Geology and. Natural History 293 



oils mixtiu'es of gas and air in the presence of shots of different 

 types of explosives. Considerable progress has also been made 

 in the investigation of explosives nsed in coal mining, and the 

 conditions under which they may be used with least risk. Man- 

 ufacturers have submitted many explosives i'or test at the station, 

 and a considerable portion of them passed and have been classi- 

 fied among the permissible explosives. The investigations and 

 educational work in connection with the use of artificial breath- 

 ing and other types of mine rescue equipment, the so-called 

 oxygen helmets, have not only been useful in developing a more 

 satisfactory use of such equipment in the examination of mine 

 explosions, but also better methods for using this equipment in 

 mine rescue work." 



The publications of the Survey relating to mine and fuel inves- 

 tigations, those prepared by the Technologic Branch, will in the 

 future be distributed by the Bureau of Mines, but the publica- 

 tions relating to structural materials will continue to be dis- 

 tributed by the Geological Survey. The last of the bulletins of 

 the Technologic Branch to be published by the Survey relates to 

 the Explosibility of Coal Dust, and was prepared by G. S. Rice, 

 with chapters by J. C. Frazer, Axel Larsen, Frank Haas, and 

 Carl Scholz. The titles are given of a series of bulletins to be 

 issued by the Bureau of Mines in the near future. 



7. The Evolution and Function of Living Purposive Matter ; 

 by N. C. Macistamara. Pp. xi, 298. New York, 1910 (D. 

 Appleton & Company : The International Scientific Series). — 

 The book consists of two distinct parts, the first 187 pages 

 containing a discussion of the evidence leading to the conclusion 

 that the psychic nervous substance of the brain of the higher 

 animals has been derived by a process of evolution from matter 

 in the simpler organisms possessing only instinctive functions. 

 An attempt is made to trace this gradual development of the 

 purposive elements of the protoplasm in the most lowly forms of 

 life into the specialized substance of the cerebrum of the human 

 being. The nature of protoplasm and its relation to the heredi- 

 tary qualities of the individual are discussed at length. 



In the second portion there is given a remarkable illustration 

 of the importance of heredity in determining individual character. 

 This is shown by the history of the Celtic people, who lived in 

 a nearly constant environment for 1200 years from the time of 

 their settlement in Ireland about the year 450. The destinies of 

 the individuals and of the race are shown to have been correlated 

 with the inheritance of personal characteristics through successive 

 generations. w. K. c. 



8. Discussion on the Origin of Vertebrates ; by W. H. Gas- 

 KELL, E. W. MacBride, E. H. Starling, E. S. Goodrich, H. 

 Gadow, a. Smith Woodavard, Arthur Dendy, E. Ray Lan- 

 KESTER, p. Chalmers Mitchell, J. Stanley Gardiner, T. R. R. 

 Stebbing, and D. H. Scott. Reprinted from the Proceedings of 

 the Linnean Society of London, pp. 9-50, 1910. — Two successive 



