kammatograph, show- 

 ing the natural movements of the plants accelerated so 

 as to be followed readily by the eye : Mrs. D. H. Scott. 

 — A series of thirty lantern-slides, from photographs, of 

 bird-life in the Falkland Islands : R. Vallentin. — Paper. — 

 Contributions to the flora of Liberia : Dr. Otto Stapf. 

 Descriptions of 3 new genera and 56 new species, in a 

 collection of about 260 species, collected by Mr. Alexander 

 Whyte in the neighbourhood of Monrovia, in three different 

 localities. The flora shows a specific likeness to that of 

 Sierra Leone, and the new genera are not endemic. 



NO 1849, VOL. 71] 



Physical Society, March 24.— Prof. J. H. Poynting, 

 F.R.S., president, in the chair. — Note on the voltage 

 ratios of an inverted rotary converter : W. C. Clinton. 



The values of the voltage ratios usually given for an 

 inverted rotary converter make no allowance for the resist- 

 ance of the armature. In this note terms due to the effect 

 of armature resistance are introduced into the ordinary 

 theoretical equations. The resultant voltage on the 

 alternate current side is found to be less than that given 

 by the usual rule. The calculation is only made for open 

 circuit conditions on the alternate current side. — On the 

 flux of light from the electric arc with varying power 

 supplv : G. B. Dyke. The paper records the results of 

 experiments made on the electric arc with the following 

 objects : — (i) To obtain a series of curves for alternating 

 and continuous arcs of different lengths showing the re- 

 lation between the mean spherical candle-power and the 

 power supplied to the arc ; (2) to compare the efficiencies 

 of the alternating and continuous arcs under different con- 

 ditions of arc-length and power-supply. — On the application 

 of the cymometer to the measurement of coefficiencies of 

 coupling of oscillation transformers : Dr. J. A. Fleming. 

 This paper deals first with the latest pattern of instrument 

 called by the author a cymometer, designed for the 

 measurement of the frequency of electric oscillations, and 

 also the length of long electric waves. 



Cambridge. 

 Philosophical Society, March 13.— Prof. Marshall Ward, 

 president, in the chair. — On the relation in size between 

 the megalosphere and the microspheric and megalospheric 

 tests in the Nummulites : J.J. Lister. At the meeting of the 

 society on October 31, 1904, the author directed attention 

 to the fact that in the three English species of Nummu- 

 lites, viz. jV. laevigatus, variolarius and " elegaiis," both 

 megalospheric and microspheric forms were represented 

 and associated in the Bracklesham and Barton beds of the 

 Hampshire basin. A comparison of the sizes of the 

 megalospheres in these species suggested that a definite 

 relation might exist between them and the sizes of the 

 whole microspheric tests. To examine this question several 

 species have been studied. Arranging these species In 

 order of the sizes of the megalospheres, this Is found to 

 coincide with the order of the volumes of the microspheric 

 tests (with the exception of the variety obesiis of N. per- 

 foratus, the microspheric test of which falls one place out 

 in the series). — The penguins of the Antarctic : E. A. 

 Wilson. — The old moraines of South Victoria Land : H. T. 

 Ferrar. The paper first dealt with the topography of 

 South Victoria Land, a land consisting of a range of 

 mountains some 800 miles long In a north and south direc- 

 tion, with a steep eastward face on an average 10,000 feet 

 high, facing the sea and buttressing a vast interior Ice- 

 field. Details were given of the stranded moraines on 

 Cape Adare, on the Possession Islands and on Franklin 

 Island, as well as those high on the slopes of Mount 

 Erebus and Terror. The latter could only have been landed 

 there by the Ross ice-sheet being thicker than it Is at 

 present. Reversed glaciers, glaciers not reaching the sea. 

 and beheaded glaciers were mentioned, all pointing to the 

 same conclusion, a retreat of the ice. This retreat is now 

 going on, so that increase of cold could not produce a 

 greater glaciatlon. If this former greater extension was 

 due to a warmer climate, why have the New Zealand 

 glaciers decreased of late, and what Is the connection of 

 the " Ice-age " of Europe with the " Great Glacier Epoch " 

 of New Zealand and Patagonia-' — Notes on a collection of 

 parasites from the museum of University College, Dundee : 

 A. E. Shipley. The collection consisted of fifteen species 

 of Nematoda and ten Cestoda, and came mainly from 

 marine animals of the northern seas, as might have been 

 expected from the importance of Dundee as a whaling 

 centre. — On the maturation of the egg and early develop- 

 ment in certain sawflles (TinthredlnldEe) : L. Doncaster. 

 In the eggs of sawflles which produce males when un- 

 ferlilised {K'ematiis ribesii, .V. lacteus, .V. pavidtis), the 

 second polar nucleus conjugates with the inner daughter 

 nucleus of the first polar body. The conjugating nuclei 

 then break up Into a group of chromosomes which contain 

 twice the number that is foimd in the maturation mitoses. 

 These chromosomes persist for snnie hours, but finally dis- 



