AvuGUST 15, 1912] 
NATURE 
625 
philosophy. The ultimate residue of the property is 
left to the Victoria University, Manchester, for John 
Hall scholarships in such scientific subjects and sub- 
ject to such terms and conditions as the council of the 
University with the consent of Mr. Hall’s trustees 
may approve. 
Pror. W. M. Baytiss, F.R.S., has been appointed 
university professor of general physiology in Uni- 
versity College, London. 
Mr. A. Crompton, a research assistant at the 
Pasteur Institute, Paris, has been appointed .a 
member of the staff of the Imperial Cancer Research 
Fund. 
THe appointment of Dr. A. W. Mackintosh as 
Regius professor ‘of medicine in the University of 
Aberdeen, in the place of Prof. D. W. Finlay, re- 
signed, has been approved by the King. 
Mr. F. J. Kean, lecturer in the department of civil 
engineering in the University of Leeds, has’ been 
appointed lecturer in machine designing and experi- 
mental engineering at McGill University, Montreal. 
Mr. F. J. Lewis, demonstrator in botany and 
lecturer in geographical. botany in the University of 
Liverpool, “has been’ appointed professor of biology 
in the’ University’ of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, 
Canada. ; 
Ir has’ been decided to hold a Summer School of 
‘Geography in Yorkshire in August, 1913. The school 
is being promoted by the Universities of Durham, 
Leeds, and Sheffield, in co-operation with the County 
and County Borough Education Committees of York- 
shire. .Further particulars will be announced later. 
SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 
Paris. 
Academy of Sciences, July 29.—M. F. Guyon in the 
chair.—Jean Escard: An experimental contribution to 
the study of the formation of the lunar craters. 
Viscous substances, such.as bitumen, resin, or mix- 
tures of both, are heated after addition of a small 
quantity of water. The steam issuing from the pasty 
mass. gives rise to well-marked crater-formed  open- 
ings; a photographic reproduction of such an experi- 
ment is given.—André Brochet: The polarisation of 
electrodes. A study of the lines of equal potential in 
an electrolyte with bipolar electrodes.—A. Berthaud : 
An elementary demonstration of the law of mass 
action.—Eugéne Wourtzel: The synthesis of nitrosyl 
chloride and the atomic weight of chlorine. A known 
weight of pure chlorine is treated with a slight. excess 
of nitric oxide, the nitrosyl chloride formed is solidified 
at a low temperature, and the excess of nitric oxide 
removed. Five determinations of the ratio of Cl: NO 
are given, with a mean value of 118167, leading to 
an atomic weight of 35460 for chlorine if O=16, 
H=1'00762, Ag=107°88, and N=14'008.—Mlle. Cécile 
Spielrein: The equilibrium of lithium sulphate and 
the alkaline sulphates in presence of their mixed 
solution.—Luigi Norsa: The electrical properties of 
the copper-zine alloys. Measurements of the electrical 
conductivity, its temperature coefficient, and the 
thermo-electric power (against lead) of twenty-five 
alloys of copper and zinc. Diagrams of the results 
are shown, and those show discontinuities correspond- 
ing to the compositions CuZn, CuZn.,, and CuZn,.— 
Wladmir Smirnoff: The thermal expansion of the 
NO. 2233, VOL. 89] 
alloys of aluminium and zinc.—Pierre Jolibois: The 
formula of organo-magnesium compounds and_ of 
magnesium hydride. The author adduces evidence in 
favour of the formula, MgR.MglI,, for the organo- 
magnesium compounds.—P. Lemoult ; Leucobases and 
colouring matters derived from diphenylethylene; the 
oxidation by lead peroxide of the tetra-methyl-cyclo- 
hexylidene base.—E. Doumer: The treatment of arte- 
rial hypertension by electrification of the abdomen 
and the renal region.—Albert Berthelot and D. M. 
Bertrand: Contribution to the study of the toxic pro- 
perties of 8-imidoazoethylamine. This compound has 
proved to be much less toxic to the ape than to the 
guinea-pig, rabbit, or cat..—H. Busquet and M. 
Tiffeneau; The réle of caffeine in the cardiac action 
of coffee. Caffeine is the principal agent of the 
cardiac action of coffee——E. Fauré-Frémiet : Degenera- 
tive parthenogenesis in Ascaris megalocephala.—J. 
Bridré and A. Boquet: Anticlavelous vaccination with 
sensitised virus. The titration of the vaccine.—A. T. 
Salimbeni: The action of certain ethers of glycerol on 
the tubercle bacillus. A study of the action of mono-, 
di-, and tri-chlorohydrin upon the tubercle bacillus.— 
Ph. Négris: The age of the crystalline formations of 
the Peloponnesus.—G. Massol : The radio-activity of the 
mineral waters of Usson. . The dissolved gases of the 
Usson springs consist almost entirely of, nitrogen and 
the rare gases; they are radio-active, and their radio- 
activity is due to. the radium emanation.—Prince B. 
Galitzine ; The determination of the depth of an earth- 
quake focus and of the velocity of propagation of 
seismic waves in the superficial layers of the earth’s 
crust.—F. de Montessus de Ballore: The periods of 
Briickner and destructive earthquakes. There would 
appear to be no relation between the Briickner cycles 
and the number of earthquakes. 
August 4.—M. F. .Guyon in the chair.—Paul 
Sabatier and M. Murat: The preparation of the four 
dicyclohexylpropanes. These hydrocarbons have been 
prepared by the action of hydrogen’in the presence of 
reduced nickel upon either the diphenylpropanes or 
the diphenylpropenes. Details are given of the inter- 
mediate compounds prepared, and of the physical and 
chemical properties of the dicyclohexylpropanes.— 
Paul Suchar: Invariant curves by a reciprocal trans- 
formation.—A. Guillet: The realisation of a uniform 
circular movement by a periodic synchronising action. 
The synchronisation is effected electrically, the ulti- 
mate control being a heavy pendulum.—C.- Dauzeére : 
The changes undergone by cellular vortices when the 
temperature is raised.—F. Schwers: Remarks on a 
note by P. T. H. Muller and Mlle. V. Guerdjikoff on 
the refraction and magnetic rotation of mixtures. 
These authors found that the magnetic rotation of 
binary mixtures was a linear function of the concen- 
tration, but that, for the index of refraction, the curve 
showed a marked discontinuity. The second con- 
clusion is adversely criticised——Daniel Berthelot and 
Henri Gaudechon: The photolysis of the sugars 
ketonic by sunlight and by ultra-violet light.. Ketoses 
containing three, four, six, and seven atoms of carbon 
were used in the experiments. With sunlight, carbon 
monoxide was given off in all cases, the rapidity of 
gas evolution decreasing as the atomic weight of the 
sugar increased. With ultra-violet light, the reaction 
remained fundamentally the same, but was compli- 
cated by secondary reactions.—Mare Landau: The 
application of luminous energy to the study of some 
questions of chemical analysis. Prolonged exposure 
to ultra-violet light completely polymerises ethylene; 
methane, ethane, and hydrogen undergo no change 
under the same conditions, and these facts can be 
applied in the analysis of gaseous. mixtures.—F’. Jadin 
