90 



NA TURE 



[July 15, 1909 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, July 5. — M. Emile Picard in 

 the chair. — .Some new trialkylacetophenones and the tri- 

 alkylacetic acids derived from them : A. Haller and Edouard 

 Bauer. It has been shown in a preceding communication 

 that dialkylacetophenones can be converted into trialkyl- 

 acetophenones by treatment with an alkyl iodide in benzene 

 solution in presence of sodium amide. These trisubstituted 

 ketones, when further heated with sodium amide in toluene 

 give a nearly quantitative yield of the amide of the trialkyl- 

 acetic acid, together with benzene. In the present paper 

 alkyl groups ol high molecular weight are introduced. It 

 has been found that on treatment with sodium amide these 

 trialkyl ketones always give the fatty amide, the expected 

 change into bcnzamide and the trialkylmethane not being 

 effected. The preparation and properties of several new 

 ketones are described. — The tectonic relations of the island 

 of Elba with Corsica, and the situation of the latter in the 

 Alpine chain : Pierre Termier. — The new Recueil of level- 

 lings of Russian railways as a basis for the hypsometry of 

 the country : J. de Schokalsky. — Central .Asiatic Russia 

 and the level of the lake basins : J. de Schokalsky. There 

 is evidence that the levels of the Siberian lakes are slowly 

 rising. This is connected with the fact that the annual 

 rainfall for the last twenty years has been slowly increas- 

 ing. It is possible that there are alternate dry and wet 

 periods in Siberia, and that at the present time the wet 

 period has passed its maximum. — M. J. C. Kapteyn was 

 elected a correspondant in the section of astronomy. — 

 Occultations of stars observed at the Observatory of Lvons 

 with the Brunncr ifi-cm. equatorial during the eclipse of 

 the moon of June 3 : J. Guillaume. — The summation of 

 Dirichlet's series : Marcel Riesz. — The singular integrals 

 of certain algebraical differential equations : B. Gambler. — 

 Linear differential equations and uniform transcendentals of 

 the second order : Rene} Gamier. — Some inequalities having 

 a bearing on the theory of elastic vibrations and electrical 

 vibrations : A. Korn. — The conductivity of a gas at atmo- 

 spheric pressure under the influence of a high alternating 

 voltage : A. Chassy. The conductivity of a gas increases 

 continuously with the voltage, and it is only for the highest 

 voltages well above the critical voltage that the capacity 

 of the gas condenser is the same as that which would be 

 obtained if the gas were replaced by a liquid conductor. 

 It is possible that under these conditions the gas is a true 

 conductor and follows Ohm's law. — The radio-activitv of 

 potassium salts : Lmile Henriot and G. Vavon. The 

 minute radio-activity shown by potassium salts would 

 appear to be a property of the potassium atom, since all 

 attempts to concentrate the radio-activity by a series of 

 fractionations failed. This confirms the results of Campbell 

 and MacLellan. The rays have been identified with the 

 e rays. — Tautomeric changes elucidated bv means of the 

 magnetic rotatory power : P. Th. Muller and M. 

 Thouvenot. A differential method was employed to in- 

 crease the sensitiveness of the measurements. Experiments 

 were made with methyl cyanacetate and its sodium salt 

 and with acetoacetic ester and its sodium derivative. The 

 results indicate a change in the internal structure when 

 the molecule passes into the sodium derivative. — The 

 chlorides of silicon : ,\. Besson and L. Fournier. The 

 evolution of hydrogen from silicochloroform under the action 

 of the silent discharge has been confirmed bv working in a 

 current of hydrogen chloride gas. — A new method for the 

 isolation of terbine : G. Urbain.— The oxidation of alde- 

 hydes by silver oxide : Marcel Delepine and Pierre Bonnet. 

 The aldehyde in aqueous solution is mixed directly with 

 silver nitrate, and baryta solution added in a proportion 

 sufficient to set free the silver oxide and neutralise the 

 organic acid formed. Various applications of the method are 

 given, the yields being very high, usually more than 90 per 

 cent, of the theoretical. — The hydrolysis of proteid materials 

 by means of hydrofluoric acid ; some new results : L. 

 Hugrounenq and A. Morel. By varying the strength of 

 the hydrofluoric acid used for the hydrolysis the reaction 

 can be stopped at definite stages. The process is especially 

 advantageous for the isolation of the simple peptides.— 

 Study of the principal layers of the alkaline rocks of the 

 I;rench Soud.in : G. Garde — The elaboration of the mate- 

 rials containing phosphorus and saline substanres in the 

 leaves of living plants : G. Andre.— Two new carbohydrates 

 NO". 2072, VOL. 81] 



extracted from asparagus : Georges Tanret. These have 

 the composition (CjHjjOs),,, where 11 is about 15. Details 

 of the method of isolation and properties of these carbo- 

 hydrates are given. — The rdle of the fluorescent bacilli of 

 Fliigge in plant pathology : Ed. Griffon. — The biometrical 

 study of the seeds of Viiis vinifera : P. Seyot. — The sup- 

 posed utilisation of atmospheric nitrogen by certain special 

 hairs of plants : Francois Kovessi. The development of 

 plant hairs is independent of the presence of atmospheric 

 nitrogen, and there is no evidence that these organs have 

 specialised absorptive powers for nitrogen. — Seeds killed by 

 anaesthetics retain their diastatic properties ; Jean Apsit 

 and Edmond Gain. Grains of wheat, the germinating 

 power of which had been destroyed by treatment with 

 ether, retained both their diastatic and peroxydiastatic pro- 

 perties. — ^The sensation of relief : A. Quidor. — The pre- 

 sence of attractive spheres and of centrosomes in the cells 

 resulting from the parthenogenetic segmentation of the 

 fowl's ogg, and on the characters of these formations: A.' 

 Lecaiiion. — The caves of Lacave (Lot) : Armand Vire. — ' 

 The morphological zones of western Switzerland : E. 

 Romer. — The earthquakes of June 11 and 23: Alfred 

 Angot. — .^n attempt to guard against hail : M. de Beau-' 

 champ. — New observations on earth currents between 

 stations differing greatly in height : B. Brunhes and P. 

 David. 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



Regeneration By Dr. Francis H. A. Marshall . . 61 



A Naturalist in Tasmania 61 



Properties of Building Materials. By H. B. 62 



Economic Bacteriology. By Prof. R. T. Hewlett . 63 



Forestry 63 



New Books on Organic Chemistry. By J. B. C. . . 64 



Physics for the Lecture Room and Laboratory . 66 

 Our Book Shelf:— 



Cosserat : " Theorie des Corps deformables " . ... 67 

 Hawk : " Practical Physiological Chemistry." — 



W. D. H 67 



Pike : " Behind the Veil in Bird-land."— W. P. P. . 67 

 Koehler ; " An Account of the Deep-sea Asteroidea 



collected by the R.I. M.S. S. Investigator^' .... 67 



Wang : " An'imony " 68 



Soliman : " Etirage, Trefilage, Dressage des Produits 



metallurgiques." — A. McW 68 



Reinheimer : " Nutrition and Evolution " 68 



Letters to the Editor : — 



Bessel's Functions. — A. B. Basset, F.R.S 68 



Musical Sands. — Cecil Carus- Wilson 69 



The Commutative Law of Addition, and Infinity. — 



Philip E. B. Jourdain ; G. B. M 69 



The Theory of Crookes's Radiometer. By Lord 



Rayleigh, O.M., F.R.S 69 



Life in an Oasis. (Illustrated.) By Prof. John W. 



Judd, C.B., F.R.S 70 



The Isle of Wight. (Illustrated.) By F. C 72 



Sleeping Sickness. ByJ. W. W. S 73 



The Contamination of Milk 74 



The Winnipeg Meeting of the British Association. 



(Illustrated.) 75 



Notes 78 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



Radial Motion in Sun-spot Vapours 82 



Binary Star Orbits 83 



Micrometric IMeasures of Double Stars . . 83 



The Identity of Comets igoSa and igoSi^ (Encke) . . 83 



Comet 190911 . . . 83 



The King on Increased Provision for Advanced 



Scientific Instruction and Research 83 



The Science Collections at South Kensington ... 84 



Eskdalemuir Observatory 86 



The Imperial Cancer Research Fund 86 



Scottish Expedition to Spitsbergen 87 



Bird Notes 87 



University and Educational Intelligence 88 



Societies and Academies 89 



