168 

College in October 1923, a studentship of the annual 
value of 150/., which shall be tenable for two years 
and renewable, but only in exceptional circumstances, 
for a third year. The studentship will be awarded 
at the beginning of October, and applications should 
be sent so as to reach the Master of Emmanuel, The 
Master’s Lodge, Emmanuel College, not later than 
September 18. 
Lonpvon.—The Senate has resolved to increase the 
annual grant to the Marine Biological Association, 
Plymouth, from 25/. to 50/. for the next five years. 
The following doctorates have been conferred :— 
D.Sc. in Embryology: Mr. G. S. Sansom, an internal 
student, of University College, for a thesis entitled 
“ Early Development and Placentation in Avrvicola 
(Microtus) amphibius, with special reference to the 
Origin of Placental Giant Cells.”” D.Sc. in Physiology : 
Dr. G. V. Anrep, an internal student, of University 
College, for a thesis entitled ‘‘ The Metabolism of the 
Submaxillary Gland.” 
Dr. Eustace E. Turner has been appointed demon: 
strator in the chemical department of the East 
London College. 
Sr. ANDREWS.—Principal J. C. Irvine, Dr. William 
Low, and Dr. Angus MacGillivray have been appointed 
representatives of the court of the University on a 
standing joint-committee constituted by the court and 
the directors of the Dundee Royal Infirmary for the 
purpose of recommending suitable candidates on the 
occurrence of vacancies in the chairs of clinical medicine 
in the University, and also of harmonising the activi- 
ties of the University and the Infirmary in matters 
common to both. Prof. D’Arcy Thompson has been 
reappointed representative of the court on the council 
of the Scottish Marine Biological Asscciation. 

Major-GEn. SiR GERALD ELLison will unveil the 
war memorial of East London College on Wednesday, 
February 7, at 3 P.M. 
A SweEpIsH professor of education, contrasting 
Swedish and American schools, remarked that in his 
own country the word “teacher” is not a noun 
feminine as it is in America. That the criticism is 
not without some foundation is shown by the statistics 
published in Bulletin, 1922, No. 8, of the United 
States Bureau of Education. The number of men 
students enrolled in normal courses in all normal 
schools and teachers’ colleges in 1919-20 was 19,IIO 
out of a total of 135,418, or 14 per cent; in teachers’ 
colleges the percentage was 18, in state normal schools 
13, in city and county normal schools 6, and in private 
normal schools 9. Comparative tables of statistics 
of the five years 1899-1900, I1904—5, IQ09—10, I914—I5, 
and 1919-20 give the numbers of women students 
in normal courses aS 45,394, 49,346, 68,815, 80,347, 
116,308, representing the following percentages of 
the total numbers of students in such courses : 65, 76, 
78, 80, 86. The teachers’ colleges referred to, 46 in 
number, are institutions having a four-year course 
above the secondary school and granting a degree. 
Of the total number of men students in normal 
courses (19,110), more than half (9763) were enrolled 
in these colleges. It is true that a very large propor- 
tion of the teachers in American schools have not 
passed through normal schools and that the percentage 
of men teachers is not necessarily the same as the 
percentage of men students in teacher-training institu- 
tions. Statistics of City School Systems 1919-20 
(Bulletin, 1922, No. 17), however, tell a similar tale. 
They show that the percentage of men teachers in 
city schools (including schools in towns having a 
population of 2500 or more) is rr, while in city element- 
ary schools the percentage is only 4. It is probably 
safe to assume that rural schools would show an even 
lower percentage. 
NO. 2779, VOL. 111] 
NATURE 

[FEBRUARY 3, 1923 

Societies and Academies. 
Lonpon, 
Royal Society, January 25.—Sir Charles Sherring- 
ton, president, in the chair.—A. V. Hill: The potential 
difference occurring in a Donnan equilibrium and 
the theory of colloidal behaviour, Loeb has shown 
experimentally that there is a potential difference _ 
between a colloidal solution ot a protein and a crystal- 
loid solution with which it is in equilibrium across a 
membrane, impermeable to the protein, but permeable 
to the other bodies involved. It varies in the same 
general manner as the osmotic pressure, the viscosity 
and the swelling. The variation can be deduced, in 
general, from the theory of the Donnan equilibrium. 
One of the chief arguments employed by Loeb, how- 
ever, is incorrect. Loeb shows that the potential 
difference observed experimentally agrees very exactly _ 
with that “ calculated ” from the difference in hydro- _ 
gen ion concentration, also observed experimentally. 
This is a necessary consequence of the manner in 
which the observations were made.—E. F. Armstrong _ 
and T. P. Hilditch: A study of catalytic actions at 
solid surfaces. X.: The interaction of carbon mon- 
oxide and hydrogen as conditioned by nickel at 
relatively low temperatures. A practical synthesis — : 
of methane. A mixture of equal volumes of carbon ; 
monoxide and hydrogen passed over nickel at tem- 
peratures 220-280° C. was largely transformed into 
methane and carbon dioxide : ; 
2CO + 2H,=CO, +CH,. 
This action affords the simplest and most economical 
means of producing methane in quantity, since a 
suitable gas mixture exists in ordinary commercial 
water-gas when the latter has been freed from catalyst 
poisons by removal of sulphur compounds. The 
experimental data obtained are compatible with a 
combination of the ‘‘ water-gas reaction ’’ with the 
normal hydrogenation process. Thus, of two volumes 
of water-gas (2CO+2H,), one molecule of carbon 
monoxide and a molecule of water interact and yield © 
a molecule each of carbon dioxide and of hydrogen, 
the latter, with the balance of hydrogen present in 
the original gas, furnishing sufficient hydrogen for the 
normal hydrogenation of a second molecule of carbon 
monoxide.—J. Holker: The periodic opacity of certain 
colloids in progressively increasing concentrations of 
electrolytes. The method of testing the effect of com- 
mon salt on the typical emulsoid colloid, serum, was 
described. Into each test-tube was pipetted 0-5 c.c. 
of undiluted serum and to each was then added 2 c.c. 
of solution of sodium chloride, which progressively 
increased in concentration in each successive tube. — 
The tubes were shaken and placed in a thermostat — 
at 40° C. for four hours. Then the opacity of — 
the solution was determined. The phenomenon is — 
periodic and is given by colloids of both the emulsoid 
and suspensoid type, and by animal, vegetable, and — 
mineral colloids. It is also given by certain mixtures 
of simple aqueous solutions of inorganic salts. Emul- — 
soid colloids tend to give many oscillations of low 
amplitude. Suspensoid colloids tend to give few 
oscillations of high amplitude. The phenomenon is 
not an optical interference of the light scattered by 
colloidal particles, but is a definite oscillatory change 
in the physical condition of those particles.—E. K. 
Rideal and R. G. W. Norrish: The photochemistry of 
potassium permanganate. Pt. I: The application of 
the potentiometer to the study of photochemical — 
change. Pt. II.: On the energetics of the photo- 
decomposition of potassium permanganate. The — 
electrode potential of potassium permanganate when 
illuminated with ultra-violet light from the mercury — 
vapour lamp undergoes a change (ca 0-25 volt) and 




























