AuausT 21, 1896.] 



SCIENCE. 



225 



Locy ; ' Segmentation of tlie Head,' J. S. Kings- 

 ley ; 'Bibliography: A Study of Resources,' 

 Charles Sedgwick Minot ; ' The Transformation 

 of Sporophyllary to Vegetative Organs, ' George 

 F. Atkinson. 



We learn from Nature that the observatory at 

 Athens will hereafter publish a daily weather 

 report containing twenty-five stations in Greece, 

 and about double that number of exterior sta- 

 tions. The report is accompanied by two 

 charts, one shewing the isobars and general 

 meteorological conditions over a large part of 

 Europe, and one showing wind -and tempera- 

 ture over Greece and adjacent islands. 



The New York Medical Record states that 

 Eabies has broken out among the cows, dogs, 

 sheep and hogs in Path Valley, Centre County, 

 Pa., and it is feared that the disease will be- 

 come general throughout the county. 



According to Natural Science a party of four, 

 under the direction of Mr. T. A. Mobley, will 

 start from Lacomb, Alberta, to explore north- 

 ern Canada from Edmonton to the Arctic sea. 

 The trip is to occupy two years. 



According to Nature the Russian Geograph- 

 ical Society has awarded this year its Constan- 

 tine medal to M. A. Rykacheff, for his work in 

 the domain of physical geograi:)hy. Beginning in 

 the year 1874 with a work on the distribution 

 of atmospheric pressure in Russia, he continued 

 to publish a series of researches on the diurnal 

 variations of pressure, the prevailing winds of 

 the Caspian and the White Seas, the tides in 

 the atmosphere, the freezing and thawing of 

 the Russian rivers, the variations of the levels 

 of rivers in Middle Russia, in connection with 

 variations in the amounts of rain and snow, the 

 diurnal variations of temperature over the 

 tropical oceans, etc. The Count Liitke medal 

 has been awarded to Admiral Makaroff, for his 

 work on the temperature and density of water 

 in the northern Pacific, based on the measure- 

 ments made in 1886-89 on board the Vityaz. 

 His maps of the distribution of surface temper- 

 ature in August, and of temperature at a depth 

 of 400 meters, are especially worthy of notice. 

 The Prjevalsky prize was awarded to M. Bere- 

 zovsky, for his explorations of the northern 

 borderlands of Tibet. A Prjevalsky medal was 



awarded to J. A. Schmidt, for his twelve 

 geodetical expeditions to different parts of 

 Central Asia and Siberia; and one to Dr. H. A. 

 Fritsche, for his magnetic measurements in 

 China, Mongolia, Siberia and Russia. Two 

 small gold medals were awarded to F. F. 

 Miiller, for his magnetic work in East Siberia, 

 and to A. A. Lebedintseff, for his researches 

 into the chemical composition of water in the 

 Black and Azov Seas. Eighteen silver medals 

 were awarded for various works of lesser im- 

 portance. 



A PART of the collection of butterflies of the 

 late Prof. A. M. Butljero has been presented to 

 the Academy of Sciences of the University of 

 Moscow. The collection of Mexican insects 

 made by the late Julius Flohr has been be- 

 queathed by him to the Museum of Natural 

 History, Berlin ; the same institution will also 

 receive in event of the death of Herr Hans 

 Fruhstorcher his valuable collection of butter- 

 flies. 



According to the London Times, some impor- 

 tant alterations are now being carried out at 

 Kew Gardens. The temperate house projected 

 by the late Prince Consort was originally de- 

 signed to comprise a central structure, two 

 octagons and two wings. The wings were not 

 added ; but the government has now granted 

 the necessary funds, and already such progress 

 has been made that the south wing is nearly 

 completed, and the north wing will be con- 

 structed at the earliest possible date. When 

 finished, the temperate house will be one of the 

 mosfe striking, and probably the lai'gest of the 

 kind in existence. Its central avenue will be 

 600 ft. long, and there will be a clear view from 

 end to end. This, it may be added, will be just 

 double the length of the present largest house 

 — the palm house — in the gardens. The build- 

 ing will be used especially for the accommoda- 

 tion of succulent plants, agaves, the taller 

 cactuses, and the like, from such sub-tropical 

 covintries as the Cape, the highlands of Mexico 

 and the Canary Islands. Limited in the area of 

 their growth, the plants have hitherto been 

 necessarily confined in tubs, but in their new 

 quarters they will be planted out in beds, where 

 they may be expected to flower and add a new 



