Sept. 13, 1883J 



NATURE 



467 



tember 1, by Dr. Aron of Berlin, " On the Telephone and 

 Microphone." In this lecture the principles were ex- 

 plained on which the construction of the different tele- 

 phones and microphones is based. There were also 

 mentioned the variations of timbre as produced by these 

 instruments ; according to the experiments of Helmholtz 

 the higher tones are transmitted better by the telephone, 

 and therefore the timbre becomes clearer, while by the 

 simple microphone, as Dr. Aron had found, the deeper 

 tones are better transmitted, causing a duller timbre, but 

 thisfailureis avoidable byusing microphones with two coils. 

 The lecturer explained also the principle of a new instru- 

 ment, invented by himself, called the semaphone. In 

 this instrument the variations of the current in a coil of 

 insulated wire are transmitted by induction to another 

 coil joined to a telephone or microphone. Dr. Aron has 

 made experiments with his semaphone at Berlin, and was 

 able to hear signals, the distance between the two coils 

 being 70 feet. A similar experiment was carried out by 

 Dr. Aron in the course of his lecture, and we could hear 

 the noise made by a Neef's interrupter far from the 

 lecture room, using a Siemens' telephone ; the distance 

 between the two coils being 3 feet. 



Electric lighting is very well represented at the Exhi- 

 bition, and a variety of new incandescent and arc lamps 

 is to be seen there. As to the number of lamps ex- 

 hibited, the first place is taken by the Swan lamps. 

 Nearly 2000 Swan limps are distributed at the theatre, 

 the splendidly furnished interiors, and other parts of the 

 building, fed by dynamo machines or by Faure-Sellon- 

 Volckmar accumulators. The durability of these lamps 

 is tested by a collection of lamps exhibited by Ganz and 

 Co., used 1720 to 2330 hours. The carbon filaments do not 

 show any damage, only the glass bulb being darkened by 

 a carbon deposit. The exhibition of Edison lamps is not 

 so extensive as it was at previous exhibitions. The 

 Maxim lamps are used for lighting the Oriental pavilion 

 and some of the interiors. The Lane-Fox lamps are also 

 lighting some furnished apartments, and show the applica- 

 bility of incandescent lamps for street-lighting by lighting 

 the " Ausstellungstrasse." The lamp of C. H. R. Midler 

 has a screw-like curled carbon filament to make the 

 emission of rays uniform in all directions. The Ushaped 

 carbon strap of the Greiner and Friedrich's incandescent 

 lamp is prepared from lamp-black and graphite, coal-tar 

 being used as cement. The coal-tar, at first treated 

 with sulphuric acid, is heated till it becomes an asphalte- 

 like mass, to which lamp-black and graphite are then 

 added, so that a stout paste is formed. By pressing this 

 paste through a litde fine hole a thin thread is obtained, 

 which is cut in pieces and dried. If dried, the U-shaped 

 pieces are burned. The carbonised fibres of Musa lex- 

 tilis are used for the incandescent lamps of Dr. Puluj. 

 Very interesting is the Bernstein lamp, exhibited by the 

 Bernstein Electric Light Manufacturing Company of 

 Boston. It is claimed by the inventor to have many ad- 

 vantages over the other incandescent lamps. With an 

 electromotive force of 23 volts and a current of 7 amperes, 

 it has an illuminating power of 65 candles ; it is stated to 

 be more durable than the other lamps, and more econo- 

 mical, by rendering the light-giving carbon able to ex- 

 pand and contract without being liable to injury and 

 breakage, and therefore capable of withstanding the 

 tction of strong currents, so as to avoid the disintegra- 

 tion which takes place in carbon filaments of high resist- 

 ance. A large number of lamps can be used in series, 

 and long distances can be lighted by means of a thin 

 wire ; the lamp is very appropriate for street-lighting. A 

 hollow U-shaped carbon cylinder as big as a lucifer match 

 is used as the light-giving part, having a comparatively 

 large illuminating surface. This carbon cylinder is quite 

 elastic, and its surface resembles knitwork. Though the 

 manufacturing process of the carbon is not yet published, 

 it seems to be very probable that the carbon cylinder is 



prepared by carbonising a hollow knitted or woven string, 

 a metallic wire being put through during the burning 

 process to support it. The ends of the U-shaped cylin- 

 der are connected with pear-like socket pieces of carbon, 

 to which the two conducting wires are attached, entering 

 the thin end of the carbon blocks, secured by means of a 

 reddish cement. Such a lamp, fed by sixteen Faure- 

 Volckmar accumulators, gave, as could be seen at the 

 lecture delivered by Sir William Siemens, a white, 

 dazzling light resembling an arc lamp. 

 Vienna, September 10 



THE EDINBURGH BIOLOGICAL STATION 



THE proposal to form a biological station at Grantuh, 

 which was some time ago brought before the Royal 

 Society in a paper by Mr. Murray of the Challenger 

 Commission, has now taken definite shape. A lease of 

 Granton Quarry for fifteen years has just been granted by 

 the Duke of Buccleuch at a nominal rent, and Mr. Alex- 

 ander Turbyne, salmon fisher, has been appointed keeper 

 of the station, and will enter on his duties next week. 

 Meantime some preliminary experiments have been made, 

 and cages have been put down at the station, and struc- 

 tural work has been commenced in the way of fencing, 

 building of walls, and putting the banks into proper order 

 for further operations. 



The proposal for the formation of the station, which it 

 is meant to call " The Edinburgh Marine Station for 

 Scientific Research," had its origin in the resolution of 

 the Committee of the late Fisheries Exhibition in Edin- 

 burgh to hand over the surplus funds derived from the 

 Exhibition to the Meteorological Society, to be applied 

 to the purpose of carrying on investigations with respect 

 to fish, with a recommendation to establish a zoological 

 station, and to apply to Government for assistance in the 

 work. The Meteorological Society appointed a sub- 

 committee to consider the best means of applying this 

 money to the purposes for which it was granted. This 

 Committee had many consultations, and set afoot investi- 

 gations at various ports as to the temperature of the 

 water, habits and food of the fish, &c. They also had 

 their attention carefully directed to the advisability of 

 establishing a zoological station ; and the suitableness 

 of the old quarry at Granton for the purpose has 

 been in various ways brought before the public, 

 both at the Royal Society and at the meetings of the 

 Meteorological Society. The scheme for founding a 

 station there first took definite shape on the offer of a 

 gentleman interested in research to build a floating labo- 

 ratory at the quarry for the purpose of making experi- 

 ments and investigations. Recently this gentleman was 

 again communicated with, in respect that, after full 

 consideration, it was thought that a floating laboratory, 

 although an essential part of the scheme, was not, perhaps, 

 the first that should be undertaken. In reply to a repre- 

 sentation to this effect, the gentleman has written to Mr. 

 Murray, the convener of the Station Committee, express- 

 ing his readiness to adopt the alterations proposed, and 

 to give the 1000/. for the purpose of founding a zoological 

 station for scientific research at Edinburgh, instead of 

 building a floating laboratory, as originally suggested. 

 He was not surprised to hear, he adds in his letter, that it 

 would cost more than that to carry out the whole of the 

 scheme. It seemed to him that they would require at 

 least 1500/., in addition to his 1000/., to carry out all their 

 proposals, and they should consider if this additional sum 

 should not be raised before they commenced operations. 

 However, he left the matter in the convener's hands to 

 apply the money as he thought best, inclosing 100/. to 

 cover preliminary expenses, and repeating the two condi- 

 tions of his donation, viz. (1) that the convener should take 

 the general direction of the station for at least three or 

 four years ; and (2) that his name was r.ot in the mean- 



