526 



SCIENCE 



•[N. S. Vol. XXXIII. ISro. 



A NEW list of publications of the United 

 States Geological Survey, just issued, contains 

 the titles of more than a thousand books and 

 pamphlets. These reports cover a wide range 

 of subjects. They include not only papers on 

 geology and topography but reports on water 

 resources and on technology. The Geological 

 Survey was the nursery of the United States 

 Reclamation Service and the Bureau of Mines, 

 which now, in full grovrth, are carrying along 

 successfully work begun by the survey years 

 ago. The survey, however, still continues its 

 work on water resources and includes discus- 

 sions of technology in its annual volume 

 " Mineral Eesourees of the United States." 

 A glance at this list will show the great di- 

 versity of the subjects considered and the 

 manifold nature of the science of geology. 

 The reports include discussions of geologic 

 chemistry, mineralogy, petrography and pale- 

 ontology, as well as ore deposition and other 

 matters of very practical importance. Much 

 of the survey's late work has been directed to 

 the study of mineral deposits of economic 

 value. The work done in land classification 

 has not yet found detailed expression in the 

 survey's reports, but some papers prepared 

 as a result of land-classification surveys have 

 been printed annually in bulletins entitled 

 " Contributions to Economic Geology." The 

 list may be obtained by applying to the di- 

 rector of the survey at Washington, D. C. 



The statistics of production of gems and 

 precious stones in the United States in 1909, 

 which were collected by the Geological Survey 

 and the Bureau of the Census and have just 

 been published, show a large increase in value 

 over 1908. The total value in 1909 was $534,- 

 380; the value in 1908 was $416,063. The in- 

 crease is due chiefly to larger outputs of tur- 

 quoise, tourmaline, variscite, chrysoprase, cali- 

 fornite and kunzite. The production of a 

 number of precious stones — as beryl, garnet, 

 peridot and topaz — showed a decrease in value. 

 The output of turquoise matrix and turquoise 

 amounted to over 17 tons, that of variscite to 

 over 34 tons and that of tourmaline to over 

 2J tons. An account of the occurrence and 

 production of gem materials in the United 



States, with notes on the precious stones in- 

 dustry, has just been published in pamphlet 

 form by the Geological Survey in an advance 

 chapter from " Mineral Resources of the 

 United States, Calendar Tear 1909." The 

 pamphlet, entitled " The Production of Gems 

 and Precious Stones in 1909," was prepared 

 by Douglas B. Sterrett and may be obtained 

 free by applying to the director of the survey. 



VNIVEESITT AND EDUCATIONAL NEWS 



The legislature of Missouri has recently 

 made appropriations for the state university 

 which include $100,000 for a new laboratory 

 of physics and $60,000 for a laboratory of 

 agricultural chemistry. A building for veteri- 

 nary science is now in course of construction 

 at a cost of over $30,000. In the recent ap- 

 propriations the amount appropriated for sal- 

 aries and current expenses exceeded that of 

 two years ago for similar purposes by $152,- 

 000. This amount will be mainly devoted to 

 the increasing of salaries and the enlargement 

 of the faculty. 



An anonymous donor has given Oberlin 

 College the property fronting on South Pro- 

 fessor Street in Oberlin, knovm as the John- 

 son estate. This comprises approximately 

 twenty-two acres, and is valued at from $35,- 

 000 to $40,000. 



By the will of Mrs. Amelia Worthington, of 

 Boston, widow of Bishop Worthington, of Ne- 

 braska, a bequest is made to Williams College 

 amounting to $30,000, dependent upon certain 

 contingencies. 



Messrs. Mallinckrodt, of St. Louis, Mo., 

 announce that they will pay a prize of $500 

 to a chosen student of chemistry in the Grad- 

 uate Schools of Harvard University during 

 the academic year 1911-12, on condition that 

 he will serve in the Mallinckrodt Chemical 

 Works in 1912-13 at a suitable salary. 



Trinity College has given Cambridge Uni- 

 versity the sum of £1,000, which is to be used 

 toward the erection of buildings for physiol- 

 ogy and for experimental psychology. 



The University of Manchester has received 

 an anonymoiis gift of £1,000 for promoting 

 research work in medical subjects. 



