650 NATURE 
unequally affected, but seem increased on the whole 
by rise of temperature. One of these, however, shows 
a permanent residual change even after cooling. This 
is important as showing that this property of the glass 
is affected by previous temperature treatment.—J. H. 
Shaxby and Dr. E. Emrys Roberts : Studies in Brownian 
movement. Paper i., The Brownian movement of the 
spores of bacteria——Dr. R. Whiddington: The trans- 
mission of kathode rays through matter.—Ezer 
Griffiths: The variation, with temperature, of the 
specific heat of sodium in the solid and liquid state; 
also a determination of its latent heat of fusion. The 
specific heat of sodium (melting point 97-6°) was in- 
vestigated at various temperatures in the range 0° to 
140° by the electrical method. The range of tempera- 
ture through which the metal was heated was about 
15°, thus enabling the actual specific heat at each 
particular temperature to be determined. In the solid 
state the specific heat is considerably influenced by 
the nature of the previous heat-treatment, and two 
distinct specific heat-temperature curves are obtained 
for the annealed and the quenched state. The increase 
in the values of the specific heat in the solid state is 
very marked as the melting point is approached. In 
the molten state the specific heat decreases with tem- 
perature, the relation between specific heat and tem- 
perature from 100° to 140° being linear. The latent 
heat of fusion was found to be 27-52 gram calories.— 
Dr. G. Green: Natural radiation from a gas. The 
investigations of Planck have established the result 
that the total energy emitted from a black body at any 
temperature consists of discrete quanta, all equal and 
similar. If we identify the ‘‘energy quantum” as the 
energy contained in the light pulse emitted each time 
a molecule undergoes structural change, the determina- 
tion of the form of this light pulse might lead to useful 
information regarding the constitution of the molecule. 
In this paper the form of pulse, in which the energy 
per wave-length is the same as that required by 
Planck’s law of radiation at any temperature, is first 
derived. This form accordingly represents the total 
radiation from any black body at any temperature. 
The radiating body is now taken to be a gas. By 
decomposing the above pulse we obtain an infinite 
succession of wave-trains emitted by the various groups 
of molecules obtained by arranging the total number 
according to speed.Dr. T, E. Stanton and J. R. 
Pannell ; Similarity of motion in relation to the surface 
friction of fluids. The paper deals with an experi- 
mental investigation of the existence of the similarity 
of motion in fluids, of widely differing viscosities and 
densities, in motion relative to geometrically similar 
surfaces, which has been predicted from considera- 
tions of dynamical similarity by Stokes, Helmholtz, 
Osborne Reynolds, and Lord Rayleigh.—A. E. Oxley : 
The influence of molecular constitution and tempera- 
ture on magnetic susceptibility—N. Eumorfopoulos : 
ae boiling point of sulphur on the thermodynamic 
scale. 
Challenger Society, January 28.—Sir John Murray in 
the chair.—C. Tate Regan: A bathypelagic angler-fish 
(Melanocetus johnsoni), from the North Atlantic, 
having inside it a Scopeloid fish (Lampanyctus croco- 
dilus) three times its own length. The specimen was 
taken at the surface of the sea, and it was supposed 
that the struggles of the captured fish, before it was 
completely swallowed, had brought the captor up from 
the depth at which it normally lives. Curiously 
enough, the only other examples of Melanocetus in the 
British Museum, two in number, were of nearly the 
same size ~(3 in. long), and each contained a Lam- 
panyctus of 8 or 9 in.—G, P. Farran; The Copepoda of 
a set of serial tow-nettings from the west coast of 
Ireland. In gatherings taken over a series of years 
NO. 2310, VOL. 92] 
[FEBRUARY 5, I9I4_ 
—————— 
at ten-mile intervals on a line running sixty miles 
west of co. Kerry, out of eighty-five species that 
occurred, four were neritic and showed a uniform 
decrease both in numbers and frequency of occurrence 
at every ten miles from the shore. Sixty-six were 
oceanic, and showed a uniform increase seawards over 
the same stations, while twelve species varied irregu- 
larly and seemed to be euryhaline. : i 
MANCHESTER. 
Literary and Philosophical Society, January 13.—Mr. 
F. Nicholson, president, in the chair.—W. Cramp: 
Some notes on the measurement of air velocities, 
pressures, and volumes. The author described the 
instruments generally used, and the results he ob- 
tained with a special apparatus he set up for testin. 
them. His results were summarised as follows :—(1 
For accurate tests of fans, &c., a Brabbée tube and a 
micromanometer, or a good facing gauge with a side 
gauge having its orifice flush with the pipe wall and 
used with a micromanometer, are far more accurate 
than the older methods. (2) The pneumometer may 
be specially useful where the air is laden with dust, 
&c. (3) The Nipher collector is very inaccurate. (4) 
In ordinary round or square pipes the coefficient o 
contraction is rarely less than o-g. 
Paris. 
Academy of Sciences, January 26.—M. P. Appell in 
the chair.—The President announced ‘the death of Sir 
David Gill, correspondant for the section of astronomy. 
—G. Bigourdan: The determination of the thermo- 
metric coefficient of the wire micrometer. The method 
recently devised by M. Lippmann for the auto- 
collimation of a telescope can be utilised for the rapid 
and accurate determination of the focal length of the 
objective of the telescope, and this, combined with 
the measurement of the linear value of one turn of the 
micrometer screw and the coefficient of the wire 
gives a solution of the problem.—G. Humbert: Some 
remarkable numerical functions.—H. Deslandres and 
A. Perot: Contribution to the realisation of high 
magnetic fields. Concentration of the ampere-turns 
in a very small volume. The method is partly based 
on the use of a stream of petrol cooled to —30° C. by 
a liquid ammonia machine, for cooling the wire carry- 
ing the current of the electromagnet, and partly on a 
modification of the winding of the electromagnet. 
The field thus obtained was 51,500 Gauss, with a 
current of 24 amperes.—E. Roux: Remarks on anti- 
gonoccic vaccines. A reference to the work of P. 
Mayoral and P. Grandez bearing on the recent pub- 
lication of C. Nicolle and M. Blaizot on the same 
subject.—M. Gambier: Bertrand’s curves and curves 
of constant curvature.—E. Keraval: A family of triply 
orthogonal systems.—H. Andoyer: New fundamental 
trigonometrical tables—Th. Anghelutza : The left sym- 
metrical nucleus in the theory of integral equations.— 
Ernst Lindeléf : Conformal representations.—Georges 
Remoundos: The convergence of series of analytical 
functions.—A, Chatelet : Congruences of higher order. 
—G, Armellini: The analytical solution of the limited 
problem of three bodies.—M. Swyngedauw: The re- 
sistance of safety spark-gaps.—Eugéne Darmois and 
Maurice Leblanc, jun. : The possibility of an alternat- 
ing arc in mercury vapour. It was shown by Cooper- 
Hewitt that the mercury arc in a vacuum acts as a 
valve for an alternating current, and this has been 
utilised for conversion of alternating into continuous 
current. The authors describe conditions under which 
it is possible to maintain an alternating arc in mercury 
vapour for low frequencies and moderate voltages.—G. 
Moreau : Flames containing chlorides giving an electro- 
motive force-——MM. Hanriot and Lahure: The mini- 
, mum temperatures of annealing. The time during 
