NO\-EMBEB 19, 1909] 



SCIENCE 



735 



purpose of the committee aa soon as it has ade- 

 quate data at its disposal to formulate and pub- 

 lish the proposed program under these several 

 heads. 



A proposal to change the name of the society 

 to the American Astronomical Society was dis- 

 cussed at considerable length. It was the feeling 

 of most of the members present that such a change 

 would be desirable from some points of view; as, 

 however, fears were expressed that this change 

 might tend to deprive the society of the great 

 benefits that it now derives from the attendance 

 and contributions of some who engaged altogether 

 in laboratory research, it was voted not to omit 

 the word " Astrophysical " from the name of the 

 society. 



A proposal that the society should go on record 

 as deeming any attempt to communicate with 

 Mars as being unpracticable at the present time 

 and as deprecating the use of any funds for such 

 a purpose was also voted down. The members 

 present were unanimous in believing that such 

 attempts are useless, but were of the opinion that 

 it would be wise not to dignify with any formal 

 action the absurd accounts that have recently 

 appeared in the newspapers. 



Upon recommendation by the council the so- 

 ciety decided to issue a volume giving an account 

 of its activities during the first ten years of its 

 existence. The council announced that thirty-four 

 persons, an unusually large number, had been 

 elected to membership at this meeting; and that 

 the next meeting would be held during August, 

 1910, at the Harvard College Observatory, the 

 exact date to be determined later. 



The last formal action to be taken by the so- 

 ciety before its adjournment was the unanimous 

 adoption of the following: 



" The Astronomical and Astrophysical Society 

 of America, assembled at its tenth annual session, 

 records its great regret at the death of its first 

 president. Professor Simon Newcomb. Deeply in- 

 terested in the cooperation and mutual influence 

 of scientific men, Professor Xewcomb was con- 

 spicuous in the organization and early progress 

 of the society, and was a dominant factor in de- 

 termining its relation to contemporary astronomy. 

 His enthusiasm for the science and his wide 

 knowledge of its many branches made his presence 

 and participation in the meetings of the society 

 a perennial inspiration to its members. 



" Professor Xewcomb's own achievements in 

 exact and theoretical astronomy have already 

 become classics in the history of the subject, and 



will constitute his permanent memorial. The 

 record of a long and active scientific career is 

 closed with the fulfilment of many of his most 

 cherished ideas, and we deeply regret that he was 

 not longer spared for the further development of 

 those subjects to which he had largely contributed. 

 " The society records its profound respect for 

 the departed member and directs its secretary to 

 transmit a copy of these resolutions to his be- 

 reaved family." 



Feank Schlesinoeb, 

 Editor for the Tenth, Annual Meeting 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES 



THE AlIEBICAN MATHEMATICAL SOCIETY 



The one hundred and forty-fifth regular meeting 

 of the society was held at Columbia University 

 on Saturday, October 30, 1909, extending through 

 a morning and an afternoon sesrion. About forty 

 persons were in attendance, including twenty- 

 seven members of the society. 



Vice-president Edward Kasner occupied the 

 chair, being relieved at the afternoon session by 

 ex-presidents W. F. Osgood and H. S. White. The 

 following persons were elected to membership : 

 Dr. H, T. Burgess, University of Wisconsin; Pro- 

 fessor H. H. Dalaker, University of Minnesota; 

 Mr. G. C. Evans, Harvard University; Mr. Louis 

 Gottsehall, New York City; Dr. .7. V. McKelvey, 

 Cornell University; Miss H. H. MacGregor, Yank- 

 ton College; Mr. H. H. Mitchell, Princeton Uni- 

 versity; Mr. U. G. Mitchell, Princeton University; 

 Mr. R. R. Shumway, University of Minnesota; 

 Dr. H. L. Slobin, University of Minnesota; Mr. I. 

 W. Smith, University of North Dakota. Four 

 applications for membership in the society were 

 received. Mr. C. B. Upton, of Teachers College, 

 was appointed assistant librarian of the society. 



Resolutions were adopted expressing the sense 

 of loss to the society and to science occasioned by 

 the death of Ex-president Simon Newcomb. 



The following papers were read at this meeting: 



C. N. Haskins : " On the extremes of functions." 



P. A. Lambert: "On the solution of linear dif- 

 ferential equations." 



Florian Cajori : " Note on the history of the 

 slide rule." 



Carl Runge : " A hydrodynamic problem treated 

 graphically." 



Edward ICasner: "The motion of particles start- 

 ing from rest." 



G. A. Miller: "Note on the groups generated 

 by two operators whose squares are invariant." 



C. N. Moore : " On the uniform convergence of 



