440 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. I., No, 15. 



Mr. W. O. Crosby presents the results of his studies 

 on the mountain-reefs of eastern Cuba, of which an 

 abstract will be printed in our geographic columns. 

 Mr. J. Tatlook, jun. , discusses the variation of baro- 

 metric measurements with the season. Various re- 

 ports and proceedings fill about half of the hundred 

 pages. The club's growth in popularity, as shown 

 by its rapidly increasing membership of both sexes, 

 has by no means diminished the scientific value of 

 its i)ublications. 



— The general catalogue of the American exhibit 

 at the London fisheries exhibition, referred to on a 

 previous page, and which is now in course of publi- 

 cation, will be followed by a series of special cata- 

 logues of the more important sections, which will 

 contain much fresh information regarding the distri- 

 bution, abundance, and relationships of the species 

 exhibited. The handbooks of two sections — that of 

 the birds, by Mr. Ridgway; and that of the inverte- 

 brates, by Mr. Rathbun — are now in press. 



— It may not be generally known that Harvard 

 college observatory took an important part in the 

 early experiments made in astronomical photography. 

 Under the direction of Prof. W. C. Bond, the first 

 daguerrotype of a fixed star, and many early repre- 

 sentations of other objects, were obtained there. 

 After the invention of the coUodioji process, Prof. 

 G. P. Bond returned to the subject, and obtained an 

 interesting series of photographs of various celestial 

 objects. While stars of the first magnitude only 

 could be depicted by the daguerrotype, the new pro- 

 cess rendered it possible to photograph stars of the 

 fourth. Professor Bond paid special attention to the 

 means afforded by photography for the accurate 

 measurement of double stars. For this purpose he 

 procured numei'ous photographs of the star Mizar 

 (f Ursae Mcijoris), which he afterwards measured 

 micrometrically. The accuracy of the results was re- 

 markable; and the average discordance of the values 

 obtained from the photographs taken on eight differ- 

 ent evenings was only 0.3". 



— The second part of vol. iii. of Anales of the 

 Mexican national museum is devqted to the follow- 

 ing papers: 1. Continuation of the study upon the 

 Piedra del sol, by Alfredo Chavero; Glossary of Cas- 

 tillan words derived from the Mexican, or Nahuatl, 

 by Jesus Sanchez; Mexican antiquities, by Carlos 

 Fernandez. In the list of Sr. Sanchez are more than 

 two hundred words derived from the aboriginal Mexi- 

 can, a few of which are already in the vocabulary of 

 the United States; and some of them have become 

 reputable English words, such as, cacao {cacahuatl), 

 cocoa {cocoa), copal {copalli), coyote (coyotl), Chile 

 (Chilli), chocolate [pozolallf), mezcal (mexcalli),mez- 

 quite {mizquitl), ocelote (ocelotl), pinole (pinolli), to- 

 mato (tomatl), tule (tollin). 



— Professor Aeby has published a diagram of the 

 course of the nerve-fibres in the human central ner- 



vous system, which is very warmly praised, and 

 recommended to students and teachers alike. The 

 publisher is Dalp in Bern; the price, 1 mark and 60 

 pfennigs. 



RECENT BOOKS AND PAMPHLETS. 



AUieri, L. Equilibrio interno delle pilo met.illiche secondo le 

 leggi della deforraazione elastica. Uoma, Loencher, 1S82. 119 p., 

 7 tables. 4°. 



Beilstein, F. Handbuch derorganischen chemie. Leipzig, 

 I'oss, 1883. 2185 p. 8°. 



Binzer, J. M. v. Vacuositiit und schwerkraft. Nacbweis 

 der gemeinsamen ui'sacbe der attractions- und gravitations-pba- 

 iioraene einschliesslich der magnetiamus auf grund pbysikali- 

 schen thatsachen. Salzburg, Dieter, 1883. 49 p. 8°. 



Bottler, Max. E.'ikursions flora von Unterfranken. Ein 

 tascbenbucb zum leichten bestimmen der in Unterfranken, auf 

 dera Steigerwalde und in der Rbon wildwachs. Phanerogamen. 

 Kissingen, Uaitiiiann, 1883. 6+208 p. 8°. 



BO"wman, W. H. Lectui'e introducing bis system of respi- 

 ration for the development and treatment of tbe vital organs of 

 the body. Boston, J/udge, pi:, ISHi. 30 p. 8°. 



Brunbauer, Paul. ]_)er einfluas der temperatur auf das leben 

 der tagfalter. Inaug. diss. Miinchen, 1883. 115 p. S'. 



Compte rendu des travaux du service du Phylloxera. 

 Annee 1882. Proces-verbaux de la session annuelle de la Com- 

 mission superieure du Phylloxera. Rapports et pieces annexes. 

 IjoIs, d6crets et arretea relatifs au Phylloxera. Paris, Imp?: 

 na^., 1883. 603 p. 8°. 



Congres geologique international. Corapte rendu de la 2d 

 session, Bologne, 1881. Bolbgne, impr. Fara et Garttgnani, 



1882. 15+661 p., 19 pi, 8°, 



Falb, Ivud, Meteorologiscbe betrachtungcn mit besondere 

 Ix'zugnabme auf die periodischen ueberscbwemmungen. Wien, 

 Ilartteben, 1SS2. 6+163 p. 8°. 



Gilardini, G, Principio della scienza idraulica italiana. 

 Milan, liii. Osnere. caltolico, 1882. 23 p. 16°. 



International ( Great) flsheries oxbibition. London, 1883. 

 United Slates of America, A. Preliminai-y catalogue and synop- 

 sis of tbe collections exhibited by tbe United States fish eom- 

 miaeion and by special exhibiters; with a concordance to the 

 official classification of the exhibition. Washington, Govern- 

 ment, 1883. 106 p. 8°. 



Kempe, H. R. Handbuch der elektrizitiitsmessungcn. Aus 

 dem engliscb libertr. v. J. Baumann. Braunschweig, Vieweg, 



1883. 8+308 p. 8°. 



Konkoly, Nic. v. Praktische anleitung zur anstellung as- 

 tronomiscber beobachtungen mit besonderer ruckeicht auf die 

 astrophvsik. Braunschweig, Vieweg, 1883. 22+912 p., 345 

 cuts. 8°, 



Lassalle, C Origin of tbe western nations and languages: 

 showing the construction and aim of Punic recovery of tbe uni- 

 veraal language, reconstruction of Phoenician geography, -\siatic 

 source of the dialects of Britain, principaleraigrations from 

 Asia, and description of Scythian society. With an appendix 

 upon the connection of Assyrian with the language of western 

 Europe, and Gaelic with the language of Scythia. London, 

 Heijwooil, 1883. 420 p. 8°, 



Maine, Sir H. S. Dissertations on early law and custom, 

 chiefly collected from lectures delivered at Oxford. London, 

 Murray, 1883, 402 p. S°. 



Moncel, Th. du, et Geraldy, P. L'£lectricit<5 comme 

 force motrice. Paris, //ncAe«e, 1883. 308 p., 112 fig. 18°. 



Nebst, E. Moderne instruraentenkunde. Braunschweig, 

 Vieweg, 1883. 22+912 p., 345 cuts. 8°. 



New York — Department of public parks. Report of the 

 New Yoik jneleorological observatory for the year 1882. N.Y., 

 City, 1883. {13 p.) 4°. 



North Carolina — Board of agriculture. Annual report 

 of the agricultural experiment station for 1882. Raleigh, Aske 

 •H Galling, 1883, 8+160 p. 8°. 



Bodrig-uez Mourelo, J. La radiafonia, estudio de una 

 nucva propiedad de laa radiacionea. Madrid, impr. lleiiidndez, 

 1883. 15+286 p., pi. 8°. 



Romanes, G. J, Scientific evidences of organic evolution. 

 N.Y., JIaanitlan, 1883. (Nature series,) 6+88 p. 12°. 



Taber, C. A. M. How the great prevailing winds and ocean 

 currents are produced, and how they aft'ect the temperature and 

 dimenaityof lands and seas. Boston, Wiitiams, IBS'i. 82 p. 12°. 



Thurston, R. n. Conversion t,ibles of metric and British 

 or United States weights and measures. N.Y., Wiley, 1883. 

 12 i ,83 p, 8°. 



