Colorado State Board of Medical Examiners, Chicago. Tuesday, February 5, separate meetings were held by the Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States and the Association of American Medical Colleges. Nature states that on January 2 the InstituJion of Civil Engineers of Great Britain completed the hundredth year of its existence, having been established in 1818 at a meeting of eight engineers at the Kendal Coffee House in Fleet Street. At the meeting of the institution on January 8, before the discussion of papers, a statement commemorative of the founding of the institution was made, present conditions precluding a more formal celebration of the centenary. THE United States Bureau of Mines has broadened the scope of its station at Urbana, Ill., to include work in coal and metal mining and the metallurgical industries of the Middle West. The present safety work will be continued and all work will be conducted under a cooperative agreement with the mining department of the University of Illinois. The bureau staff is under the superintendence of E. A. Holbrook, supervising mining engineer and metallurgist. Other members are W. B. Plank, in charge of mine safety, and F. K. Ovitz, chemist. Ir is expected that the new Field Museum, Chicago, for which ground was broken in the summer of 1915, will be ready for the transfer of the contents of the old museum in Jackson Park by August, 1919. The new building is situated south of Twelfth Street and east of the Illinois Central Station. It is of Georgia marble, and, exclusive of the porticoes, will measure 756 feet long and 350 feet wide. It will cost $5,000,000. THE annual report of the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, lately published, shows great activity, in spite of the war. During the year 261,594 persons visited the museum. An important new development was in connection with wounded soldiers. Some of the collections were temporarily placed in storage and space was made for a recreation center, including frequent lectures and demonstrations, concerts, library facilities and light refreshments. THE Minnesota state entomologist has issued an illustrated report of thirty-six pages on work upon the pine blister rust in Minnesota during 1917, in cooperation with the United States Bureau of Plant Industry. Details of inspection, scouting, infections and eradication are given. A limited number of copies are available for distribution. Applications should be mailed to State Entomologist, University Farm, St. Paul, Minnesota. UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL BONDS and cash amounting to $1,693,000 representing the trust fund established by Drs. Charles H. and William J. Mayo, Rochester, for carrying on medical research work at the University of Minnesota, have been turned over to the state treasurer. By the will of the late Mrs. Charles H. Colburn, of Milford, Mass., a fund of $100,000 is bequeathed to the Harvard Medical School for research in tuberculosis. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY has received $3,000 for research work in war problems from an anonymous donor and $5,000 from Clarence Mackay for surgical research work. W. H. BENDER, associate professor of agricultural education at the University of Minnesota, has resigned to go to the State Agricultural College, Ames, Iowa, as director of vocational education and special supervisor of vocational agriculture. Ar the University of Iowa, Associate Professor R. P. Baker has been made acting head of the department of mathematics. Mr. R. E. Gleason and Mr. F. M. Weida have been appointed instructors in mathematics. DISCUSSION AND CORRESPONDENCE THE ELECTION OF OFFICERS BY SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES TO THE EDITOR OF SCIENCE: In these days of strife for democratic ideals I would like to raise the question whether the method of election followed by many of our scientific societies is not in need of democratization. To begin at home I may say that I have been a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for twenty years and I think I was consulted only once in regard to a suitable candidate for the presidency of this Association. As far as I know the presidents of this Association have always been selected properly and the selections have perhaps been better than they would have been if a more democratic method had been employed, but it is questionable whether the scientific public of America takes as deep an interest in its leading scientific men as it would have taken if it had really had a part in bestowing a high scientific honor on some of them. I have been a member of the Society of the Sigma Xi for about twenty years and do not think I have ever had any part in the selection of a candidate for national president, although I voted once or twice for the one who was nominated by a committee. It may be said that I could have wielded an influence in the selection of candidates for these high offices if I had wanted to do so but many of us have so many duties to perform that we seldom go outside this range of interests. The question is whether it should not be put in such a way that a much larger number of the scientific men would regard it as a part of their duty to take an active part in the bestowal of high scientific honors. If this is not done these honors will usually be bestowed by a few men who will generally make wise selections but will fail to arouse much general interest. In some of the national societies devoted to special subjects there seems to be still greater need for thoroughly democratic methods of election in case we are seeking to establish in America a real democracy along these lines. Many of us regard elections as necessary evils which should receive the least possible attention. There are various other means of expressing scientific appreciation and a scientific democracy should by no means be judged mainly by the methods employed in the selection of officers. These methods have, however, their influence in creating a spirit of openness and wide interest, and it is at least conceivable that the extra labor involved in making scientific elections more democratic would be wisely spent. G. A. MILLER ARE ZOOLOGISTS GOING TO USE THE BNA? Ir is perhaps as justifiable as it is interesting that scientists are the slowest people to take hold of new ideas and radical changes. Yet there seems to be little justification for a group of men remaining silent and at the same time failing to use modern inventions in their field which have proved useful and effective. Most zoologists are familiar with the excellent work of the Commission from the Anatomical Society which undertook the revision of the nomenclature of human anatomy. It must be a great source of satisfaction to this body of men to see how well the anatomists have responded to the simplification and standardization of terms, for now all the textbooks and many of the medical men have adopted the BNA, making a bedlam of terms easy to understand. However, up to the present time the comparative anatomists and zoologists in general have not adopted or used this nomenclature, so that one may read of the "dorsal root" of a spinal nerve in a pig embryo and the "posterior root" of a spinal nerve in human anatomy. Indeed the workers in the field of human embryology still use terms which do not appear in the BNA. Perhaps the most confusing set of terms are the following: anterior and posterior; dorsal and ventral, and superior and inferior. It would seem preferable to use drosal and ventral instead of anterior and posterior and then use anterior and posterior to mean superior and inferior, for there seems to be no particular need for upsetting the whole of the comparative terms to accommodate only one type of animal. But this is not a matter for one individual to decide and since the Commission has decided differently and their report has been accepted and adopted, there seems to be but one thing to do, and that is follow their nomenclature. If the zoologists wish to use the words "dorsal and ventral" they should furnish sufficient grounds to justify changing the BNA, but if on the other hand they can not, or rather will not, then it follows that they should use the terms as they stand in the BNA. If we are willing to stand so firmly in the principles of evolution and if we recognize man as but another animal in the long series, it seems entirely justifiable to use the same terms throughout for homologous structures, and certainly for the general space positions and orientations. Perhaps an open discussion of the matter might be of some interest and effect; concessions might be made on both sides which will give happy results. THOMAS BYRD MAGATH COLLEGE OF MEDICINE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS, CHICAGO, ILL. RATE OF DESERT DELTA GROWTH FROM the presence and position of the alluvial fans which so conspicuously mark some of the old shore-lines of ancient Lake Bonneville, that gigantic precursor of the Great Salt Lake of Utah, it is inferred that during the long period of desiccation which that vast water-body underwent the lowering of the lake level did not take place uniformly but experienced more or less protracted pauses. most notable of these supposed halts in the recession of the waters is thought to be represented by the embankment denominated the Provo Beach. The The Provo terrace, which lies about 600 feet above the surface of the present Great Salt Lake, and 400 feet below the highest water stage of the ancient lake, is distinguished by extensive alluvial cones which are commonly regarded as true delta deposits. The great magnitude of some of these deltas is interpreted as furnishing conclusive evidence of long tarrying of the old lake waters at this level. That the unusual size of the Provo deltas is not a necessary consequence of long lagging of lake waters at this stage seems demonstrated by recent extensive observations that enable quantitative calculations to be made of the actual time occupied in desert delta formation. The possible rapidity proves to be very much beyond all ordinary expectations. Concerning the formation of the Provo deltas there are several accelerating factors which do not obtain in the normal desert fans of alluvium that so often collect on the piedmonts at the mouths of canyons. These are the great volumes of nearby morainic materials which filled the valleys of the Wasatch and other ranges, the presence of a convenient water-body in which to concentrate the débris washed out of the canyons, and the position of the Provo level on the line where plain meets mountain. The alluvial fans characterizing the piedmonts of many desert ranges are usually small, owing largely to the fact no doubt that the mountains have little soil material or coarse rock-waste. In some instances the alluvial débris forms merely a thin veneer over a low cone of the rocky substructure. The out-wash of boulders and pebbles serves rather as a protection against the general lowering of the plains surface through eolian erosion. Not a few of the desert fans have thus really a rock floor just as have the intermont plains themselves, and are not, strictly speaking, alluvial cones at all. In strong contrast are the desert fans sometimes produced by normal water action. Two instances in particular may be cited in illustration of the actual rapidity with which the process sometimes goes on. Near Ivanpah, in southeastern California, a shallow trench was once dug diagonally down a sloping bajada belt in order to protect a railroad grade from possible wash of sporadic rains. Soon a cloudburst happened to come. In an hour's time a great gully 75 feet deep, 50 feet wide and several miles long was excavated in the soft soil. The bulk of the dirt was redeposited at the foot of the sloping plain in a broad fan of more than a mile radius. In another instance, near Socorro, New Mexico, the bank of an arroyo was cut to take care of future storm-waters. In a single night this spillway was deepened to 50 feet and an alluvial cone nearly 100 feet high and nearly three miles radius was formed. It is possible and often probable that desert deltas of great size are surprisingly rapid in their growth. When chanced to be restricted by quiet bodies of water, as in the case of old Lake Bonneville, they are rendered so exceptionally conspicuous as to excite wonderment. Therefore the Provo deltas do not necessarily imply very long, or even any, tarrying of Bonneville lake surface at this level. It is possible and even probable that these deltas were actually formed during the regular or uniform recession of the lake waters. Desert delta growth may take place with unexpected rapidity, measurable by days or even hours rather than eons. CHARLES KEYES SCIENTIFIC BOOKS The Botany of Crop Plants. A text and reference book. By WILFRED W. ROBBINS. P. Blakiston's Son & Co., Philadelphia, 1917, pp. xix+681, f. 263. Price $2.00. THE Botany of Crop Plants, by Wilfred W. Robbins, of the Colorado Agricultural College, is an important contribution to our textbooks on economic botany. The book has been written to meet a growing demand for a text and reference book which will give the student a knowledge of the botany of common orchard, garden and field crops. To the teacher who is engaged in the teaching of botany, especially the economic phase of the subject, the work of Dr. Robbins will be found of great value. It has been difficult to refer students to a single text-book giving an adequate discussion of this phase of botany. Botanists are to blame themselves for allowing the economic side of the subject to slip away from them. This book should, therefore, pave the way for a more adequate study of our crop plants from the standpoint of agriculture and horticulture. Botanists should make use of our cultivated plants when it is possible to utilize them to illustrate life processes. The text-book of Dr. Robbins is divided into two parts; Part I., consisting of 8 chapters, takes up such topics as the fundamental organs of seed plants; the cell, root, stem, leaf, flower, fruit, seed and seedling, classification and naming of plants. When possible the author has used economic plants as a basis for the discussion. This portion of the text is brief, covering only 67 pages. In Part II. the author has arranged the subject from a systematic standpoint. Chapters IX-XIX. inculsive are devoted to the grasses, first importance being given to the cereals, wheat, oats, barley, rye, maize, sorghum, rice, millet, timothy and sugar cane. Under the subject of wheat he discusses the habit of the plant, root, stem, leaf, inflorescence, spikelet, flower, pollination, artificial cross pollination, fertilization and maturing of grain, ripening stages, the mature grain, e. g., ovary wall or pericarp, testa, nucellus, endosperm, aleurone layer, starchy endosperm, embryo. The author follows this botanical matter with economic phases of the subject as hard and soft wheats, millings of wheat, kinds of flour, germination of wheat, etc. He then discusses the classification of wheats, origin of wheat, environmental relations. In the bibliography some 29 references for purposes of study are referred to. The papers for the most part are accessible. One wonders why the work of Körnicke "Die Getreidearten", which is one of the best of the older works on the subject, is not referred to. However, the student will find the references given valuable in looking up material. Each one of the other cereals is taken up in the same way. A short chapter is devoted to timothy. It would have added to the value of this chapter if some of the other forage grasses had been considered, say blue grass, which is the most important pasture plant of the northern states. This review would be unduly lengthened, should I refer to the other economic plants he has considered. Mention may, however, be made of the treatment found under the head of Moraceæ, in which the mulberry, hop, fig and hemp are taken up. In the account of the fig there is an adequate statement on pollination. This chapter, like others, gives some important references. In some cases, however, some important references are omit The Genera of Fishes, from Linnæus to Cuvier, 1758-1833, Seventy-five Years, with the accepted Type of Each. A contribution to the Stability of Scientific Nomenclature. By DAVID STARR JORDAN, assisted by BARTON WARREN EVERMANN. (Published by Stanford University, 1917.) It is a reproach to zoologists that so much uncertainty exists about the proper names of animals. To an outsider it appears inexplicable that the numerous competent students of taxonomy do not put their house in order, and settle once for all the questions which they find so vexatious. The difficulty is that these matters demand exhaustive bibliographical research, and few have access to the necessary books, even if they could afford to take the time to digest them. Proposed changes, based on fragmentary research, are naturally regarded with doubt, since other investigations may show them to be needless. The only satisfactory solution must come through reviews of the whole of the pertinent literature of any group under discussion. Such a review, so far as it concerns the genera of fishes named from 1758 to 1833, is given by Dr. Jordan in a work just published by Stanford University. The various publications are enumerated in chronological order, and all the new generic names are cited, with indications of the type species. Explanatory notes, often of considerable length, are added. Thus the reader is put in possession of the facts, and is at liberty to form his own opinions. The list is doubtless substantially complete, although it is stated in the introduction that other names may yet be discovered in dictionaries and obscure publi cations.1 At the end is a series of lists, showing the various necessary or possible changes in nomenclature. These lists are as follows: (4) Changes resting in priority, involving 73 names, though in nine of these the (B) Changes resulting from the operations of (C) Changes resulting from opinion 24 of the Commission, which if logically followed must also admit four names of Plumier. The Plumierian names were polynomial and we must agree with Dr. Jordan that they should be rejected. Although few, they involve some very objectionable changes. (D) Hypothetical changes according to law of priority, but doubtfully eligible; apparently to be rejected under opinion 57 of the Commission. 1 I hear from Dr. Jordan that he has found two omissions: Congiopodus Perry, 1811, the same as Agriopus; and Rhomboides Goldfuss, 1820, a substitute for Rhombus Cuvier, preoccupied. |