5io 



NA TURE 



[Sept. 21, il 



with preface, note?, and commentary. The learned senator 

 delivered last Saturday before the Academy of Moial and 

 Political Science, of which he is a member, a lecture on his 

 translation, showing that in this work, executed after numerous 

 dissections of animals sent to him by Alexander, the great philo- 

 sopher exhibited a penetration of mind which had been unsur- 

 passed in his other treatises, and had been praised by Buffonand 

 Cuvier. M. Barthelemy St. Hilaire contends that the descrip- 

 tions were originally accompanied by illustrations, to which 

 numerous allusions are made in the text. 



The inventory of the fortune left by the late M. Giffard has 

 been completed. The whole amounts to about 7 million francs ; 

 2 milions are devoted to legacies, and the other 5 are bequeathed 

 to the French Government to be spent in foundations useful 

 for the promotion of know ledge. No decision will be taken by 

 the Government before the Council of State has given an opinion 

 on the question of accepting the legacy. The same formality 

 will lie complied with even for the sum of 50,000 francs which 

 has been bequeathed to the Academy of Science, as well as to 

 the Societe des Amis des Sciences, and Societe d'Encouragement. 

 But it has been suggested that the 5 millions should be employed 

 in the foundation of a "Caisse Giffard " for thehelp-of inventors 

 in their discoveries. 



The Dutch Society of Sciences, at Harlem, recently awarded 

 gold medals to Herr Neuma)er, of the Hamburg Maritime 

 Observatory, and Herr Buijs-Ballot, of the Utrecht Meteoro- 

 logical Institute, for eminent services in meteorology. The 

 prize-subjects for the current year (to January 1, 1S83) are briefly 

 these : — (1) Influence of light on the electric conducting power 

 of selenium ; are oilier electric properties also modified, and 

 other matters similaily influenced by light? (2) Chemical rela- 

 tions of the principal elements of the bile. (3) Chemical relations 

 of terpenes. (4) Influence of structure and elasticity on the 

 compound tone (the timbre) of sonorous bodies. (5) Examina- 

 tion of Clerk-Maxwell's theory of the electric medium, and its 

 relations to the electro-magnetic theory of light. (6) Decompo- 

 sition of organic matters in brre ground, and ground covered 

 with vegetation. (7) Origin of the mesoderm in vertebrates. 

 {2) Develo| ment of one or several species of annelids. (9) Ditto 

 of echinoderms. For the following year (to January I, 1884) : — 

 (i) Nature and composition of the Terpen of Friesland and 

 Groningen, their animal and plant remains, &c. • (2) Mariners' 

 compasses and the means used to remedy the effects of oscilla- 

 tions and trepidations of the ship, also of the ship's iron. (3) 

 Intensity of the light emitted in different directions from surfaces 

 reflecting light by diffusion, and those emitting proper light ; 

 law of dependence of this intensity on the angle of emission and 

 the nature of the luminous surface. (4) Change of refrangibility 

 of light through motion of the luminous source or the refringent 

 medium. (5) Structure of the kidneys of mammalia, specially 

 as regards the epithelial lining in the different subdivisions of the 

 renal tubes. (6) Condensations of different gases on the surface 

 of solid bodies at different temperatures. (7) Study of the 

 (probable) explanation of many physical and chemical pheno- 

 mena by motions of particles of a system about a state of equi- 

 librium. (8) Peripheric nervous system of various osseous 

 fishes. (9) History of the development of one or several species 

 of Lamellibranchs. (10) The phenomena of electric discharge 

 in rarefied gases. The prize offered, in each case, is (at the 

 author's option) either a gold medal or a sum of 150 florins ; a 

 supplementary premium of 150 florins may be given if the 

 memoir be thought to deserve it. Memoirs to be written in 

 Dutch, French, Latin, English, Italian, or German, and sent to 

 the Secretary in the usual way. 



A series of researches having been undertaken by several 

 Russian physicians as to colour-blindness, Dr. Kolbe has just 



published in the newspaper Vrach ( The Physician) the results. 

 Out of IO.S28 railway servants examined, no less than 251 were 

 colour-blind, and 32 proved to have an imperfect capacity for 

 distinguishing colours. The average percentage of colour-blind 

 would thus be 26 ; but the five doctors who have made these 

 investigations arrived at very different percentages, namely, from 

 0-85 to S per cent. Three other doctors lave made experiments 

 on sailors and pupils in naval schools and have found a much 

 higher percentage— 6 'oS percent, of colour-blind, and 8-5 witli 

 imperfect vision. Among scholars of naval sc'ools the per. 

 centage of colour-blind is however smaller, that is, I '6 and 1-95. 

 Women are subject to a far smaller extent to colour-blindness. 

 Thus, Dr. Kolbe, who has experimented both on men and 

 women, discovered among the men 25 per cent, of colour-blind 

 and 7-5 with imperfect vision, whilst among women he has dis- 

 covered only 0-16 per cent, of colour-blind and 3 per cent, witli 

 imperfect colour vision. 



At King's College, London, a course of lectures on Agri- 

 culture will be given during the ensuing winter by Mr. Frederick 

 James Lloyd, F.C.S., of the Royal Agricultural Society of 

 England. The lectures will be given on Thursday evenings at 

 6 p.m., beginning October 12. 



Under the title of Timehri the Royal Agricultural and Com- 

 mercial Society of British Guiana have begun the issue of a half- 

 yearly journal edited by Mr. E. F. Im Thurn. The journal, 

 however, is not to be devoted solely to agriculture and com- 

 merce, but is intended as a record of all important work bearing 

 on the scientific exploration of the colony. Such a permanent 

 record will be of the greatest utility, and under Mr. Im Thurm's 

 care we may expect some valuable contributions to science. 

 Among the articles in the first number are: — "Tame Animals 

 among the Red Men of America," by the editor; and "Note 

 on a Journey up the Cuyuni," by Mr. J. S. Blake. The term 

 Timehri, we may say, is a Carib word, r and denotes those curious 

 hieroglyphics found so plentifully on the rocks of British Guiana- 



In the new number of the New Zealand Journal of Science, 

 Mr. A. K. Newtran advocates the formation of a New Zealand 

 Association of Science similar to the British Association. We 

 are glad to see any effort to promote science in our colonies, 

 though we should have thought that the New Zealand Institute, 

 combined with the yournal of Science itself, would render any 

 such Association superfluous. But w hy not attempt the forma- 

 tion of an Australasian Association ? 



The annual Conference of delegates from scientific societies 

 was held at Southampton during the meeting of the British 

 Association. Efforts have been made to enlist the co-operation 

 of local societies all over the kingdom, and obtain their aid 

 in carrying out the work of several of the British Association 

 Committees, but so far, we regret to see, not with much success. 

 Still the Conference is capable of doing good work, and we 

 hope will continue its efforts. 



An International Electrical Exhibition has been opened at 

 Munich. 



Messrs. Cassell, Petter, and Galpin have issued Part I. 

 vol. ii. of the Encyclopaedic Dictionary, extending from Cable 

 to Conarum. It seems to us to be in all respects up to the 

 standard of the first volume, noticed by us some time since. 



Under the title of " Brehm's Zoological Atlas," Mr. T. R. 

 Johnston of Edinburgh has brought together the leadirg illus- 

 trations to Brehm's well-known " Thierleben." As an aid to 

 the teaching of the subject the Atlas will be found really service- 

 able, and will be especially interesting to children and useful in 

 leading them to take an interest in science. 



