corpus striatum of the pigeon: F. T. ROGERS, Marquette School of Medicine. *Photic orientation in the drone-fly, Eristalis tenar: S. O. MAST, Johns Hopkins University. *Behavior of a tunicate larva: W. J. CROZIER, The University of Chicago. *Vision in the seventeen-year locust, Cicada septendecim: S. O. MAST, Johns Hopkins University. *Periodicity in the photic responses of the euglenoid, Septocinclis texta, and its bearing on reversion in the sense of orientation: S. O. MAST, Johns Hopkins University. *Adaptation to light in Euglena variabilis (?) and its bearing on reversion in orientation: S. O. MAST, Johns Hopkins University. "The maze-behavior of white rats in the second generation after alcoholic treatment: E. C. MACDOWELL and E. M. VICARI, Carnegie Institution of Washington. *The relation of modifiability of behavior and metabolism in land isopods: C. H. ABBOTT, Massachusetts Agricultural College. (From the Osborn Zoological Laboratory, Yale University; introduced by Henry Laurens.) The rate of carbon dioxide production by pieces of Planaria, in relation to the theory of axial gradients: GEORGE DELWIN ALLEN, University of Minnesota. (Introduced by E. J. Lund.) "The origin, function and fate of the test-vesicles of Amaroucium constellatum: CASWELL GRAVE, Washington University. (Lantern.) Respiratory organs of Ucides caudatus, a West Indian land crab: C. C. NUTTING, University of Iowa. (Lantern.) *The homologies and development of the papal organ of male spiders: W. M. BARROWS, Ohio State University. "Morphology of the enteron of the periodical cicada, Tibicen septendecim Linn: CHARLES W. HARGITT and L. M. HICKERNELL, Syracuse University. Slides of stained cysts of the intestinal amoebas and flagellates of man: S. I. KORNHAUSER, Denison University. Wire models of paths of oyster larvæ, dero, etc.: A. A. SCHAEFFER, University of Tennessee. The embryonic columella auria of the lizard, Eumeces: EDWARD L. RICE, Ohio Wesleyan University. Phenotypes in coat colors in mice: J. A. DETLEF SEN and ELMER ROBERTS, Laboratory of Genetics, College of Agriculture, University of Illinois Demonstration of synapsis stages in the chromosomes of grouse locusts and other grasshoppers: W. R. B. ROBERTSON, University of Kansas. Feathers illustrating the inheritance of color in varieties of the domestic turkey: W. R. B. ROBERTSON, University of Kansas. The development of the asexual larvæ in Paracopidosomopsis: J. T. PATTERSON, University of Texas. Full proceedings of the meeting together with abstracts of papers and a list of members and their addresses will be found in the Anatomical Record for January, 1920. W. C. ALLEE, Secretary THE MINERALOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA Ar a meeting held in the quarters of the Department of Mineralogy at Harvard University on December 30 a group of 28 mineralogists from all sections of the United States, including representatives from Canada, organized a new society to be known as the Mineralogical Society of America. This action was the outcome of a movement started at the Albany meeting of the Geological Society of America in 1916 for the bringing together into a permanent organization of workers in science whose interest lay largely or wholly in mineralogy, crystallography or those allied sciences which include physical crystallography and mineral synthesis. A provisional Constitution and By-Laws were adopted which defined the object of the society as the advancement of mineralogy, crystallography and the allied sciences and provided for several forms of membership, as follows: 1. Fellows, who are to be nominated by the council, must qualify for eligibility by having produced some published results of research in mineralogy, crystallography or the allied sciences. Fellows are eligible for office in the society and may vote upon amendments to the Constitution. 2. Members, who comprise persons who are engaged in or interested in mineralogy, crystallography or the allied sciences, but who are not qualified for fellowship. Membership carries with it the right to vote upon all matters except the amendment of the Constitution, but members are not eligible for office. The Constitution also provides for Patrons, who shall have conferred material favors upon the society and Correspondents, or residents outside of North America who are sufficiently distinguished in the subjects for which the society stands to warrant their receiving this recognition. Because it was recognized that the comparatively small attendance at the meeting did not adequately represent the probable initial membership of the society, the lists of charter fellows and members have been kept open until a later meeting of the society. It is expected that the general membership of the society at the close of 1920 will number some 350 to 400 fellows and members. It was decided to publish a journal devoted to mineralogy, crystallography and the allied sciences, which shall be the official organ of the society, and which the general membership of the society shall be entitled to receive. The present plan is to enlarge the American Mineralogist to include research papers and abstracts, but at the same time to retain the valuable features of this publication which has become recognized as of permanent interest to such collectors and amateurs who are eligible to membership but not fellowship. The council of the society has under consideration the question of affiliation with the Geological Society of America. The provisional officers of the new society which were elected at the December meeting are: President, E. H. Kraus, of the University of Michigan; Vice-president, T. L. Walker, of the University of Toronto; Secretary, H. P. Whitlock, of the American Museum of Natural History; Treasurer, A. B. Peck, of the Bureau of Standards, Washington; Editor, E. T. Wherry, of the Bureau of Chemistry, Washington; and Councilors, A. S. Eakle, of the University of California (1 year); F. R. Van Horn, of the Case School of Applied Science, Cleveland (2 years); F. E. Wright, of the Carnegie Geophysical Laboratory, Washington (3 years); and A. H. Phillips, of Princeton University (4 years). The formation of a society whose object is to promote and foster the mineralogical sciences comes at a time when there is a distinct need in this country for such a body. The growing importance of this field of research, already felt to a marked degree in the period preceding the war, has now with the necessary curtailing of scientific activity in Europe, assumed scope and size. It is acknowledged by observers of the trend of events that scientific prestige has come to abide in America rather than in the countries of the Old World. No more keenly is this tendency sensed than in those industries which are demanding trained workers in crystallography and physical mineralogy for their research laboratories. If then, science is to keep pace with industry in this period of reconstruction and if our universities and technical schools are to supply to the increasing stream of students coming to us from abroad, the high standard of scientific education which has come to be demanded of us, it is eminently right and fitting that such specialized bodies as the Mineralogical Society of America should be formed and fostered. HERBERT P. WHITLOCK, Some recent developments in the calculus of variations: PROFESSOR G. A. BLISS, retiring chairman of the Chicago Section of the American Mathematical Society. A suggestion for the utilization of atmospheric molecular energy: MR. H. H. PLATT. What has been heretofore Section A has been divided into two sections, "A"-Mathematics, and "B"-Astronomy. The officers of Section A are as follows: Vice-president-D. R. Curtiss, Northwestern Uni versity. Secretary-Wm. H. Roever, Washington Univer sity. Members of Sectional Committee-5 years, Dunham Jackson, University of Minnesota; 4 years, A. D. Pitchard, Western Reserve University; 3 years, G. A. Bliss, University of Chicago; 2 years, James Page, University of Virginia; 1 year, H. L. Rietz, University of Iowa. Member of the Council-G. A. Miller, University of Illinois. Member of General Committee-E. V. Huntington, Harvard University. The officers of Section B are: SCIENCE FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 1919 CONTENTS SOME ASPECTS OF PHYSICS IN WAR AND PEACE1 PART I. SOME APPLICATIONS OF PHYSICS TO WAR PROBLEMS A YEAR ago in Baltimore we met with peace in prospect. The armistice had been signed. But like a strong runner who had just gotten under way we found it difficult to stop. We continued many of the programs of war. Many of us were still in uniform. Our thoughts were still largely concerned with those problems upon which we had been engaged. But now most of us are back to our normal pursuits, eager as we had been during the war to contribute our energies to securing the welfare of the nation. The tumult and the shouting dies, the captains and the kings depart, still stands the ancient and abiding sacrifice, the labor of unselfish service which we regard as the natural birthright of scientific men. We are still too near the war to get a clear perspective of the extent to which the various agencies contributed to its successful prosecution. But we can examine it in part and later the results of our examination can be gathered together. It had been my intention to pass in review the many ways in which physics had been applied to the problems of war, but these had been so numerous and so extensive that my time would be given to a mere enumeration of the activities. For the war was one of many elements and many dimensions. Leaving aside the human and, I may add, the inhuman elements, and considering those confined to space, we had warfare in the air, on the surface of the earth, under the earth, on and under the sea. Applications of science were everywhere. Many of the applications of physics have been presented else 1 Address of the vice-president and chairman of Section B-Physics-American Association for the Advancement of Science, St. Louis, December, 1919. where and at length. You have been told the story of aviation, of the physical laboratory on wing; the story of wireless between stations on the surface of the earth, under water and high in the air; the story of signaling through the darkness of night or the brightness of day; the story of sound-ranging, of spotting enemy guns and the explosions of our own projectiles seeking out those guns and of the re-directing of our guns until those of the enemy had been destroyed; the story of submarine detection and of the extremely valuable applications which the study of that problem brought to us-the ability literally to sound the ocean-the ability to guide a ship through fog or past shoals. These and other stories you know. Indeed, many of you contributed to their unfolding. It is my desire here to present briefly some developments in a branch concerning which little has been written, viz., warfare with guns, projectiles, bombs. Later I want to turn from the contemplation of problems of war to view our subject in its relation to peace. The English playwright, John Drinkwater, represents Abraham Lincoln as saying "the appeal to force is the misdeed of an imperfect world." Unfortunately the world is still imperfect. In the horrible business of killing people in war, guns of all sizes and kinds are the effective weapons. Have you reflected on the enormous extent to which artillery was used in the Great War? According to Sir Charles Parsons, on the British Front alone, in one day, nearly one million rounds of nearly 20,000 tons of projectiles were fired. Extend this along both sides of the Eastern and Western fronts and you may gain some idea of the daily amount of metal fired by guns. The actual American contribution of artillery to the war was very small but at the time of the Armistice we were making progress. In America we often measure things by money. The total amount of money authorized for artillery, including motor equipment, was $3,188,000,000, and for machine guns was $1,102,600,000. Judged by the money expended for them, guns are of importance. It is essential that we get as effective guns as possible and that we know how to use them. Aircraft, and anti-aircraft warfare, barrage firing, long range guns-all of these call for a very complete and accurate knowledge concerning the motion of a projectile and the energy required to carry it to a certain place and to cause it there to explode at a chosen time. Exterior and interior ballistics are thus matters of great importance. For two hundred years or more the subject of exterior ballistics has been regarded as belonging to pure mathematics. But into this realm physicists at times intruded. To Newton we ascribe the law that the resistance which a body experiences in passing through the air varies as the square of the velocity. But that great scientist made it clear that that might not be the only law. Euler, one hundred and fifty years ago, proved various mathematical results. Assuming the air resistance to vary as the square of the velocity and that the density of the air did not change with altitude, he showed that the coordinates x, y, and the time can be computed by quadratures. His method of taking the angle of slope of the trajectory as the independent variable has been followed by most of his successors in ballistics. Even in Euler's method the variation of the density of the air with altitude can be allowed for by using small arcs and by changing the constant of proportionality in the law of air resistance to accord with the new density. His method can in general be followed where the law of air resistance is that given by Mayevski, viz., |