576 



NA TURE 



[April 14, \\ 



here establishes the important genei-alisation that all these cubics 

 may be rectified by means of the elliptical integrals. — On the 

 voltaic arc, by M. G. Maneuvrier. A new process is described, 

 by means of which the voltaic arc may be excited without pre- 

 vious contact of the two electrodes. — Law of distribution of the 

 rays and bands common to several spectra of bands, by M. 

 Deslandres. Having already shown that the rays composing 

 the same band may be divided into a series of identical rays, 

 such that in each series the intervals between one ray and the 

 following run pretty well in arithmetical progression, the 

 author here extends this simple law of distribution to the 

 bands of the same spectrum of bands, indicating an analogy 

 with the law of succession of sounds in a solid body. — Fatal 

 accidents in electric workshops, by M. A. d'Arsonval. Some 

 remarks are presented on the causes of these accidents, 

 on their physiological efiects, and on the means of pre- 

 venting them. — Quantitative analysis of vanadic acid, by 

 M. A. Ditte. It is shown that by observing certain precau- 

 tions the method indicated by Berzelius, based on the insolu- 

 bility of the vanadate of ammonia in sal ammoniac may be 

 applied to the analysis of vanadium in the form of vanadic acid 

 with satisfactory results. — On some ammoniacal combinafions of 

 the sulphate and nitrate of cadmium, by M. G. Andre. Some 

 details are given for the preparation of the ammoniacal sulphates 

 and nitrates of cadmium, with indications of their possible rela- 

 tions to the corresponding salts of zinc and copper. — On the 

 extraction and analysis of the vanadium occurring in rocks and 

 mineral ores, by M. L. L'Hote. The method here described 

 involves two operations : the extraction of the vanadium in the 

 form of vanadic solution, and its analysis by means of titrated 

 liquors, or by weighing. — On the preparation of the propyl- 

 amines and iso-amylamines, by M. H. Malbot. The observa- 

 tions recently made by the author on the isobutylamines are here 

 extended to the amines derived from various alcohols. — On the 

 power of multiplication of the ciliated Infusoria, by M. E. 

 Maupas. This power is shown to depend on three factors : the 

 quality and abundance of nourishment ; temperature ; and the 

 biological adaptation of each species from the alimentary stand- 

 point. — Results obtained by the preventive inoculation of the 

 attenuated virus of yellow fever at Rio de Janeiro, by MM. 

 Domingos Freire, Paul Gibier, and C. Rebourgeon. Of the 

 1675 cases terminating fatally between January I S85 and Sep- 

 tember 18S6, only 8 had been vaccinated, and these at a time 

 when the treatment was still imperfectly understood. In general, 

 the mortality is now i per 1000 for the vaccinated, and i per 

 100 for all others. 



Berlin 

 Physiological Society, March 25. — Prof, du Bois-Rey- 

 mond, President, in the chair. — Prof. Falk spoke on the in- 

 fluence of extremes of temperature on the colour of blood. In 

 persons either burnt or frozen to death the post-ttiortem patches 

 present a strikingly bright red colour. The speaker has found, 

 as the result of an experimental investigation, that temperatures 

 of 0° C, and below, lead to the colour of the blood becoming 

 bright red by causing the oxygen of the air to be more readily 

 fixed and more stably retained by the corpuscles than is the case 

 at ordinary temperatures. If, however, the blood has stood 

 exposed to the air until putrefactive changes have set in, in this 

 case the action of cold no longer makes the blood brighter in 

 colour. Other experiments have shown that in animals killed 

 by low temperatures the blood is bright red, not only in the 

 peripheral parts but also in the heart and great vessels. Also in 

 human beings frozen to death the blood even in the heart is 

 sometimes observed to be bright red, although in most cases 

 only the blood of the peripheral parts presents this appearance ; 

 probably death has ensued from freezing only in cases present- 

 ing the first of these two appearances. — The President read a 

 communication from Prof. Fredericq, of Louvain, on Traube- 

 Hering curves. As is well known, a blood-pressure tracing 

 recorded by a mercurial manometer, shows three distinct kinds 

 of curves: — (i) Curves of the first order, which are caused by 

 the systole of the heart. (2) Curves of the second order, which 

 make their appear.ance at lengthy intervals and are synchronous 

 with the respiratory movements : these curves represent the in- 

 fluence of the respiration on the blood-pressure. (3) Curves 

 of the third order, which make their appearance at still longer 

 intervals and were first described by Siegmund Meyer : these 

 have usually been regarded as due to a rnythmic increase and 

 diminution in the activity of the vaso-motor centre. The curves 

 described by Traube and Hering have until now been regarded 



as belonging to the above-mentioned third order of curves. 

 Prof. Fredericq, however, regards this as an incorrect view ; he 

 regards them as belonging to the second order, corresponding 

 to and produced by the respiratory movements. — Dr. Wurster 

 stated that he has treated the caseine-like substance (see Nature, 

 vol. XXXV. p. 455) obtained by the addition of hydrogen-per- 

 oxide to white of eggs with ammonia, and finds that a por- 

 tion of this substance is thereby dissolved. Another p"'rtion, 

 however, is converted into a ropy mass, which on being dried 

 yields a horny substance, with a very marked affinity for colour- 

 ing matters, and which exhibits nearly all the characteristics of 

 horn. He has further found that these two bodies undergo no 

 change by the action of nitrite of soda on the white of eggs. 

 By the addition of lactic or acetic acid he has obtained a yellow 

 precipitate which turned intensely red on exposure to the air : 

 the same reagents applied to blood produced a black colora- 

 tion. — Prof. Zuntz gave a short communication on the course of 

 experiments which he has made in conjunction with Profs. 

 Virchow and .Senator on Cetti during his fast lasting over eleven 

 days. The results of the investigation have not yet been com- 

 pletely put together, but will be communicated at an early 

 sitting of the Physiological Society. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED 



Calendar of the Royal University of Ireland, 1887 (Thorn, Dublin). — 

 Studies from the Laborator>' of Physiological Chemistry, Sheffield Scientific 

 School of Yale University, vol. ij. (New Haven).— Transactions of the 

 Edinburgh Geological Society, vol. v. Part 2 (Edinburgh). — The Treatment 

 and Utilisation of Sewage, 3rd edition : W. Corfield and L. Parkes (Mac- 

 millan).— Practical Solid Geometry: W. G. Ross (Cassells).— Bees and 

 Bee-Keeping, vol. ii. Part 7 : F. R. Cheshire (Gill).— British Dogs. No. 6 : 

 H. Dalziel (Gill).— Catalogus der Bibliotheek van "Slands Plantentium te 

 Buitenzorg (Batavia). — Nitrate of Soda: A. Stutzer(Whittaker). — Mystery 

 of Gravity : J. Eraser (Wyman). — England as a Petroleum Power : C. Marvin 

 (Anderson). — Circulars of Information of the Bureau of Education, Nos. i 

 and 2. 18E6 (Washington).— Report of the Mitchell Library, Glasgow, 1886 

 (Glasgow). — Geo'ogical Magazine, No. 274 (Triibner). — Journal of the 

 Chemical Society/ April (Gurney and Jackson). — Journal of the Slraiis 

 Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, June 1886 ; Notes and Queries (Singa- 

 pore). 



CONTENTS PAGE 



A Naturalist in South America, II 553 



Palaeolithic Man in North-West Middlesex . . . 554 

 Our Book Shelf:— 



Strasburger : " Hand-book of Practical Botany for the 



Botanical Laboratory and Private Student .... 556 

 Shore: " Elementary Practical Biology — Vegetable" 556 

 Letters to the Editor : — 



A Plant which destrovs the Taste of Sweetness. — 



W. T. Thiselton Dyer, C.M.G., F.R.S. . . 557 

 Units of Weight, Mass, and Force. — Prof. Alfred 



Lodge 557 



The Association's "Geometry." — Prof. George 



Bruce Halsted 557 



The Svastika as both Sun and Fire Symbol. — Mrs. 



J. C. Murray-Aynsley. {Ilbisiratcd) 558 



Important Points in the History of Earthquake In- 

 vestigation in Japan. — Prof. John Milne . . . 559 

 Supposed Suicide of the Cobra. — R. D. Oldham. . 560 



The Retirement of Dr. Tyndall 560 



Primroses. By W. Bolting Hemsley 561 



On the Establishment of the Roman Dominion in 



South-East Britain. By Sir G. B. Airy, F.R.S. 562 

 The European Prehistoric Races. By Prof. A. H. 



Keane 564 



An Examination of the Leaves of Gymnema syl- 



vestre. By David Hooper 565 



Notes 567 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



Orbit of the Binary Star 14 (i) Orionis 569 



The Washington Observatory 569 



Names of Minor Planets 569 



Astronomical Phenomena for the Week 1887 



April 17-23 570 



Valency and Residual Affinity, I. By Prof. H. E. 



Armstrong, F.R.S 570 



The Mazapil Meteoric Iron. By William Earl 



Hidden, (lllustratid) • 572 



Societies and Academies 574 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received 576 



