AuGusT 12, 1915] 

The dean and these professors are members of the 
University Senate. The University courses provided 
by the school lead to the degrees of Bachelor and 
Master of Technical Science. These courses are con- 
trolled by the Senate of the University, through the 
board of the faculty of technology, which is composed 
of the heads of departments in the School of Tech- 
nology together with certain other professors and lec- 
turers in the University. A new characteristic of the 
present issue of the prospectus is the excellent sum- 
mary running to somé ten pages of approved courses 
which students proceeding to degrees in technical 
science, or certificates in technology, are recommended 
to follow. 
laboratories, for which the school is justly renowned, 
gives particulars which serve as an index of the lavish 
and judicious expenditure incurred to make the college 
thoroughly complete and modern. 
Some of our universities have already taken steps 
to deal justly with the many young men who have 
broken their academical work by joining the Army. 
The subject is dealt with at length in Engineering for 
August 6. But few of these young men will be able 
again to take up the threads of their studies when 
peace is proclaimed. They will have been face to face 
with actualities of most serious import, and will 
never again be able to resume the docile and attentive 
attitude which befits the student. It is most earnestly 
to be hoped that before peace is declared the whole 
of the academic and professional bodies of this country 
will come to some definite decision as to what is to be 
their attitude to the young men who are faced with 
the possibility of their careers being broken irretriev- 
ably. The matter is not simple, as the claims both 
of the public and of the young men have to be con- 
sidered; the former expect that diplomas shall not be 
given to men lacking in the necessary attainments; 
it would be outrageous to the latter if the future prizes 
in life were allotted to those who stayed at home. 
Engineering suggests that the kind of knowledge 
which might be expected reasonably from candidates 
who have served in the Army is that which an ordinary 
candidate has retained three years after. taking his 
diploma. In that time all tricks for examination 
purposes have disappeared, leaving only that know- 
ledge which the man felt was really necessary for his 
profession. We should like to add to the case which 
is presented very ably by our contemporary, that it is 
extremely desirable that all our universities and col- 
leges come to a common understanding, so that there 
shall be equality of treatment for all the candidates 
cn retiring from the Army. 

SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 
EDINBURGH. 
Royal Society, July 5.—Sir E. A. Schafer, vice- 
president, in the chair.—Sir William Turner: A con- 
tribution to the craniology of the people of Scotland : 
Part ii., prehistoric, descriptive, and ethnographical. 
Judging from the size and general plan of the skull 
of the prehistoric inhabitants of Scotland, he found 
nothing to show that these very remote ancestors were 
not people of great brain-power.—W. Evans: Mallo- 
phaga and Ixodidz, Ectoparasites of birds from the 
Scotia collections (Scottish National Antarctic Expedi- 
tion). Interesting examples were recorded of the same 
species of parasite infesting closely allied species of 
birds.—Dr. J. R. Milne: Mathematical theory of the 
harmonic synthetiser: part ii. Nine years ago the 
author described an instrument for drawing the curve 
NO. 2389, VOL. 95] 
The account of the equipment of the | 
NATURE 

605 
which is the sum of a number of simple harmonic 
curves. The apparatus makes use of Kelvin’s summa- 
tion wire and an approximate method of obtaining 
harmonic motions which was rejected by him as in- 
sufficiently accurate. It was shown, however, in the 
previous paper that if the various parts be properly 
proportioned, the error can be made very small. The 
more complete mathematical discussion in the present 
paper shows how it may be reduced to negligible 
dimensions.—Prof. C. R. Marshall and Miss Elizabeth 
Gilchrist: The interaction of methylene iodide and 
silver nitrate.—James W. Munro: The structure and 
life-history of Bracon hylobii, a study in parasitism. 
The Hylobius abietis was the most dangerous insect 
enemy to forestry in Scotland. One way of fighting it 
was by the breeding and setting free of a parasitic 
enemy. Such a parasite is Bracon hylobiiMiss 
Augusta Lamont: The lateral sense organs of 
Elasmobranchs; the ampullary canals of the genus 
Raia. 
New Soutny WaALEs. 
Linnean Society, May 26.—Mr. A. G. Hamilton, 
president, in the chair.—W. N. Benson: The geology 
| and petrology of the great serpentine-belt of New 
South Wales. Part iv.—The dolerites, spilites, and 
keratophyres of the Nundle district. This paper is a 
detailed account of the Middle Devonian igneous rocks, 
which were briefly discussed in earlier parts of this 
series. It is shown that the rocks are intrusive, when- 
ever clear evidence of their muse-en-place is obtain- 
able, even though pillow-structure is well developed, a 
feature usually characteristic of flows. A remarkable 
series of magnetite-albite rocks have been discovered 
among the keratophyres. They find their closest 
analogy among the igneous rocks accompanying the 
iron-ores of Lapland.—Dr. A. Turner; Further 
notes on the Lepidoptera of Ebor Scrub, N.S.W. Two 
| later visits in February, 1915, resulted in the acquisi- 
| tion of specimens of thirty-one species, of which only 
seven were obtained in 1914. Thirteen of the twenty- 
four additional species are known from other localities ; 
nine are described as new; and two remain undeter- 
mined. Two species, previously undetermined, are 
described as new from more complete material.—F. H. 
Taylor; Contributions to a knowledge of Australian 
Culicide. No. II. | Five species referable to the 
genera Stegomyia, Neomacleaya, Culicada, and Culex 
(two) are described as new. The males of two 
species, previously unknown, are also described.—Dr. 
R. Greig-Smith ; A new gum-levan-forming Bacterium. 
The hitherto described bacteria capable of forming 
gum-levan from saccharose, are two in number. A 
third has been isolated from the tissues of a seedling 
of Eucalyptus hemiphloia. It differs from Bac. levani- 
formans in forming no spores; and from Bac. 
eucalyptt in its power of fermenting dextrose, sac- 
charose, and lactose, with production of acid and gas. 
—E. A. Briggs: Hydroids from New South Wales. 
Sertularella longitheca, Bale, var. robusta, Ritchie 
(fam. Sertularida), described from sterile specimens 
dredged off the coast of New South Wales, is now 
shown, from the examination of colonies bearing 
gonangia, not to be a variety of S. longitheca, but to 
be entitled to specific rank.—Dr. Th. Mortensen: Pre- 
liminary note on the remarkable, shortened develop- 
ment of an Australian sea-urchin (Toxocidaris erythro- 
grammus). The ova are large, opaque, and full of 
yolk, and float on the surface of the water. " Cleavage 
is total and regular at first. The gastrula is free- 
swimming, the aboral end being turned upwards, 
and containing most of the yolk. The postoral pro- 
cesses are represented only by a rudimentary swelling, 
and there is no sign of a Pluteus-stage; nor, appar- 
