August 19, 1904.] 



SCIENCE. 



241 



in Massachusetts Bay, Mr. Eotch proposed an 

 investigation by means of kites, flown from on 

 board ship, of the meteorological conditions 

 above the trades and the doldrums, a project 

 which has received the approval of the Inter- 

 national Aeronautical Congress, and of other 

 scientific bodies. 



The ' Effect of Meteorological Conditions 

 upon Audibility ' under various conditions at 

 Blue Hill was observed during the year 1901, 

 and the results are discussed by Mr. Eotch on 

 pages 156-163. The source of sound was a 

 steam whistle in the town of Hyde Park, the 

 whistle being 4,400 meters northwest of and 

 about 170 meters below the observatory. In- 

 vestigations upon the electrification of, and 

 upon the quantity of carbon dioxide contained 

 in the air were conducted at the observatory 

 by Mr. G. W. Pickard. Appendix D (pp. 215- 

 239) is a discussion of ' Kites and Instru- 

 ments Employed in the Exploration of the Air, 

 at Blue Hill Observatory, 1897-1902,' by S. 

 P. Eergusson, which will be found useful by 

 any persons who are undertaking scientific 

 kite construction. Of special interest are the 

 sections which concern kite meteorographs, in 

 devising and constructing which Mr. Eergus- 

 son has shown the greatest skill, ingenuity 

 and patience. 



Since Blue Hill Observatory first began its 

 pioneer work in kite meteorology there has 

 been a remarkably rapid development of sim- 

 ilar work in Europe and elsewhere, but there is 

 no reason to fear that the Blue Hill results 

 will suffer in any way by comparison with 

 those obtained abroad. E. DeC. W. 



Vorlesungen ueber theoretische und physihal- 

 ische Cliemie, drittes Heft, Beziehungen 

 zwischen Eigenschaften und Zusammensetz- 

 ung. Second edition. By J. H. Van't 

 HoFF. Braunschweig, Vieweg. 1903. 8vo. 

 Pp. x + 155. 



This is the third and concluding part of the 

 second edition of Professor van't Hoff's ' Lec- 

 tures.' Since the German, Erench and Eng- 

 lish versions of the first edition were noticed 

 in Science, it is sufficient to say that in the 

 present edition the subdivision and treatment 

 of the subject are the same as in the first. 

 There are a few verbal changes and some 



slight additions amounting to ten pages. The 

 value of the book is iuunensely increased, 

 however, by the fact that an index to the whole 

 work has been furnished. The book is so 

 familiar to chemists as a masterpiece of its 

 kind that further commendation would be 

 superfluous. Alexander Smith. 



SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS AND ARTICLES. 



The Journal of Comparative Neurology and 

 Psychology for July contains in addition to 

 editorial and review matter, a paper of 67 

 pages by Miss Jessie Allen, entitled, ' The 

 Association Process of the Guinea Pig, A 

 Study of the Psychical Development of an 

 Animal with a Nervous System well Medul- 

 lated at Birth.' This research forms an ex- 

 cellent control to the similar one recently 

 published by Dr. J. B. "Watson on the white 

 rat, the nervous system of which is entirely 

 non-medullated at birth. The rat comes to 

 psychical maturity at about the twenty-third 

 day; the guinea pig, on the other hand, reaches 

 psychical maturity on the third day, but even 

 in the adult lacks almost entirely that in- 

 genuity which is so characteristic of the rat's 

 method of overcoming obstacles in order to 

 reach food. Histological examination of the 

 developing guinea pig's brain reveals differ- 

 ences from the developing rat's brain which 

 can be closely correlated with the differences 

 in psychical development. 



A QUARTERLY journal entitled ' Opthalmol- 

 ogy ' will begin publication on October 1, with 

 Dr. H. D. Wurdeman as editor and publisher. 

 The associate editors include Drs. Chas. H. 

 May, New York City; Casey A. Wood, Chi- 

 cago; Chas. A. Oliver, Philadelphia; Blen- 

 cowe E. Fryer, Kansas City; Albert B. Hale, 

 Chicago; Edmond E. Blaauw, Buffalo; Chas. 

 Zimmermann, Milwaukee; Dr. Wm. Zent- 

 mayer, Philadelphia; J. Guttman, New York 

 City; and Erank Allport, Chicago. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 THE BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF ST. LOUIS. 



In an earlier number of this journal, 

 August 14, 1903, there appeared a brief notice 

 of the organization of the Biological Society 

 of St. Louis. Since that time a more formal 



