SCIENCE 



Friday, September 3, 1920 



CONTENTS 



The British, Association for the Advancement 

 of Science : — 



Oceanography and the Sea Fisheries: Pro- 

 fessor William A. Herdman 209 



John Sahlberg : Dk. A. G. Boving 216 



Scientific Events: — 

 The Publication of Scientific Boohs in 

 France; Chemical Research in India; North 

 American Forest Research; Office of De- 



Worlc 217 



do Notes and News 219 



and Educational News 223 



Discussion and Correspondence: — 



The Obligation of the Investigator to the 



. Library: Dk. Neil E. Stevens. The Fur 

 Seals: President David Starr Jordan. A 



. Preliminary Note on the Germination of 

 Vrophlyctis alfalfce: C. Emlen Scott 223 



Scientific BooTcs: — 



Singer's Scientific and Medical Manuscripts : 

 Lieutenant Colonel P. H. Garrison 226 



Special Articles: — 



The Arrangement of Atoms in Some Com- 

 mon Metals: Dr. Albert W. Hull. Ef- 

 fects produced by X-ray Energy acting 

 upon Frogs' Ova at Early Developmental 

 Stages: Dr. W. M. Baldwin 227 



The American Chemical Society: Dr. Charles 

 L. Parsons 230 



MSS. intended for publication and books, etc., intended for 

 review should be sent to The Editor of Science, Garrison-on- 

 Hudson, N. Y. 



OCEANOGRAPHY AND THE SEA- 

 FISHERIESi 



At the last Cardiff meeting of the British 

 Association in 1891 you had as your president 

 the eminent astronomer Sir William Hugging, 

 who discoursed upon the then recent discov- 

 eries of the spectroscope in relation to the 

 chemical nature, density, temperature, pres- 

 sure and even the motions of the stars. From 

 the sky to the sea is a long drop; but the 

 sciences of both have this in common that 

 they deal with fundamental principles and 

 with vast numbers. Over three hundred years 

 ago Spenser in the " Faerie Queene " com- 

 pared " the seas abundant progeny " with " the 

 starres on by," and recent investigations show 

 that a liter of sea-water may contain more 

 than a hundred times as many living organ- 

 isms as there are stars visible to the eye on a 

 clear night. 



During the past quarter of a century great 

 advances have been made in the science of the 

 sea, and the aspects and prospects of sea- 

 fisheries research have undergone changes 

 which encourage the hope that a combination 

 of the work now carried on by hydrographers 

 and biologists in most civilized countries on 

 fundamental problems of the ocean may result 

 in a more rational exploitation and adminis- 

 tration of the fishing industries. 



And yet even at your former Cardiff meet- 

 ing thirty years ago there were at least three 

 papers of oceanographic interest — one by Pro- 

 fessor Osborne Eeynolds on the action of 

 waves and currents, another by Dr. H. R. Mill 

 on seasonal variation in the temperature of 

 lochs and estuaries] and the third by our 

 honorary local secretary for the present meet- 

 ing. Dr. Evans Hoyle, on a deep-sea-tow-net 



1 Prom the address of the president of the Brit- 

 ish Association for the Advancement of Science 

 given at Cardiff on August 24, 1920. 



