Page:Science vol. 5.djvu/568

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632

��SCIENCE.

��[Vol. T.. Xo. W '

��these bpcls llip Knotanie group, from a IriliB of Indians who bunted over lliat part of Ibc Uiiefcy MtunUiini betwpcii the 4!>tb Riid 52d parallela. The )>r(l!t lie in troughs 111 the paleozoic formations of the mi'untnlns, and ma; be traced for a distance of a hundred and fort; miles north sn<l suulh. The plants found are conifers, eye ads, and ferns, the cycada being especially abundant. Some are Ideuticai with species described by Heer from the Jurassic of Siberia, while others occur in the lower cretaceous of Greenland. No dlctoyledonous leaves have been found In thtue beds, whicb connect In a remarkable way the extinct floras of A^ia and Aro<>rica and those of the Jurassic and cretaceous periods.

— In an article on the Tarialions of personality, tn the Jtmrnal lie Gen'eee, Dr. Hermann Fol mentions three elements of personality, — consciousness, mem- ory, and volition. Of the first there are several hinds, Dorabiy consciousness of sensation, where the sensa- tion proper must be distinguished from our conacious- iiesc of It. If the latter is lost periodically, and the condition aUcrnates at regular Intervals with the nor- mal state, a sense of double existence Is produced; and the same state arises when consciouim^ss of sen- sation is carried to an extreme. In regard to the mem- ory, a person sometimes seems to bave two distinct memories which act alternately. The dupliratinn is particularly noticeable In the case of somnambulists. If U uccun In a state of wakefulness, l.be person seems to have two dUtinct personaltlies. Only the normal memory forms an element of the personality. The personality may also be altered by a change In our idea of the future. Absent-mindedness, and yielding to Involuntary impulses, are the outward signs of this kind of menial dlsea^ie. In conclusion. Dr. Fol thought men differed less in the extent of ttieir faculties than in the extent of their conscious- ness of them.

— An aeronautical exhibition under the patronage of Ibe Aeronautical society of Great Britain was to be opened, says JTolure, during the present month, in coDiiecCion with the IntcniBllonal exhibition at the Alexandra palace. The large oiit-door Fpace will be made available fur various competitions. The dis- puted question of aerial locomotion by the aid of buoyancy will be tested. Possibly the fire In the building in the early part of June may Interfere with the plan;.

— A course of ten lectures on the practical analysis of plants was finished on June 20 at the Cincinnati society's rooms. They were given by Jos. F. James, and were iiistitutmi for the special tienefll of the teachers in the public schools, They were free to those Invited, and were attended by from fifteen to twenty teachers. The society proposes to give similar courses of lectures on Saturday mornings in the fall. The fint one will probably be on physiology and hygiene, followed by one on physical geography.

— We regret to notice the death of Rev, T. W. Webb at Oardwlck, Eng., on the iOth of May. He la known everywhere ^) astronomers, to amateur astronomers in particular, as the author of ' Celestial

��objects for common telescope.',' — a bonis Kbich ii said to bave "done more to interest ubsprvera in ttif heavens than any other book Ibat liav been pnlk liabed." fle was a frequent contributor In JTiOnrt, the Intelleclital oSwrner, the Engll»h tnerhanir, etc One of his most recent works was a popular buok on the sun. We learn from the yistrunnmiccif regitUr that he was appointed a prebendary of Hereford Cv tbedral In 11^2; and. if he had lived a few weeb longer, he would bave completed bis eiglitietb yw.

— Entomologists will be sorry U> leani of the dealL on the IGth in^iL. at his home in Morgaiituwn, N.C., of Mr. H. K. Morrison, a noted collei-tor of insects, probably the most successful and en thus I as line of any we have had. A large proportion of hit collections wenlW Europe, where tbey were eagiertj sought; and the llleratore of de3cri|itire erilouiulf^ for the last ten years In this country shows every- where the indications of his xeal.

— A correspondent of the Enjlinh tneehanic, wri^ ing from Mnrcbaln, Somme, France, says, "A boiler of a new system, whicb received the name of gini- rateur tricycUqae inexploilhlt, has been invenieil. which differs from all those hitherto produced. Tb» metallic surface subujitted to the action of. Ibii Are does not touch the water; In no condition cau the boiler get red-hot; it is unveloped all over by tJie same temperature: hence an immense vaporizaliua; and steam can be produced to Ibe very luat drop of water without the leHSt danger."

— Jules Gamier has designed an elevated railway for the city of Paris, which it Is expecl«il will be in running order In lime for the exposition of 1889, It will be twenty-eight thousand eight hundred metrci (about eighteen miles) In length, and will cost Ian millions of dollars. The strncture will be eompHMd of two tracks, one above the other, on an Iron franie. The whole will l>e fifteen metres from the buildlng- liue, aud vibrations will be guarded against by special appliances, The trains will be composed of thrre American cars, each fourteen metres in length, and ' two platform or open cars. They will run every five minutes fur seventeen hours eiicli day. and will buve ' branches connecthig with the several railway-slaiioDt.

— A new volume of inenioin of the Siberian re«t!ou

of the liu.>sian geographical society contain* a de- scription of Lake HiLlkhash by Fischer, of the Yassiugau tundnis. a list of geographical tlons delemiined by LebedeH, aud other docui of importance.

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��— Vesque's ' TraltSdc botaniqne ' ( Paris, BatlU which was written, as the ikulhor stal«s, as mentsry to lectures delivered at the Insiitut agrono- mlque, is prefaced by a brief review of the cbaractMS of classllicHCory value in botany, but is In the maio a concise synopsis of the phenogamie orders of im- portance. The scientific repulation of its author Is a sufficient guaranty of Its accuracy ; and the Informa- tion it contains is rendered easily accessible by a complete index to the illustrations and spMidc * scriptloos, and to the principal products mention)

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