Mat 22, 1908] 



SCIENCE 



837 



himself on May 6, at the age of sixty-tkree 

 years. 



Dr. Pierre Jacques Antoine Bechamp, 

 formerly professor at Montpellier and Lille, 

 eminent for his researches in organic chem- 

 istry, died on April 15, at the age of ninety- 

 two years. 



The deaths are also announced of M. C. E. 

 Chamherland, the sub-director of the Pasteur 

 Institute, Paris, at the age of fifty-seven, and 

 of M. Alfred Riche, professor of mineral 

 chemistry at the Sorhonne from' 1874 to 1899, 

 at the age of seventy-eight. 



The American Nature-study Society vs'ill 

 hold a conference on the Training of Teachers 

 of Nature-study at Cleveland, Ohio, on the 

 afternoon of July 3. This conference may be 

 regarded as preliminary to a more extensive 

 consideration of the same topic at Baltimore 

 next December. 



The German Association of Men of Sci- 

 ence and Physicians will hold its annual 

 meeting this year at Cologne from September 

 20 to 26. 



The Eighth International Congress of 

 hydrology, climatology, geology and physical 

 therapy will be held from April 4 to 10, 1909, 

 in Algiers. 



The Chemical Society of Eome, the Chem- 

 ical Society of Milan, and the Association of 

 Industrial Chemists of Turin will unite to 

 form the Italian Chemical Society. 



A SCIENTIFIC society has been formed in 

 Mexico with the title " La Alianza Cientifica 

 Universal." It is described as a ramification 

 of a general confraternity of scientific men 

 which was founded in Paris by M. Leon de 

 Eosny and is intended to include the scientific 

 men of Europe and Latin America. The ac- 

 tive president of the Mexican society is Pro- 

 fessor Alfonso Herrera, while the president 

 of the republic is honorary president and all 

 the members of his cabinet are honorary mem- 

 bers of the Alianza. The list of active mem- 

 bers in the federal district consists of pro- 

 fessors and professional men — scientific and 

 technical — and government officials. 



According to the Journal of the American 

 Medical Association the annual congress of 

 the Russian PirogofE Medical Association, the 

 national organization, can not be held this 

 year, as the authorities have refused the usual 

 permit. The February number of the journal 

 issued by the organization was confiscated re- 

 cently on account of an article by Dr. W. 

 Kanel which failed to pass the censor on ac- 

 count of its alleged revolutionary tendency. 

 The editor of the journal. Dr. J. W. PopofE, is 

 also held legally responsible for permitting the 

 publication of the article. 



At the recent meeting of the National 

 Academy of Sciences held in Washington the 

 following resolution was adopted: 



Resolved, That four members of the academy 

 be appointed by the president as a committee on 

 paleontological correlation, including two special- 

 ists in invertebrate and vertebrate paleontology, 

 respectively. The present committee shall serve 

 two years only and be eligible to reappointment 

 or substitution of new members in 1910. The 

 committee shall have power to extend its mem- 

 bership so as to secure American and interna- 

 tional cooperation. 



In compliance with the resolution, the presi- 

 dent appointed Messrs. H. P. Osborn and 

 William B. Scott in the field of vertebrate 

 paleontology and Messrs. C. D. Walcott and 

 William H. Dall in the field of invertebrate 

 paleontology. 



On the recommendation of Professor David 

 Todd, of Amherst College, who visited South 

 America and the Isthmus last year, eastern 

 standard time has been adopted at Panama, 

 per order No. 167 of the chairman of the 

 Isthmian Canal Commission. The change 

 went into effect on April 27, the newly adopted 

 standard time being 54 minutes faster than 

 Panama railroad time previously kept, and 

 18 minutes faster than the local astronomical 

 time at Panama. All departments and divi- 

 sions of the Isthmian Canal Commission have 

 since that date observed the new standard 

 time. The proposition to adopt the same 

 standard is now before the Ecuadorian govern- 

 ment, and Professor Todd has recently re- 

 ceived word that the National Geographical 

 Society of Lima has recommended to the 



