594 



NA TURE 



[October 8, 1908 



UMVERSirV AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



Cambuiuge. — At Emmanuel College, the exhibition of 

 51)/., tenable for two years, offered to an advanced student 

 commencing residence this October, has been awarded to 

 h. J. Russell, Glasgow University. Other exhibitions of 

 jci/., tenable for two years, have been awarded to W. T. 

 Gordon, Edinburgh University, and to A. LI. Hughes, 

 Liverpool University. 



Oxford. — The jubilee of the inception of the University 

 museum is to be commemorated to-day, October 8, by a 

 meeting in the Sheldonian Theatre and a conversazione at 

 the museum. A distinguished company has accepted 

 invitations to be present. The foundation-stone of the 

 building was laid on June 20, 1855, and the work was 

 completed in October, 1858. Its erection represents the 

 result of a movement for the provision of " an edifice 

 within the precincts of the University for the better display 

 of material illustrative of the facts and laws of the 

 natural world." One of the aims of the promoters of 

 the scheme was to gather together various branches of 

 sciences " for mutual aid, and easy interchange of refer- 

 ence and comparison." The museuin has thus connected 

 with it departments of medicine and public health, com- 

 parative anatomy, physiology, human anatomy, zoology, 

 experimental philosophy, physics, chemistry, geologv, 

 mineralogy, ethnography, and pathology. Teaching began 

 in two departments fifty years ago, and the present museum 

 represents the outcome of that beginning. 



In connection with the celebration of the jubilee 

 honorary degrees are to be conferred upon Prof. .'Xrrhenius 

 and Dr. A. G. Vernon Harcourt, F.R.S. At the recep- 

 tion in the afternoon Dr. Harcourt will give a short 

 account of the establishment and worI< of the museum, 

 and a bu-st of Prof. W. F. R. Weldon, who died in 1906, 

 will be unveiled. 



Mr. Jacob .Sassoon has given ten lakhs of rupees 

 (66,000?.) to establish a central college of science in 

 Bombay. 



The .Salters' Company has voted lool. per annum for 

 a period of three years to the cancer research laboratories 

 of the Middlesex Hospital as a research scholarship. 



The distribution of prizes, diplomas, &c., at the South- 

 Eastern .Agricultural College. Wye, will be made on 

 October 21, when Sir Horace Plunkett. F.R.S., will deliver 

 the inaugural address. 



The Pereira medal of the Pharmaceutical Society, 

 awarded annually for high proficiency in malcria lucdicn. 

 botany, and chemistry, was presented to Miss Gertrude 

 H. Wren on September 30, this being the first occasion 

 upon which the prize was received bv a woman. 



The Child Study Society of London will resume its meet- 

 ings for lectures and discussions on October 15, at 8 p.m., 

 in the Parkes Museum, Margaret Street, London, W. At 

 the opening meeting Dr. C. W. Kimmlns will deliver an 

 address on the relation of the curriculum to the develop- 

 ment of the child. .-At subsequent meetings Miss Alice 

 Ravenhlll will describe some results of an investigation 

 into hours of sleep among English elementary-school 

 children ; Dr. G. Eric Pritchard will lecture on the physio- 

 logy of the child ; Dr. F. H. Hayward will deal with 

 education and recent studies In heredity ; and Dr. James 

 Kerr will take for his subject the edilcational revolution 

 and some hints for the future. 



The Board of Education has issued the following list of 

 successful candidates for Royal exhibitions, national 

 scholarships, and free studentships (science), 1908 : — Royal 

 Exhibitions: A. Riddle, Portsmouth; T. J. Hornblow'er, 

 Southsea ; A. H. Gabb, Swindon ; A. E. Stone, Ports- 

 mouth ; F. Morris, Portsmouth; S. B. Hamilton, Halifax; 

 A. H. Barrett, Southsea. National Scholarships for 

 Mechanics (Group A) : B. C. Carter, Southsea ; A. J. 

 White, Southsea; H. H. German, Devonport ; W. F. 

 Boryer, Portsmouth ; H. Mawson, Hunslet, Leeds. Free 

 Studentships for Mechanics (Group A) : G. W. Bird, 

 Plymouth; H. G. Stephens, Leicester. National Scholar- 



N'O. 2032, VOL. 78] 



ships for Pliysics (Group B) : J. Lamb, Gateshead; 

 H. BiUett, Swindon ; F. C. Hobbs, Bristol ; R. Ecker, 

 Norwich ; T. W. Johnstone, Neyland, Pembrokeshire. 

 Free Studentsliips for Physics (Group B) : P. H. S. Kemp- 

 ton, Swindon; W. Jevons, Smethwick. National Scholar- 

 ships for Chemistry (Group C) : W. A. C. Newman, Leeds; 

 E. W. Yeoman, Southampton; F. Hargreaves, Burnley; 

 L. D. Goldsmith, London ; E. Jobling, Hull ; E. O. Jones, 

 Leeds. Free Studentship for Chemistry (Group C) : 

 L. Owen, Trefriw, Carnarvonshire. National Scholarships 

 for Biology (Group D) : E. Hill, Bradford ; H. W'ormald, 

 Wakefield ; T. E. Herbert, London. Free Studentship for 

 Biology (Group D) : E. T. Hainan, London. National 

 Scholarships for Geology (Group E) : H. Hart, Camborne; 

 A. Sharpies, Burnley ; J. W. Chaloner, Burnley. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 London. 



Royal Society, Rect-ived July 31. — " O" llel'uni in Saline 

 Minerals, and lis Probablr Connection with Potassium." 

 By the Hon. R. J. Strutt, F.R.S. 



In a former paper (Roy. Soc. Proc, A, vol. Ixx.x., 

 p. 592) the author mentioned that saline minerals were often 

 comparatively free from contamination with radio-active 

 material of the uranium-radium series. -Accordingly, they 

 afford special opportunities of testing whether or not 

 helium is generated by the other elements present, 

 namely, sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, sulphur, 

 chlorine, oxygen, hydrogen. In this paper determinations 

 are given of helium and radium in some of the saline 

 minerals of Stassfurt. 



Helium was liberated by solution of the mineral in 

 water, and was suitably purified. Uranium was deter- 

 mined in the same solution, by the usual method of boil- 

 ing out the radium emanation generated in a definite 

 period. 



The results were as follows : — 



Rock salt 

 Sylvine . 

 Carnalliie 

 Kieserite 



Composition 



Helium, I Grflms uranium 

 c. mm. per! oxide (UsOg) 

 100 grs. I per 100 grs. 



Helium, 



c.c. per gr, 



U3O8 



NaCl i 



KCl 

 KMgCl.,6H„0 

 MgSO^H„0 



00233 



0-55 



0T51 



00179 



7 I X 10- 



2'15 X I0~ 



323 ■: 10- 



6-47 X I0~ 



3'3 

 256 



47 

 0-277 



Some other salts were also examined qualitatively. 



In none of them was the quantity of helium at all com- 

 parable with what was observed in carnallite or sylvine, 

 though Dj could generally be seen. 



Returning to the quantitative experiments, it is notice- 

 able that very high ratios of helium to uranium oxide 

 are met with in these two minerals. 



It seems altogether improbable that the minute traces 

 of uranium and radium present can account for so much 

 helium. On the other hand, the helium in rock salt is 

 very much of the order to be expected from its geological 

 age if it originates from the uranium family of radio- 

 active bodies. 



In view of Campbell and Wood's observations on the 

 radio-activity of potassium (Camb. Phil. Soc. Proc, vol. 

 xix., p. 15), the author is disposed to regard that element 

 as the source. 



Received July 28. — " On the .Accumulation of Helium in 

 Geological Time." By the Hon. R. J. Strutt, F.R.S. 



In a former paper (Roy. Soc. Proc, A, vol. ixxx., 1908, 

 p. 572) the author gave an account of experiments on the 

 presence of helium in a variety of the common minerals of 

 I he earth's crust. The conclusion arrived at was that the 

 quantity of helium is, in general, determined by the traces 

 of radio-active elements present. The minerals investi- 

 gated were mostly of PaljEozoic age, and little attention 

 was paid to the effect of geological age on helium content. 

 If, however, the accepted theory of the progressive 

 accumulation of helium in minerals by radlo-aclu'e change 

 Is correct. It Is evident that geological age must be all- 



