May 28, 1908J 



NA TURE 



91 



different appearance of the granulation in the case of cones 

 exposed to red and blue Hght with the qualities of the 

 light. This argument from Lippmann's direct colour 

 pliotography, therefore, is at present unconvincing in its 

 most essential feature. 



The second argument in support of the view that colour 

 arises from " stationary waves " set up in the inner 

 segments of the rods and cones is the ready explanation 

 it affords of colour-blindness. On the usual theory that 

 light traverses the outer dioptric limb of the rods and 

 cones and is arrested by the retinal pigment, the origin, 

 and especially the variations of the colour-sense, are 

 difficult to explain, even with the aid of the retinal purple. 

 Prof. Raehlmann, however, has no difficulty in pointing 

 out that disturbance of the reflecting power of the outer 

 rod-limb, such as might readily ensue without causing 

 loss of sharpness of sight, would cause variation and even 

 loss of colour-vision, whilst the much commoner reverse 

 condition would be due to dislocation of the rods by 

 choroidal or pigmentary disturbances from a vertical into 

 an oblique position sucli as is found normally at the weak- 

 sighted periphery of the eye. Other phenomena of vision — 

 adaptation, tlje dazzling effect of contrast, after-images, 

 and the interesting structural variations shown in the ro-'-; 

 of animal retinas (for example, the coloured globules of 

 many birds, the retina of deep-sea cephalopods) — are also 

 touched upon, and an attempt is made to show that on 

 this hvpothesis a fuller explanation mav now be given than 

 has hitherto been possible. Direct proof of this view, how- 

 ever, has not yet been obtained, and the analogical or 

 indirect evidence advanced in support of it cannot yet be 

 said to be of a convincing nature. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



Cambridge. — On the occasion of the installation of the 

 Chancellor on June 17 it is proposed to confer degrees 

 upon the following, among others : — Hon. C. Algernon 

 Parsons, C.B., F.R.S., Sir Andrew Noble, Bart., K.C.B., 

 F.R.S., Sir William Crool^es, F.R.S., Prof. Horace Lamb, 

 F.R.3., and Prof. G. D. Liveing, F.R.S. It is under- 

 stood that, according to precedent, the new Chancellor has 

 nominated the recipients of the honorary degrees which 

 will be conferred at his installation. 



Dr. Guillemard, Dr. Haddon, and iVIr. H. Y. Oldham, 

 of King's College, have been nominated to represent the 

 University at the International Congress of Geography to 

 be held at Geneva next July. 



The special' board for mathematics has nominated Mr. 

 H. F. Slewall, of Trinity College, as a member of the 

 board of electors to the Plumian professorship of astro- 

 nomy, and the special board for physics and chemistry 

 has nominated Dr. W. N. Shaw as a member of the 

 board of electors to the professorship of mechanism and 

 applied sciences. 



The X'ice-Chancellor announces that he has received from 

 Prof. Liveing an intimation of his intention to resign the 

 professorship of chemistry an .Saturday, June 20. 



Edinburgh. — Prof. Crum Brown will resign the chair of 

 chemistry on July 25. Applications for the chair, the 

 patronage of which is vested in the curators, should be 

 sent, with relative testimonials, on or before Julv 4, to 

 Mr. R. Herbert Johnston, 4 Albyn Place, Edinburgh. 



Leeds. — Prof. W. H. Bragg. F.R.S., professor of mathe- 

 matics and physics in the University of Adelaide since 

 1S86, has been appointed to succeed Prof. Stroud in the 

 Cavendish chair of physics. Prof. Bragg will enter upon 

 his duties at Leeds next February. 



Oxford. — Mr. C. F. Jenkin has been elected to the 

 newly constituted professorship of engineering science. 



Mr. Benjamin Kidd will deliver the Herbert Spencer 

 lecture on Friday-, May 29, at 4 p.m., in the Sheldonian 

 Theatre, the subject being " Individualism and After." 



Dr. Joseph F. Payne, hon. fellow of Magdalen College, 

 has been appointed by the delegates of the common uni- 

 versity fund to deliver a course of six lectures in the next 

 academic year on the history of medicine, dealing specially 

 with Greek medicine. | 



Prof. E. B. Poulton and Mr. A. H. Church have been 

 appointed to represent the University on the occasion of 

 the Linnean Society's celebration of the fiftieth anniversary 

 of the reading of the Darwin-Wallace memoir on the origin 

 of species. 



Mr. J. P. Griffith, Rathmines Castle, Dublin, has 

 just contributed tool, towards the new buildings of the 

 North Wales University College. 



The .Association of Technical Institutions has awarded 

 the prize of 25Z. for the best essay on " The Bearing of 

 Technical Education on Industrial Progress " to Dr. John 

 Ryan, Milltown, co. Dublin, and the prize of the same 

 amount for the best essay on " The Bearing of Technical 

 Education on Agriculture and Industries of a Rural 

 Character " to Mr. Edgar Chamberlain, Municipal 

 Technical School, Lincoln. 



Messrs. Sw.'iN Sonnenschein and Co., Ltd., have now 

 published " The Girls' School Year-book " for the year 

 .April, igo8, to April, igog. This is the third year of 

 publication of a very useful work of reference. .A hundred 

 and thirty public secondary schools for girls in different 

 parts of England and Wales are described in some detail, 

 and a fairly complete list of similar schools in the United 

 Kingdom is provided. It is not always easy to see the 

 reasons for the choice of schools receiving extended treat- 

 ment, but the year-book is still young, and the editors will 

 probably extend their selection in future issues. The second 

 part of the volume deals chiefly with careers for girls, but 

 provides other useful information also. The book is 

 certainly gratifying evidence of the improvement which 

 has been accomplished in the education of girls during 

 recent years, and it is satisfactory to notice that it is pro- 

 posed in next year's issue to deal with instruction _ in 

 domestic science and housecraft, for it is in this direction 

 that there is real need of experiment and observation if 

 our girls' schools are to be successful in preparing their 

 pupils for one of the most important parts of a woman's 

 life. 



VVe learn from the Pioneer Mail that a letter has been 

 sent by the secretary of the Government Education Depart- 

 ment to the registrar of the University of Bombay stating 

 that the Governor in Council has had under consideration 

 the nature of the provision at present made in Government 

 colleges affiliated to the Bombay University for the teach- 

 ing of science. The committee appointed by the syndicate 

 of the University in igo6 to inspect these colleges indicated 

 many points in which the instruction in chemistry, physics, 

 and biology could be improved. The letter points out that 

 it is necessary to meet the requirements of two distinct 

 classes of students — those who specialise in science with 

 the view of making it their life work, and those who 

 take an elementary course to qualify them in part for a 

 degree in arts, or 'for admission to the medical profession. 

 It is proposed to concentrate the higher teaching of science 

 in the College of Science at Poona, which will be equipped 

 thoroughly for the purpose. Steps have been taken to 

 obtain a full staff of highly qualified professors, and when 

 the college is in full working order it will afford facilities 

 for the study of science such as have hitherto been un- 

 attainable in Bombay. For the second class of students- 

 it is proposed to provide a laboratory in Bombay at which 

 students from different colleges may pass through a course 

 of elementarv science. A similar course would be provided 

 at the College of Science for Poona students, and for the 

 present the science departments of Gujarat and Sind Arts 

 Colleges would be retained. This elementary coiirse will 

 consist almost entirelv of practical work, and it is hoped 

 in this wav to supply a deficiency in the ordinary course 

 of study o'f Indian students by providing a training in 

 observation and the accurate recording of facts. 



The Scotch Education Department is publishing at short 

 intervals memoranda on the teaching of various school 

 subjects. The teaching of English, arithmetic, languages, 

 drawing, history, and, most recently, nature-study and 

 science, have been dealt with in this way. The sixth 

 memorandum (Cd. 4024) is divided into two sections, con- 

 cerned with nature-study and science respectively. Nature- 

 study as here described is a very comprehensive branch of 

 knowledge, related in its various aspects with many other 



