390 



NA TURE 



[September 23, 1909 



Jlr. F. M. Milne was appointed lecturer in clinical 

 pathology, and Mr. Charles Kerr clinical medical tutor. 



The eighty-seventh session of Birkbeck College will be 

 begun on .Monday ne.xt, when an address will be delivered 

 by Principal H. A. Miers, F.R.S. ' , 



Harvard University has received the sum of 3000/. 

 from -Mrs. J. A. Rumrill in memory of her late husband. 

 It will be used to establish three scholarships. 



Mr. T. Mather, F.R.S., has been appointed professor 

 of electrrcal engineering at the City and Guilds Central 

 Technical College in succession to the late Prof. Ayrton, 

 F,R.S. 



The new buildings of the Nicol Russell Engineering 

 School and the Fisher Library (in connection with the 

 University of Sydney, New South Wales) were opened by 

 Lord Chelmsford on September 20. 



The inaugural address of the session 1909-10 of the 

 University of Bristol will be delivered on Thursday even- 

 ing, September 30, by the Vice-Chancellor of the Uni- 

 versity, Sir Isambard Owen, who will take as his subject 

 " The Significance of a University." 



The Tulane University of Louisiana has during the 

 past year come into possession of the following amounts :- — 

 400,160/. from the Newcomb estate, which sum will go 

 to the Newcomb College — the women's department 

 of the University — founded by Mrs. J. L. Newcomb as a 

 memorial to her daughter ; 10,000/. from Mrs. L A. 

 Richardson towards the establishment of a chair of botany ; 

 and 1000/. from the late Miss L. Miles for the purchase 

 of books for the library. 



The Home Secretary has signified to the council of the 

 Royal College of Surgeons his decision to approve the 

 by-laws regarding the admission of women to the examina- 

 tions for the diplomas of the college. He has further ex- 

 pressed his willingness to sign the formal document which 

 is to be submitted after the next meeting of the council 

 of the college on October 14. It is understood, however, 

 that meanwhile it will be possible to complete the necessary 

 formalities in time for women to enter for the examinations 

 of the Royal College to be held in January next. 



Mr. W. Buchanan has been appointed lecturer on electro- 

 technics and the design of electrical machinery to Faraday 

 House, London. Mr. Buchanan had a distinguished college 

 career, first at the Royal College of Science, London, and 

 subsequently at Glasgow University, where he was 

 ■" Thomson experimental scholar " in Lord Kelvin's labora- 

 tory. He has been for fifteen years with the Electric 

 Construction Company, Wolverhampton, first as designer 

 of alternating current machines and subsequently as chief 

 engineer. 



The calendar of the Merchant Venturers' Technical 

 College, Bristol, is now available. It will be remembered 

 that in connection with the inauguration of the University 

 of Bristol it was arranged that this college should provide 

 the^ faculty of engineering in the University. A pre- 

 liminary prospectus has been issued of the lectures and 

 courses of practical work in the laboratories and work- 

 shops, designed, amongst other things, to prepare students 

 for the various degrees in engineering to be conferred by 

 the University. In addition to this university work the 

 college is to continue to provide the continuous and com- 

 plete preparation for an industrial career which it has 

 hitherto done. Day and evening classes in a great variety 

 of_ technological subjects have been arranged for the coming 

 wiater. It is satisfactory to find from the calendar that 

 earnest efforts are being made by the governors and prin- 

 cipal of the college to secure the active cooperation of 

 enployers in their endeavours to provide suitable technical 

 education for the men and women engaged in the industries 

 of Bristol and neighbourhood. 



. SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, September ij.^M. Bouchard in the 

 chair. — H. Deslandres communicated a telegram from 

 P. Lowell, stating that the presence of free o.xygen has 

 been proved in the atmosphere of Mars. The oxygen band 

 B is clearly stronger in the Mars spectrum than in that 

 of the moon. — The movements of the upper solar atmo- 

 sphere above and round the facula;. The cellular vortices 

 NO. 20S2, VOL. 81] 



of the sun : H. Deslandres, Details of the work done 

 with the new spectrograph at the Observatory of Meudon. 

 A diagram is given showing the radial movements of the 

 upper K3 layer of the solar atmosphere above and round 

 a facula'. — The study of sea temperatures : A. Bouquet 

 de la Grye. A knowledge of the temperatures of the sea 

 over a wide area is an important factor in weather fore- 

 casts. — The trypanolytic power of the blood of some cold- 

 blooded vertebrates with respect to Trypanosoma evansi : 

 A. Laveran and A. Pettit. The blood of some of the 

 cold-blooded vertebrates contains active trypanolytic sub- 

 stances, and there seems to be a relation between the 

 presence of these substances and the toxicity of the serum. 

 Closely related vertebrates showed difl'erences in the 

 trypanolytic power, the case of Rana esculcnta and R. 

 fcmporaria being especially remarkable in this respect. — 

 The problem of Sophus Lie: N. Saltykow. — Practical 

 fornuilcc for the calculation of aerial helices : M-. 

 Drzewiecki. — The magnetic r6le of oxygen in organifc 

 compounds : P. Pascal. The constants given in this 

 paper enable the value for the magnetic susceptibility 

 of an organic compound containing oxygen to be used as 

 a guide to its structure. — The estimation of phosphorus 

 in combustible substances by the calorimetric bomb : P. 

 Lemoult. If certain precautions are taken, details of 

 which are given, the determination of phosphorus in 

 organic compound; by combustion in the calorimetric 

 bomb possesses advantages over the methods in general 

 use both in rapidity and accuracy. — The law of the fading 

 of mnemonic traces as a function of the time in Limnaea 

 stagnalis : Henri Pieron. — The natural means of defence 

 of certain cold-blooded vertebrates against the trypano- 

 some of surra, Trypanosoma evansi : A. Massaglia. 

 Phagocytosis appears to play no part in the destruction 

 of the trypanosomes. 



CONTENTS^ ] PAGE 



Philosophy and History of Science 361 



The Fluids of the Body in Health and Disease . . 362 



Text-Books of Physics 363 



Volumetric Chemical Analysis. By C. S 364 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Schubert : " Geologischer Fi'ihrer durch Dalmatien." 



-G. A. J. C. 365 



Schulz : " Entwickelung und Untergang des Koper- 

 nikanischen Weltsystems bei den Alten." — 



J- L- E. D 36s 



Voigt : " Excursionsbuch rum Stadium der Vogel- 



stimmen."— W. W. F 365 



Chatley: " The Force of the Wind " 366 



Letters to the Editor : — 



Stability nf Aeroplanes. — Prof. Herbert Chatlev ; 



Prof. G. H. Brvan, F.R.S '. 366 



Chinese Names of Colours. — Alfred Tingle . . 367 

 Percentages in School Marks. (lVi//i Diagram.) — J. D. 



Hamilton Dickson 367 



Explorations in Central Asia. (Illnsli-atcd.) 368 



The Sixteenth International Congress of Medicine 369 



The International Seismological Association . . . 370 



Bronze-age Interments in Switzerland 371 



Notes 371 



Our Astronomical Column : — 



Halley's Comet 376 



Observations of Perrine's Comet, igogi 376 



Observations of Mars 376 



Water Vapour in the Martian Atmosphere 376 



The Maximum of Mira in October, lyoS 376 



The Spectroheliograph of the Catania Observatory . 376 



Ha Images on Spectroheliograms 376 



Double-star Measures 376 



Copenhagen Congress on the Testing of Materials 



of Construction 377 



German Botanical Congress. By T. J 378 



The British Asso iation at Winnipeg : — 



Section H. — Anthropology — Opening Address 



(Abridged) by Prof, John L, Myres, M.A., 



F S.A., President of the Section 379 



Section I. — Physiology — Opening Address by Prof. 

 E. H. Starling, M.D., F.R.S., President of 



the Section 384 



University and Educational Intelligence 389 



Societies and Academies 390 



