August 18, 1911] 



SCIENCE 



205 



Dr. Leonard Hill will lecture on " The Physi- 

 ology of Submarine Work," and on Monday, 

 September 4, Professor A. C. Seward will 

 lecture on " Links with the Past in the 

 Plant World." The Saturday evening lecture 

 to the operative classes will be delivered by 

 Dr. Hugh Eobert Mill. An attractive series 

 of social functions is being arranged, includ- 

 ing a garden party and reception, and an 

 evening fete by the mayor of Portsmouth, 

 and on Saturday, September 2, there will be 

 excursions to the Isle of Wight, the New For- 

 est, Chichester, Petworth and Arundel. On 

 the Sunday there will be a special service at 

 St. Mary's church, at which the Bishop of 

 Winchester will preach. 



In his presidential address Sir William 

 Ramsay will sound as his leading note the 

 increasing need of scientific training with a 

 view to future as well as to present-day re- 

 quirements. He will pass under review mod- 

 ern conceptions of the nature and constitu- 

 tion of the elements, especially radium and its 

 products, and will proceed to consider the 

 available sources of energy in this country 

 and whether a reasonably economical use is 

 being made of them. Having come to the 

 conclusion that the present-day methods are 

 wasteful, seriously limiting the period of our 

 national existence, he will advocate an im- 

 mediate stock-taking of our possessions of po- 

 tential energy as the first step towards their 

 judicious conservation. 



For the following particulars of the sec- 

 tional proceedings we are indebted to the 

 courtesy of the sectional presidents and re- 

 corders. 



Section A (Mathematical and Physical 

 Science) will be presided over by Professor 

 H. H. Turner, who proposes to consider in 

 his opening address some of the lessons 

 taught by the observational sciences (astron- 

 omy, meteorology, magnetism, seismology) 

 as regards methods of work. He will empha- 

 size the need for better organization, and will 

 enforce his remarks by recalling recent cases 

 which illustrate the need. A joint meeting 

 between Section A and Section G (Engineer- 

 ing) has been arranged for a discussion on 



mechanical flight, which will be opened by 

 Mr. A. E. Berriman, the technical editor of 

 Flight. In the course of the week there will 

 also be discussions on Stellar Distributions 

 and Movements (to be opened by Mr. A. S. 

 Eddington), and the Principle of Eelativity 

 (to be opened by Mr. E. Cunningham). 

 Among the papers to be presented to the sec- 

 tion will be one by Professor F. R. Watson, 

 of Illinois, on the " Effect of Air Currents on 

 Sound Waves " ; Professor Pettersson will 

 present a paper on " Great Boundary Waves," 

 and will consider the parallactic tide set up 

 in the bottom layers of the sea by the moon; 

 Major E. H. Hills will have something to say 

 on the " Infra-Red Spectrum," and Professor 

 F. T. Tronton on the " Peculiarities in the 

 Absorption of Salts by Silica." 



Section B (Chemistry) will meet under the 

 presidency of Professor J. Walker. The close 

 relation between chemistry and agricultural 

 science will be recognized in a joint meet- 

 ing between Section B and Sub-section K, at 

 which Dr. E. Frankland Armstrong will 

 open a discussion on the part played by 

 Enzymes in the Economy of Plants and Ani- 

 mals. At this meeting Mr. A. E. Humphreys 

 will discuss the treatment of wheaten flour. 

 Two other discussions will engage the atten- 

 tion of the chemists while at Portsmouth. 

 In a discussion on Colloids, Professor 

 Freundlich will deal with the " Theory of 

 Colloids," Dr. G. Barger and Dr. E. Wechster 

 with the " Absorption of Bromine by Graph- 

 ite," and Dr. C. Desch with the " Colloid 

 Theory of Cements." In another discussion 

 on Indicators and Color, Dr. V. H. Veley 

 will contribute a paper on the application of 

 " Methyl Orange for the Determination of 

 the Affinity Constants of Weak Acids and 

 Bases," with a discussion on the Errors; Mr. 

 H. T. Tizard will consider the " Use of Indi- 

 cators in Modern Physico-Chemical Re- 

 search " ; Mr. J. E. Purvis, the " Absorption 

 Spectra of Vapors " ; and Dr. T. M. Lowry, 

 the " Origin of General and of Specific Ab- 

 sorption." Professor G. Barus will submit to 

 the section a paper on the " Diffusion of 

 Gases through Water " ; Professors W. H. 



