Abstract
PARIS. Academy of Sciences, August 16.—M. Bouchard in the chair.—J. Guillaume: Observations of Metcalf's comet, made with the bent equatorial at the Observatory of Lyons. Two sets of observations were taken on August ii. The comet was about of the eleventh magnitude, and appeared to be of a bluish tint. The head was about 30″ in size, with a central condensation.—M. Coggia: Observations of the comet igiod (Metcalf, August 9, 1910), made at the Observatory of Marseilles with the Eichens 26-cm. equatorial. Positions of the comet and comparison stars are given for August ii and 12.—:M. Borrelly: Observations of Metcalf's comet, igiod, made at the Observatory of Marseilles with the comet finder. Data given for August ii and 12. The comet is described as being of the eleventh magnitude, and as having neither nucleus nor tail.—J. Chatelu: Observations of Metcalf's comet made at the Observatory of Paris with the 30.5-cm. equatorial. Data given for August ii, 13, and 14. Magnitude about 10.5. The nebulosity surrounding the nucleus appears to measure about 45″ of arc.—R. Bourgeois: The daily movement of the top of the Eiffel Tower. The motion is due to the unequal heating of the four pillars, and varies between 3 cm. and 17 cm. In spite of the recent floods in Paris, the mean position of the summit has not changed since 1908. The direction of the motion appears to change i with the season of the year.—Louis Wertenstein: Radio-active projections. The particles projected from radium B can pass through a thickness of 10 μμ of silver. The free path of the particles in hydrogen is inversely proportional to the pressure, and amounts to 34 mm. at a pressure of 15 mm. and 24 mm. at a pressure of 22 mm. At atmospheric pressure the free path is 0.7 mm.— William Duano:. The energy of the radium rays. Of the five methods tried to put in evidence the energy of the radium rays, no clear results were obtained with a bolometer, a radiometer, and a thermopile. Positive results were obtained with a differential gas thermometer and a sensitive calorimeter. Details are given of the apparatus employed in the last case. The quantities of heat measured are due to the a rays.—E. Mathias and H. Kamerlingh Onnes: The rectilinear diameter of oxygen. The system of cryostats employed permitted the determination of the densities of liquid and gaseous oxygen at a series of constant and exactly known temperatures, ranging between–120.4° and –210.4° C. The diameter for oxygen was found to be rectilinear, with a high degree of approximation.—P. Langevin: Electric and magnetic double refraction. The hypothesis of molecular orientation completely explains quantitatively both Kerr's phenomenon and the magnetic double refraction of liquids.—Daniel Berthelot and Henry Gaudechon: The photochemical decomposition of the alcohols, aldehydes, acids, and ketones. The gases produced included icarbonic acid, carbon monoxide (in all cases examined), hydrogen, methane, ethane, and butane. No unsaturated hydrocarbons were found.—Marcel Mirande: The action of vapours on green plants. The action of the vapour of numerous organic substances upon green leaves was studied. Blackening, with or without the evolution of hydrocyanic acid, was found to be caused by many of the substances tried.—J. Wolff and E. de Stcecklin: The peroxydasic characters of oxyhsemoglobin.—M. Bresson: The existence of a specific methylglucase in beer yeast.
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Societies and Academies . Nature 84, 261–262 (1910). https://doi.org/10.1038/084261b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/084261b0