Mat 15, 1908] 



SCIENCE 



763 



ous acid, sulphites, benzoic acid and ben- 

 zoates, formaldehyde, copper sulphate and 

 potassium nitrate. Experiments with the 

 first five of these preservatives show conclu- 

 sively that their continued use, in quanti- 

 ties such as are used in food preservation, 

 hinders or prevents metabolism, and may 

 seriously derange the functions of the or- 

 ganism. The other substances enumerated 

 are still under investigation, but the results 

 thus far obtained seem to indicate that they 

 are equally injurious. 



Observations Regarding the Infliction of 

 the Death Penalty iy Electricity: B. A. 

 Spitzka, of Jefferson Medical College. 

 This paper sets forth the history of 

 ' ' electrocution, ' ' the methods employed and 

 the phenomena observed in this mode of 

 death, together with the post-morten find- 

 ings; detailing the observations of the au- 

 thor, based upon 31 electrocutions at Sing 

 Sing, Auburn, Dannemora and Trenton 

 prisons. Compared with other methods, 

 * electrocution " is the most humane method 

 of inflicting the death penalty, because of 

 its efficiency, quickness and painlessness, 

 and it should be adopted in every state in 

 the union. 



Recent Discoveries in the Pathology of 

 Rabies: Mazyck P. Ravenel, of Madison, 

 "Wis. (Read by title.) 



The Brain of Rhinochimcera : Burt G. 



Wilder, of Ithaca, N. Y. 



Four years ago Carman described a 

 new species of chimaroid from Japanese 

 waters, under the name of Rhinochimcera 

 pacifica, giving a brief description of the 

 brain, with figures showing the general 

 form from the dorsum, venter and side. 

 This paper gives a detailed description of 

 the brain of this species, confirming Gar- 

 man's findings and giving much additional 

 data derived from dissection of the brain. 



Preliminary Report on the Brains of the 

 Natives of the Andaman and Nicobar 

 Islands: E. A. Spitzka, of Jefferson 

 Medical College. 



There is urgent need for research upon 

 the anatomy of the brains of the exotic 

 races, so rapidly becoming impure or ex- 

 tinct. Through the efforts of Dr. "W. W. 

 Keen, president of the society, enlisting the 

 aid of Lord Curzon, Viceroy of India, Mr. 

 Risley, ethnographer for India, and Dr. A. 

 R. S. Anderson, senior medical officer at 

 Port Blair, Andamans, the author was en- 

 abled to secure a brain of an Andamanese 

 and one of a Nieobarese. The ethnic char- 

 acters of these aborigines were discussed, 

 and their brains compared as to size and 

 structure with those of whites, Eskimos, 

 Japanese, Chinese, negroes and Papuans, 

 previously studied. 



A Comparison of the Albino Rat with Man 

 in Respect to the Growth of the Brain 

 and the Spinal Cord: Henry H. Don- 

 aldson, of Philadelphia. 

 A statistical study of the growth of the 

 brain and the spinal cord in the white rat, 

 in which the weight of the brain and of the 

 spinal cord is recorded and compared with 

 the body weight at various stages of the 

 development of the animal. The results 

 are plotted, and from these records the 

 logarithmic curves are drawn. When com- 

 pared with the curves derived from the 

 same data in the case of man and plotted 

 to a corresponding scale, a close similarity 

 in the curves is noted. 



The Classification of the Cetacea: ¥. W. 



True, of the Smithsonian Institution. 



The paper deals with the classification 

 of the toothed whales (sperm whale, beaked 

 whale; porpoises, etc.) and has special ref- 

 erence to the fossil forms. The recent work 

 of Dr. Abel, of Vienna, on fossil cetacea is 

 reviewed and criticized. The opinion is 

 expressed that the Cetacea are not directly 



