June 6, 1902.] 



SCIENCE. 



915 



improvement in the quality of the paper used, 

 but the general arrangement of the contents 

 remains the same. This number contains 

 the usual titles of recent meteorological 

 papers (we may note that Science is not pub- 

 lished in London, as stated in the Review, 

 but in New York), and among the more 

 noteworthy articles the following may be 

 mentioned: Professor F. H. Bigelow: 'A 

 New Barometric System for the United 

 States, Canada and the West Indies' (see 

 Science, March 14, 1902, 417^21), this being 

 the first of a series of 'Studies on the Statics 

 and Kinematics of the Atmosphere in the 

 United States'; Albert Matthews: 'The Term 

 Indian Summer,' an interesting historical 

 sketch, with copious bibliographical notes; 

 B. C. Webber: 'January Gales from the Great 

 Lakes to the Maritime Provinces' (Mr. Web- 

 ber being Inspector and Forecast Official of the 

 Meteorological Service of Canada) ; an ac- 

 count of the work of the Weather Bureau in the 

 West Indies; a short 'History of Meteorolog- 

 ical Work in India'; a report on the Third 

 International Congress on Hail Shooting, 

 and a translation of Professor J. R. Plu- 

 mandon's 'General Report on Hail Shooting,' 

 presented to this Congress. Anyone inter- 

 ested in keeping up with the progress of 

 meteorology will find the Monthly Weather 

 Review indispensable. Next to the Meteor- 

 ologische Zeitschrift it is the best general 

 publication on meteorology now issued. 



SOME PHYSIOLOGICAL AND OTHER EFFECTS OF 

 SUNSHINE AND SHADE. 



Some very interesting facts regarding cer- 

 tain effects of varying exposures to sunshine 

 are brought out in a recent paper by M. 

 Lugeon, professor at the University of Lau- 

 sanne, entitled 'Quelques Mots sur le Groupe- 

 ment de la Population du Valais (Etrennes 

 helvetiques pour 1902). A study of the prin- 

 cipal valley of the canton, between Martigny 

 and the Rhone Glacier, brings out some evi- 

 dent efPects of exposure. Statistics show a 

 population of about 20,000 on the left 

 banli, and 34,000 on the right bank 

 of the river. A part of this difference is 

 doubtless due to the fact that the right bank 



is less steep, and hence more open to settle- 

 ment, but the major part is believed by M. 

 Lugeon to result from the difference in the 

 exposure to sunshine. In a certain district 

 in this same valley the slopes on both sides 

 are about equally steep, but the population on 

 the sunny side is about 3,000, while that on 

 the shady side is between 700 and 800. With 

 one or two exceptions, all the villages are 

 on the sunny side. In fact, a certain distinc- 

 tion of classes results from this difference in 

 the conditions of insolation. There is devel- 

 oped an aristocracy of the sun, so to speak. 

 The people who live on the right bank are on 

 the whole more prosperous, and better edu- 

 cated. They of the Sonnenseite look with 

 some contempt upon the poor people on the 

 Schattenseite. The village of Reckingen con- 

 tains two real caste's, the distinction between 

 which rests ultimately upon the difference 

 in exposure to sunshine. 



itETEOROLOGICAL ANNUAL OF THE ROYAL BELGIAN 

 OBSERVATORY. 



The Annuaire Meteorologique of the Royal 

 Observatory of Belgium for 1902 is a useful 

 publication, containing a large amount of 

 tabular matter relating to the meteorology of 

 Belgium for the year; meteorological con- 

 version tables, etc., and two longer articles, 

 one a historical sketch of meteorological work 

 in Belgiiun.and the other an excellent account 

 of the exploration of the free air, and of the 

 results thus far obtained. 



R. DeC. Ward. 



Harvard University. 



THE WEST INDIAN ERUPTIONS AND 

 SOLAR ENERGY.* 



In 1883, in connection with the eruption of 

 Krakatoa, you were good enough to allow me 

 to appeal through your qviickly and widely cir- 

 culated columns for early information to en- 

 able me to test an idea connected with the 

 spread of the glorious sunsets round the world 

 which followed the event. 



Because the terrible catastrophies in Mar- 

 tinique and St. Vincent occurred at a well de- 



* A letter addressed to the editor of the Lon- 

 don Times by Sir Norman Loekyer. 



