Chemistry and Physics. 415 



it. M. Billon Daguerre places a mercuiy vapor lamp in a tube 

 through which the water circulates. — La Revue JElectrique, 

 May r5. J. t. 



9. International Congress of Radiology and Electricity.— 

 The second International Congress of Radiology and Electricity 

 was held at Brussels, September 13-15 inclusive, 1 910, the first con- 

 gress having been held at Liege in 1905. The attendance reached 

 nearly five hundred, and a very considerable proportion of the 

 active workers in radio-activity and electronics were present at 

 the various meetings. The formal ceremonies opened with a 

 reception at the Bourse on the evening of the 12th, and the work 

 of the Congress began on the following morning at a meeting 

 held in one of the buildings on the grounds of the Exposition, 

 where the pi'esidential address was delivered by Professor de 

 Heen, and various matters connected with the organization of the 

 congress were arranged. On the afternoon of that day the 

 members reassembled at the University and engaged in an 

 interesting discussion in regard to standards and nomenclature. 

 Attention was called by Professor Rutherford to the present 

 importance of adopting a uniform standard for radio-active sub- 

 stances, and he pointed out that during the past year the standard 

 specimens of radium salts employed in the leading laboratories of 

 different countries had been compared under his direction and 

 had been found to exhibit a marked lack of agreement. He was, 

 therefore, convinced that for the successful development of the 

 quantitative study of radio-active magnitudes the adoption of a 

 uniform radium standard which could be accepted by all was 

 highly desirable. Mme. Curie also spoke approvingly in regai'd 

 to this proposal, which was heartily supported by all present at 

 the meeting, and it was finally voted that a committee, the mem- 

 bers to be appointed by Professor Rutherford and Mme. Curie, 

 should be formed, and that this committee should consider the 

 special needs and determine the conditions under which a suitable 

 standard should be prepared and preserved. The matter of 

 nomenclature was also brieflj'^ considered and it was generally 

 agreed that at present there was nothing to be gained by the 

 adoption of a more systematic nomenclature, as has been suggested 

 by some, the present system being quite as satisfactory in all re- 

 spects as any other which had been as yet proposed. The meeting 

 then listened to an account by Mme. Curie of her recent inter- 

 esting experiments of isolation of metallic radium. A number of 

 other papers were also presented. On the following days the 

 congress met in different sections for the reading of papers, of 

 which a large number were presented on different subjects relat- 

 ing to radiology and electricity. These will be published later 

 in the transactions of the Congress. Among the many pleasant 

 features of the meeting were the reception at the town hall by the 

 Municipality, and the admirable performance to which members 

 were invited at the Theatre Royal de la Monnaie. At the last 

 meeting a committee, with members from different countries, was 



