May 26, 1911] 



SCIENCE 



811 



We learn from the Auk that Mr. A. C. Bent, 

 of Taunton, Mass., is organizing an expedition 

 to the Aleutian Islands for the purpose of ma- 

 king a thorough biological survey of that in- 

 teresting region, covering practically the 

 whole of the summer season. Negotiations 

 are now on foot to secure the use of a revenue 

 cutter to take the party, which will consist of 

 three scientific men in addition to Mr. Bent. 

 Mr. Rollo H. Beck, known for his work in the 

 Galapagos Islands and along the coast of 

 California, has already been engaged, and it is 

 probable that the United States National 

 Museum and the Biological Survey will each 

 send a representative. 



Professor W. F. Watson, who has held since 

 1890 the chair of chemistry and biology at 

 Furman University, Greenville, S. C., has re- 

 signed, and will spend four years in a tour 

 around the world. 



Dr. Svante Arrhenius lectured at the Col- 

 lege of the City of New York on May 17 and 

 at Columbia University on May 18. On May 

 15 he lectured on the J. C. Campbell founda- 

 tion of the Sigma Xi Society of the Ohio 

 State University. 



Dr. Walter B. Cannon, professor of physi- 

 ology in the Harvard Medical School, will 

 give the annual address before the graduating 

 class of the Tale Medical School at the ap- 

 proaching commencement. 



Professor John M. Coulter, head of the 

 department of botany of the University of 

 Chicago, will give an address before a joint 

 meeting of the Sigma Xi and Phi Beta Kappa 

 fraternities on June 12, as a part of the pro- 

 gram of commencement week at the Univer- 

 sity of Illinois. 



Professor W. W. Osterhout addressed the 

 Biological Society of Smith College on May 

 18 on " Some Aspects of the Action of Mineral 

 Salts on Plants." 



Dr. E. E. Barnard, of Yerkes Observatory, 

 lectured on " Photographic Revelations in As- 

 tronomy " before the Dayton Astronomical 

 Society on May 10 and before the Cincinnati 

 Astronomical Society on May 12. 



At the first annual meeting of the Cincin- 

 nati Society, held May 12, the following offi- 

 cers were elected : Dr. Lisle Stewart, president ; 

 W. C. Cooder, vice-president; Robert H. 

 Correy, secretary; A. D. Fisher, treasurer; A. 

 D. Alcorn, P. B. Evens, J. D. Griese, A. P. 

 Henkel, C. H. Norton, M. C. Slutes, directors. 

 President Taft was unanimously elected an 

 honorary member. Sisty-five men and wo- 

 men joined as charter members. This society 

 espects to interest itself particularly with as- 

 tronomical and astrophysical research. 



We learn from Nature that a committee of 

 the Geological Society, London, has been 

 formed to secure the means of providing a me- 

 morial to the late Professor T. Rupert Jones, 

 F.R.S., in aid of his widow and daughters. 

 The late Professor Jones was never in receipt 

 of more than a very moderate income, and re- 

 ceived only a small pension upon his retire- 

 ment thirty years ago from the post of pro- 

 fessor of geology in the Royal Military Col- 

 lege, Sandhurst. 



The ninety-fourth annual meeting of the 

 Swiss Scientific Society, will be held this year 

 at Solothurn, from July 30 to August 2, under 

 the presidency of Dr. A. Pfaehler. In addition 

 to the general sessions for which a number of 

 addresses of general interest are arranged, 

 there meet with the association the Swiss so- 

 cieties for botany, chemistry, geology, mathe- 

 matics, physics and zoology. Foreign men of 

 science are especially invited to be present at 

 the meetings. 



The H. F. Kieth Company, of Boston, have 

 given $5,000 to the Massachusetts Institute of 

 Technology, for a research on the decomposi- 

 tion and general wholesomeness of eggs and 

 for an investigation of the bacterial and chem- 

 ical contents of the product under varying 

 conditions. 



Two collections of birds have been placed on 

 deposit in the American Museum of Natural 

 History. One of these, the property of Dr. 

 Jonathan Dwight, Jr., of New York City, 

 numbers about 30,000 specimens, ranking as 

 one of the largest private collections in this 

 country. It is especially valuable in showing 



