278 



SCIEJS'CU. 



[Vol. VUI., No. 190 



NOTES AND NEWS. 



So much has been said of late about the 

 dangers of producing tuberculosis in the human 

 subject by means of the milk of cows having 

 this disease, that it would seem that there was 

 nothing more to add. Bang of Copenhagen, how- 

 ever, calls attention to a new source of danger in 

 these cases. He finds that the udder itself is not 

 infrequently the seat of this disease, and that the 

 milk produced by such a gland is capable of in- 

 fecting animals fed upon it. The necessity of 

 having competent veterinarians to examine criti- 

 cally all milch-cows is becoming daily more ap- 

 parent ; and a board of health that neglects such 

 examination is aiding materially in the propaga- 

 tion of this disease, which must be regarded as 

 one of the principal factors in the mortality of 

 our population, both in city and country. 



— The operation of tracheotomy, by which an 

 openmg is made with the knife into the windpipe 

 for the relief of membranous croup and diphtheria, 

 seems likely to be superseded by intubation of 

 the larynx. In this new operation a small tube 

 is inserted through the mouth into the windpipe, 

 and all necessity for a cutting operation is thus 

 avoided. It is claimed by the advocates of this 

 method of treatment that it is far easier to in- 

 troduce this tube than to perform tracheotomy, 

 and that more lives are saved than by the old 

 operation. The statistics which are given in the 

 medical journals go far to confirm their opinions, 

 and, as the process is being generally introduced, 

 but Uttle time will be necessary to substantiate the 

 claims made for it. 



— At the first exposition of the Iowa weather- 

 service, recently held, there was shown a selection 

 from the large amount of graphical material that 

 has accumidated at the central station. At future 

 exhibitions it is proposed to present instruments 

 and other elements of the sei-%dce. 



— G. P. Putnam's Sons (New York) have pub- 

 lished ' The life of Robert Fulton,' by Thomas W. 

 Knox. The book is one fuU of anecdote, and will 

 prove to be interesting to many a boy. It tells 

 the story of one of America's most remarkable 

 inventors, whose head, from youth on, was " so 

 full of original notions that there was no room to 

 store away the contents of dusty books." 



— Prof. J. C.Faye of Appleton, Wis., has pub- 

 lished through Van Nostrand a " Handbook of 

 mineralogy, for the determination, description, 

 and classification of minerals found in the United 

 States.'' Professor Faye was induced to write this 

 book through the success of his ' Mineral tables,' 

 which quickly passed through two editions. 



— The American journal of biology, a quarterly 

 edited by H. D. Valin, M.D., is announced. The 

 contents of the first number are. ' The laws of life 

 outlined,' ' Evolution of life,' ' Origin of flowers,' 

 ' Nature of animal colors,' ' Nature of light,' ' De- 

 velopment of the eye,' 'Nature of sight,' 'Origin 

 of walnuts,' ' A ballade of evolution.' The journal 

 is published by the American journal of biology 

 publishing company, 803 South Halsted Street, 

 Chicago. 



— It is claimed, that, whenever an acute ab- 

 scess forms, two varieties of micro-organism will 

 invariably be found in the pus, — Staphylococcus 

 pyogenes and Streptococcus pyogenes. 



— Some years ago great expectations were excited 

 by the claims which were made that the Eucalyp- 

 tus globulus would banish malaria from the land, if 

 only planted in abundance in malarious regions. 

 Extensive plantations were accordingly made, 

 but, so far as known, the result was a total failure. 

 Dr. Brandes of Hanover now advocates, with a 

 similar object in view, the growth of the Anacharis 

 alsinastrum, a water-plant which is exceedingly 

 common in some sections of the country. He 

 bases his proposition upon the fact that in the dis- 

 trict where he lives fevers of a malarial type were 

 very prevalent until this water-plant was intro- 

 duced, and that they diminished from year to 

 year untU four years ago, when they entirely dis- 

 appeared, and have not since returned. As the 

 Anacharis is easily obtained and grows spontane- 

 ously, requiring no attention, the experiment can 

 be easily tried in marshy districts where malaria 

 prevails. 



— In China there is a curious device to make 

 record of earth-tremors. It is of copper, and is 

 shaped like a wine-bottle. Inside is a little pillar, 

 so placed as to move in eight directions. On the 

 outside of the bottle are eight dragon-heads, each 

 of which contains a ball. Underneath these heads 

 are eight frogs, so placed that they appear to 

 watch the dragon's face, so that they are ready to 

 receive the ball if it should be dropped. All the 

 arrangements which cause the pillar, when it 

 moves, to knock the ball out of the dragon's 

 mouth, are well hidden in the bottle. When an 

 earthquake occurs and the bottle is shaken, the 

 dragon instantly drops the ball, and the frog 

 which receives it vibrates vigorously. Any one 

 watching this instrument can easily observe earth- 

 quakes. 



— Prof. T. C. MendenhaU, recently at the head 

 of the electrical department of the signal service, 

 has accepted the presidency of the Rose poly- 

 technic institute at Terre Haute. 



