SCIENCE 



A WEEKLY JOURNAL DEVOTED TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE, PUBLISHING THE 



OFFICIAL NOTICES AND PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION 



FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE. 



Fridat, August 19, 1904 



CONTENTS: 



Doctorates Conferred by American Univer- 

 sities 225 



Some Aspects of Medical Education: Pko- 

 FESSOE Dr. John H. Musser 230, 



Nathan Smith Davis: Frank S. Johnson... 237 



Scientific Books: — 



Investigations of the Blue Hill Meteorolog- 

 ical Observatory : Professor R. DeC. Ward. 

 Van't Hoff's Yorlesungen iiber theoretische 

 und physikalische Chemie: Professor 

 Alexander Smith 240 



Scientific Journals and Articles 241 



Societies and Academies: — 



The Biological Society of St. Louis: J. 

 Arthur Harris. American Fisheries So- 

 ciety 241 



Discussion and Correspondence : — 

 Areas in the United States Suitable for Beet 

 Culture: Dk. H. W. Wiley. Jordan on 

 Fossil Labroid and Chcetodont Fishes: De. 

 C. E. Eastman. The Ascent of Water: 

 Professor G. Macloskie. Analysis of a 

 Complex Musical Tone: Professor W. S. 

 Franklin 244 



Special Articles: — 



The Effect of Radium Rays on the Colon 

 Bacillus, the Diphtheria Bacillus and Yeast: 

 Dr. C. S. Prescott. A Wheat-Rye Hybrid: 

 Dr. H. F. Roberts 246 



Notes on Inorganic Chemistry : — 



The Melting Point of Gold; Fused Soap- 

 stone Fibers; Explosions from Ferrosilicon; 

 Bessemer vs. Open-hearth; Royal Society 

 Conversaziones; Nature of Solutions: J. 

 L. H 249 



Social and Economic Science: — 



University Competition for Graduate Stu- 

 dents; Service of Science in Social Work; 

 Virginia's Program of Educational Pur- 

 poses: Dr. John Franklin Crowell 251 



Opportunities in Anthropology at the World's 

 Fair: W J McGee 253 



Scientific Notes and Neus 254 



University and Educational Netos 256 



MSB. inteuiled for publicatiou aud books, etc., intended 

 for reYiew should be sent to the Editor of Science, Garri- 

 son-on-Hudaon, N. Y. 



DOCTORATES CONFERRED BY AMERICAN 

 UNIVERSITIES. 



We publish for the seventh year statis- 

 tics in regard to the doctorates conferred 

 by our universities. The degree of doctor 

 of philosophy or of science was received by 

 281 candidates from 24 institutions. In 

 addition to the 34 universities and colleges 

 from which returns have been received, 

 there may be a few cases in which the de- 

 gree has been conferred legitimately by 

 smaller institutions, but they are certainly 

 very few. As a matter of fact, four fifths 

 of all the degrees are conferred by seven 

 universities. There have not during the 

 past seven years, and probably never pre- 

 viously, been so many degrees conferred as 

 in the present year. The numbers for the 

 seven years are 234, 222, 239, 253, 216, 266 

 and 281. The figures fluctuate from year 

 to year, but indicate an increase in seven 

 years of about twenty per cent. This seems 

 to be disappointingly small. In an article 

 by Dr. Tombo, recently (July 15) printed 

 in this .journal, it is stated that the number 

 of graduate students has more than doubled 

 in the past five years, and in an article by 

 Dr. Mayer, also printed here (July 8), it 

 is said that the number of graduate stu- 

 dents increased two and a half times from 

 1890 to 1902. It is not clear why the num- 

 ber who receive the advanced degree should 

 not increase as rapidly as the number of 

 graduate students. This is not due to a 

 raising of the standards, as these have re- 

 mained about stationary; nor is it due to 

 lack of encouragement on the part of the 

 universities, as fellowships and other in- 



