Fepruary 24, 1923] _ 
and Mr. F. J. W. Whipple. Assistant Secretary: Mr. 
A. Hampton Brown, 49 Cromwell Road, South Ken- 
sington, S.W.7. 
THE Journal of the Camera Club, which first 
appeared in 1886 and was issued at regular intervals 
for twenty years, was one of the foremost of publica- 
tions connected with photography. The authorities 
of the Club feel that the time is now ripe to begin a 
new series. It has been decided to issue the Journal 
quarterly, and that it shall contain summaries of 
lectures given before the Club as well as articles on 
photographic subjects. The first number has just 
been published, and contains among its many items 
technical articles by Dr. Alexander Scott, Mr. 
Chapman Jones, and others. The whole number is 
interesting, even to non-members of the Club, to 
whom its price is 6d. 
THE Ministry of Agriculture is able to announce, as 
the result of conferences held at Washington in May 
and October last, that bulbs of Chionodoxa, Galanthus, 
Scilla, Fritillaria imperialis, F. Meleagris, Muscari, 
Ixia and Eranthis, have been added to the list of bulbs 
permitted unlimited entry into the United States, the 
permission holding good for a period of three years 
from January 1 last. The activities of the phyto- 
pathological service of the various countries at the 
ports continue to increase; bulbs now reach this 
country from Holland guaranteed by the inspection 
services of the Netherland Government. British 
potatoes may receive certificate of immunity after 
trial at the official station of the Ministry of Agricul- 
ture and Fisheries at Ormskirk, and the British phyto- 
pathological services receive increasing demands for 
inspection service before export. In the present 
state of our knowledge of plant pathology the require- | 
ments of these services raise many problems requiring 
further research ; thus it is very difficult to say in the 
case of transplanted stocks, whether a swollen 
structure at the base is a somewhat excessive callus 
or a form of crown gall. Such questions seem to 
indicate the advisability of leisurely inspection at the 
nursery before despatch rather than examination at 
the port just before shipping. This plan is largely 
_ adopted, and recalls to mind the advantages and 
: 
disadvantages of the Central Passport or Permit 
Offices which dealt with civilian travellers during 
the war. 
THE eighth Bulletin of the Non-Ferrous Metals 
Research Association contains much valuable material. 
Good progress is being made with the systematic 
researches undertaken on behalf of the Association, 
and an extensive investigation is now planned, dealing 
with the subject of die-casting alloys. The scale of 
this investigation, which is of interest to the electrical 
as well as to the engineering industries, will depend on 
the amount of support received from firms making use 
of die-casting in some form. It is proposed to under- 
take work in three sections, dealing respectively with 
aluminium alloys, brass and bronze alloys, and alloys 
of low melting-point, the laboratories selected being 
the National Physical Laboratory, the Research 
NO. 2782, VOL. 111] 
NATURE 

267 
Department of Woolwich, and the University of 
Sheffield. A new feature of the Bulletin is an article 
by Prof. Courtman on recrystallisation, with a biblio- 
graphy of 73 items. Such summaries of published 
work are likely to prove valuable to members. 
Abstracts of important papers are also included, but 
in view of the extensive abstracting of the Institute 
of Metals it is intended to confine this part of the work 
to a small number of papers of special technical 
importance. The Association has adopted a very 
liberal policy in regard to publication. 
Modern Wireless is a new magazine which promises 
to play an important part in popularising the art of 
radio communication, and guiding the development 
of methods of broadcasting. The first number, which 
was published in February, begins an interesting 
series of articles by Sir Oliver Lodge describing the 
method of transmission of wireless waves. There is 
also an important article by P. R. Coursey describing 
methods of receiving radio signals from electric 
lighting wires. It is not generally known that in 
many cases an aerial is an unnecessary adjunct to a 
broadcast receiving set. All that is necessary is to 
connect the set through a plug and a small condenser 
to any electric light fitting indoors, If a gas pipe or 
a water pipe is available we can use it for the earth, 
but in many cases, as Mr. Coursey points out, even 
this is not necessary. All that is required is to have 
access to the electric lighting wires whether the supply 
be direct or alternating. As an aerial is objectionable 
for several reasons, this method will help to popularise 
broadcasting, but it will make it difficult for the 
Post Office to enforce the purchase of a broadcasting 
license. There are many other interesting articles in 
this number. Wecongratulate the editor, Mr. J. Scott- 
Taggart, who is a well-known radio expert, on his 
success in making this issue interesting and easily 
understood, and yet maintaining high technical 
accuracy. 
Tue recent issue of the index parts of Science 
Abstracts completes Volume 25 of each of the sections 
—-Physics and Electrical Engineering—for 1922. 
While the Electrical Engineering volume has nearly 
the same number of pages, 650, as last’ year, the 
Physics volume has increased by 90 pages, and now 
has nearly 1000 pages. The number of abstracts has 
increased by about 50 in the former and about 460 in 
the latter section, and there is a slight reduction in 
the average length, 0.486 page, of an abstract in the 
former and a considerable reduction, from 0.398 to 
0.364 page, in the latter section. Ten years ago the 
figure was 0.317 page, and it is extremely doubtful 
whether the intrinsic value of scientific papers has 
increased in the interval to a sufficient extent to 
justify the increased length of the average abstract. 
Whatever opinion may be held on this question, there 
can be no doubt that Science Abstracts fulfils with 
conspicuous success its task of placing before its 
readers a short account of the advances made during 
the year in the subjects with which it deals, and that 
as a result it should receive every support from 
electrical engineers and physicists. 
