August 12, 1922] 



NA TURE 



235 



Societies and Academies. 



Edinburgh. 



Royal Meteorological Society, July 24. — Dr. C. 

 (Three, president, in the chair. — C. K. M. Douglas : 

 Observations of upper cloud drift as an aid to 

 research and to weather forecasting. The condition 

 of the wind near the top of the troposphere in different 

 stages of a cyclone is discussed. The pressure 

 distributions aloft, disclosed by the upper winds, 

 are considered in relation to temperature, as the 

 pressure at considerable heights is largely determined 

 by the temperature of the column of air underneath. 

 There is complete lack of symmetry in the tempera- 

 ture distribution over a cyclone in its earlier stage, 

 with a great contrast in the temperature of the whole 

 troposphere between the " polar " and " equatorial " 

 currents. When the cyclone becomes stationary 

 and fills up, the distribution of temperature and wind 

 in the upper air approaches to symmetry round the 

 centre, and the easterly current on the north side 

 often extends throughout the troposphere. No 

 simple rules for weather forecasting can be drawn 

 up, as the changes in the wind at considerable 

 heights follow rather than precede those near the 

 surface, but observations of high cloud motion are 

 valuable, for they indicate the temperature dis- 

 tribution in the troposphere. — J. S. Dines : Note on 

 the effect of a coast line on precipitation. A con- 

 vergence effect occurs over a coast line when the 

 wind blows along the coast, the low pressure being 

 over the sea and the high pressure over the land ; 

 this may cause precipitation. Under favourable 

 conditions an upward, current of 15 feet per minute 

 may be produced over a strip of the earth's surface 

 extending 5 miles on each side of the coast line. A 

 similar effect occurs wherever the pressure gradient 

 varies along a line perpendicular to the isobars, 

 and the following rule is deduced : "In any area 

 where the pressure gradient increases towards the 

 ' High ' there will be rising air." — A. E. M. Geddes 

 and C. A. Clarke : Note on turbulence, as exhibited 

 by anemometer records, smoke and cloud formation. 

 The effect of eddy motion is shown near the surface 

 by the records from a pressure tube anemometer. 

 The turbulence and consequent eddy motion depend 

 largely on the nature of the surface over which the 

 air current is travelling. Eddies higher up are 

 shown by smoke from tall chimneys. Higher up, 

 cloud of the stratus order is formed. Smoke eddies 

 and clouds occur when there is little or no convection 

 due to heated air, and therefore their appearance 

 and formation is evidently in accordance with 

 Taylor's theory of eddy motion. Eddies occur at 

 the junction of two currents of different temperature, 

 and fragments of cloud form below the base of the 

 line squall or similar cloud. Cloud intermediate 

 between the normal cirrus and cirro-cumulus types 

 undergoes changes which are at present unexplained. 

 The change of the cirro-cumulus type, regarded as a 

 water-droplet cloud, into the ice-crystal structure 

 of true cirrus is only to be expected at high 

 altitudes and consequently generally very low 

 temperatures, but the reverse process occurs fre- 

 quently. 



Paris. 



Academy of Sciences, July 10. — M. Emile Bertin in 

 the chair. — Paul Janet : The standard reproduction 

 of the international ohm. An account of the prepara- 

 tion of eight standard mercury ohms by the late M. 



NO. 2754, VOL. I 10] 



Rene Benoit. The differences between the values 

 measured by electrical methods and the values 

 deduced from the geometrical dimensions did not 

 amount to more than a few hundred-thousandths. 

 The mean of the absolute values of the deviations was 

 1-9 xio- 6 . — E. Cartan : A fundamental theorem of 

 H. Weyl in the theory of metric space. — A. Chatelet : 

 Finite Abelian groups. — J. Guillaume : Observations 

 of the sun made at the Observatory of Lyons during 

 the first quarter of 1922. Observations were possible 

 on 74 days during the quarter ; the results are sum- 

 marised in three tables showing number and area of 

 spots, their distribution in latitude and the distribu- 

 tion of the faculffi in latitude. — G. Sagnac : The 

 oscillations of the spectral lines of double stars 

 explained by the new law of projection of energy of 

 light. — E. M. Lemeray : General relativity and the 

 .Milky Way. — R. Jouast : Comparisons of the standard 

 reproductions of the international ohms. The stand- 

 ards constructed by the late M. Rene Benoit were 

 compared by Kelvin's double-bridge method. Of the 

 ten originally constructed one was rejected owing to 

 an accident in mounting, and another had also to be 

 rejected on account of an apparent discontinuity in 

 the tube. Details of the measurements are given. 

 The values range between 0-99984 ohm and 1-00015 

 ohm. — Vasilesco Karper : A particular class of 

 batteries. A voltaic cell is formed by a mixture of 

 amyl alcohol and water containing zinc sulphate in 

 solution. This separates into two phases, the upper 

 being amyl alcohol, the lower an aqueous solution of 

 zinc sulphate. With zinc electrodes this cell gives an 

 E.M.F. of 0-7 volt. The results obtained with this 

 and similar cells are not in accord with Nernst's 

 osmotic theory of cells, and appear to contradict the 

 second law of thermo-dynamics. — P. Janet : Remarks 

 on the preceding communication. It is necessary to 

 prove rigorously that the cycle formed by the sub- 

 stances present constitutes a closed cycle. — Albert 

 Granger : Observations on the baking of ceramic 

 products in electrically heated furnaces. With 

 platinum-wound furnaces the highest temperature 

 attainable with safety is about 1300 C. For higher 

 temperatures a granulated carbon resistance is neces- 

 sary. A grey tint on the porcelain made in this 

 furnace was proved to be due to the action of carbon 

 monoxide passing through the wall of the tube 

 (corundum mixed with a refractory clay). — R. 

 Locquin and Sung Wouseng : Aldehydes obtained 

 starting with tertiary alcohols. — F. Boiry : Vulcanis- 

 ing rubber in solution. A study of the interaction of 

 indiarubber in colloidal solution and sulphur with 

 different solvents at high temperatures (over 120 C). 

 With phenetol as solvent the compound produced 

 contained 31-5 per cent, of sulphur, approximately 

 corresponding to C 10 H 16 S, (32 per cent, sulphur), 

 which may be considered as the ultimate product of 

 vulcanisation. — Herve de Pommereau : The reduction 

 of ethyl a-naphthylacetate and of the a-naphthyl- 

 ethanols by sodium and absolute alcohol. — Emile 

 Andre : Contribution to the study of grape seed oil. 

 Study of the solid fatty acids. Method of separating 

 stearic and palmitic acids. — A. Duffour : A new 

 example of hemihedral forms not conforming to the 

 sign of optical activity. — Gabriel Bertrand and 

 Mokragnatz : The presence of cobalt and nickel in 

 arable soil. The method of extracting these metals 

 from the soil and identifying them is given in detail. 

 A specimen of garden soil (Pasteur Institute) has 

 given 0-0037 grm. cobalt and 0-0174 grm. nickel per 

 kilogram of soil. — I. Athanasiu : Nervous motive 

 energy. Electroneurograms. — A. Desgrez, H. Bierry, 

 and F. Rathery : The state of acidosis. Method 

 of proof and treatment. 



