490 



SCIENCE 



[Vol. LV, No. 1427 



universally attributed to the excision of the 

 lymphatics or lymphatics and veins of the axilla. 

 The author believes that infection is the essential 

 factor. In our experiments a cut was made 

 through all of the tissues of the thigh except the 

 sciatic nerve, femoral artery, femoral vein, and 

 femur. The divided structures were immediately 

 sutured and the wound completely closed. At 

 various periods after the operation the vein and 

 artery were ligated. In one instance two days 

 sufficed, but ordinarily four days were required 

 for the adequate reestablishment of the venous 

 circulation through the scar. The artery can not 

 be safely tied until about the twelfth (?) day. 

 The grafted limb becomes swollen for only a few 

 days after the amputation, and again in some 

 instances for a day or two after ligation of the 

 vein. Lantern slides were shown of the new 

 vessels passing through the scar which alone 

 maintain the life of the leg. An operation for 

 cancer of the breast which eliminates the danger 

 of a swollen arm was briefly described and illus- 

 trated. 



Recent discoveries on the antiquity of man: 

 De. H. F. Osborn and C. A. Eeed. 



Stature and head form in Americans of old 

 families: Dr. A. HrdliCka. Conditions to be re- 

 ported upon are a part of the results of a careful 

 study of a large group of adult normal men and 

 women descending from families three to eight 

 generations born American. The stature averages 

 5 feet 8% inches in the men and nearly 5 feet 

 4 inches in the women, which is well above the 

 general mean of this country and is higher than 

 in any large group of whites in Europe. The 

 head is of good size, particularly so in the women. 

 The form of the head, however, shows a great 

 variation, indicating only little tendency so far 

 towards any intermediate, American, type. The 

 type of physiognomy shows a closer approach 

 towards such a tj'pe, though similar changes are 

 also observable in the better classes of England. 

 Animal evolution: Dr. Austin H. Clark, U. S. 

 National Museum. 



The distribution of the Motmots of the genus 

 Momotus: Dr. Prank M. Chapman, American 

 Museum of Natural History. The Motmots, a 

 distinctively American family of birds, range 

 from the northern limit of the tropical zone in 

 northeastern Mexico to its southern limit in north- 

 ern Argentina. The family contains six genera 

 and approximately fifteen species and twenty-one 

 sub-species, of which about one half are included 

 in the genus Momotus. Motmots are believed to 



have originated in Middle America whence they 

 have made at least three invasions into South 

 America, one probably pre-Andean and two post- 

 Andean. The first invasion reached the forested 

 area of southeastern Brazil where the now exist- 

 ing species is separated from its nearest ally by 

 an area 1,000 miles in width in which no member 

 of its genus (Baryphthengus) is known. This 

 hiatus in the range of the group was possibly 

 occasioned by the entrance of the sea into the 

 Amazon Valley. The second invasion carried a 

 form into the Andean subtropical zone from Costa 

 Eica, over a Panama subtropical "bridge" which 

 has since subsided, almost to Bolivia. The third 

 invasion, made apparently from Panama, popu- 

 lated northern Colombia, the coastal region of 

 Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago, which were 

 doubtless at that time attached to the continent. 

 Subsequently the birds doubtless crossed the 

 Andes over the comparatively low Andalucia Pass 

 at the head of the Magdalena Valley, and spread 

 over the greater part of tropical South America. 

 In this area they have become differentiated into 

 nine recognized races which present interesting 

 responses to their environment, including some 

 marked instances of convergence. The extreme 

 forms, occupying different banks of the lower 

 Amazon, have apparently become specifically dis- 

 tinct although they evidently have a common 

 ancestor with which they are still connected. 



Netv results on the theory of the minor planets: 

 Pkofessob a. O. Leuschner, University of Cali- 

 fornia (by title). 



Dark nebula: Professor H. N. Russell, 

 Princeton University (by title). 



The larger results of tiventy years of solar 

 radiation observations: Dr. C. G. Abbot, Smith- 

 sonian Institution, P. E. Fowle and L. B. 

 Aldrich. This report gave a summary of twenty 

 years' study of solar radiation. This is 

 one of the most important of the constants 

 of nature, for upon it depends the energy 

 required for aU our machinery and our mus- 

 cular power. If the sun varied as much as 

 the other stars, we should alternately freeze and 

 fry. But Dr. Abbott 's examination of all avail- 

 able evidence shows that the sun's heat has not 

 varied more than six per cent, above or below the 

 average in the last twenty years. But whenever 

 a series of spots pass across the surface of the 

 sun the amount of heat and light given off falls 

 from one to five per cent. Any such change in the 

 sun's rays has an effect upon the weather and 

 electrical conditions of the earth. It is therefore 



