378 Scientific Intelligence. 



water — the OH group being thereby introduced. This acid is 

 soluble in water. The fusing point is 218°. It crys- 

 tallizes in colorless needles. When fusel, partial decomposition 

 occurs. A beautiful violet color is imparted to its solution, when 

 treated with a few drops of ferric chloride. A combustion of the 

 acid gave 29*00 per cent carbon and 1 -2s per cent hydrogen; calcu- 

 lated"28-38 per cent carbon and 1*35 per cent hydrogen. 



FarabroiHinftnl ,, » >/b> ,-oaU j ^xlinm : *(C\,il Bi Ui <">II- 

 COONa)+ H 2 0. Obtained by boi with sodium 



The salt is exceedingly soluble in water, forming 

 light yellow colored tt< randies. An 



analysis of the anhydrous salt afforded 7 -to per rent >. a ; required 

 7-23 'per cent Na. 



Parabromn > ' > ,-,/> t , II ,, „, ((',.! I., I 1 i "11 



COO) 2 Ba. When an aqueous solution of the- acid' is" boiled with 



[ obtained by analysis 

 18-80 per cent Ba; required 18-84 per cent Ba. B. f. s. 



Philadelphia, Pa. 



8. Kinetic Theory of G((*e.*.—M. Boltzmann, in a communi- 

 cation to the Vienna Academy on the nature of gas molecules, 

 abandons the notion tha tie/' have lik> iggregaies of material 

 points (the atoms), lie considers that in estimating the impact 

 action of the molecules we may almost regard the whole aggre- 



inay c« h-'-' ... perhaps even ether atom*, as 



rigid. It is found that then the ratio oi the heat-capacities oi ijie 

 gas must Ik- If, when the gas-molecules have a ball-form. The 

 ratio of the hi* ieacities will h< i in the molecules have the 

 form of rigid bodies of rotation, lut which are not balls; and 1^ 

 if they are of any other form of rigid bodies. These numbers at 

 least seem to agree so far with those found experimentally, that 

 one cannot say that experiment furnislus a contradiction of the 

 theory thus modified. It is further shown that the value- experi- 

 mentally got for the heat-capacity, under this view, are in satis- 

 factory "agreement with the heat-capacities of solid bodies. Of 

 course the gas molecules cannot be absolutely rigid bodies : this 

 is already disproved by spectral analysis, hut'itmav he that the 

 vibrations produciim ..as -.pectra are 'merely brief shivering- dur- 

 ing the shock of ?u . mo!-. u ! r s, comparable to the sound per- 

 ceived on the shock of two ivory balls. — Nature, xv, 306. 



9. Vowel " Clang." — M. Auerbach, from researches on the 



natureof the vowel •< ! ,>■ .." in I', ,• H-lml i/- j y-i.-a i .' ">■•- 

 tory, comes to the following conclusions, which appear to throw 

 new light on some unsolved problems:—:. All clang, especially 

 the vowels of the human voice and speech, are to be defined as 

 the consequence of the jo, t action of two moments a re hit e and 

 an absolute. 2. The relative ,, onient is thv mode of distriiuiti »n 

 of the whole intensity among the es as deter- 



