Page:Science vol. 5.djvu/488

 I Vol. v.. No.

��reivorled. The result is strongly In favor of electri- Cliy. The electric Kght cnu[d be teen ftiurteea miles v ben the nthera were lost sight oFateiglit miles; and, when the others were at & maxlmiim power of ten miles, the electric light coulJ be seen at fonrteen and B half; and, thongh its power is much diminlelied by fog, it Is still superior to all other lights, — apoinl LItherlo doublfuU

— In consequence of the incrense of shortsighted- ness, and the Ibeorlea current as to it^ cause, a new departure in book-prlntiughaa been made Id Holland, the lettera being printed in dark blue on a pategreen pnge. Measra. IsRleib of Berlin have also printed one of their latent publicationB, ' Die nikturgescblcUte der Berllnerin,' in this manner, hut the result is not wholly satisfactory.

— Seandinatria statea that H. C. MiiHer. who, aa ' Sysselmand.' has been present at a large number of ' drivings ' of wholes at the ' Faroer,' has recently de- scribed. In the rroceedings of the Naturnl-hisiory toclety at Copenhagen, the process of catching the gdndehval. The largest num1)er are caught in the months of June, July, August, and September. A few wounded apeclnieni are found to be troubled with parasites, small white crustaceans, rarely by clrrl- pedes. It haa an enemy in Delphinus orca, the marks of whose teeth have often been observed on it; but that LagenorliyiicliUB Eschrictii or DelphliiiiB turrlo tbould bite it, is a fable, for Its mouili U too Utile and lis teeth too small to do the grindebral any harm. Besides, it feeds on the same food as the grludehval, Til., squids. The news of the arrival of the whales spreads like fire. From every village people hasten to the pl.'kce. By throwing stones the whales are driven into the bay, whence they are either dragged on [and and killed, or slain with knives on the ahat- low places. Then, lifter the whales have been killed, a division of the catch is made by the participants, certain portions being reserved for the state, church, and school funds.

— Professor Kiessling of Hamburg has given especial atlentlon to the famous sunset question, and during the past year has devised a numb«r of ex- periments for illustrating the action of minute solid or liquid particles on sunlight, by which sky colors are produced. He bos lately summarized his resulis in a pamphlet entitled ' Die damuierungserachelnun- gen 111 jaiire 1833 und Ihre physilcallscbe erklaruug.' Diffraction is considered the most Iniportaut optical process that contrlbul«s to the result, as the dull reddish ring around the noonday sun, the horizon colors at sunset, and the purple and other glows half an hour later, am all ascribed to this action. The explanation of the purple and pinkish glows is espe- cially apt and ingenious, and more to the point than any other solution of the question that lias been presented. An Important supplement to his pamphlet describes the construction of an apparatus designed to illustrate his explanations experimentally. Ue is a strong supporter of the volcanic origin of the par- ticles on which the diffracting water-particles have condensed.

��— We learn from SeandlaaBla that Professor Falba Hansen of the University of Copenhagen deliver^ 'recently a very Interesting lecture upon the progress of Denmark in recent times, especially after the free constitullon of 1&48, During the last century, the yearly Increase of Ihe population was nearly 2.000; after 1840, 17,000. Copenhagen bad, in 1810, 124,000 inhabitants, while it now has 330,000. The provlo- cial towns rose in the number of its inhabitants from 148,001) in 1S18, to 304.001). Early in the csntury, at the accession of King Frederick VI., the national wealth could be computed al 530,000,000 crowns; in 1843. at the accession of Frederick VIL, at 1,000,000,- 000; at his death In 18((3, at 2,300,000,000; and now, at 4,000,000,000. Denmark caniiot any longer justly be named, as formerly by the poet, 'a poor little country.'

— Miss E. A. Ormerod has just Issued her eighth annual report of " Olm'rvations of injurious iuaecll and common farm pests during the year lUSt, with methods of prevention and remedy," It embodlM , the remarits of numerous observers [u various p of Qreat Britain on the occurrence of insects iujurlowifl to farm and garden crops, on their habita, ando] best ways of getting rid of them. It Is not ft II remarkable, says Xalure, to notice how ol often of mluuie and interesting details, Mis* Oni rod's correspondents are; and, though many of ti

probably have little ur no scientilic training, tl

aptitude for studying the habits and eSecis of certal^fl insects makes llieir records of considerable nJiU Aside from the scientific interest of the report, H Ortnerud has done a good work In inculcating li of observation among farmers und gardeners, t have opportunities such aa few others have for & cing facta connected with the life-htator

— In the January number of the Journal qf a omy and physUilixjy, Dr. Alexander Hill describe very interesting parasitic monster which he r dissected. The parasitic twin consisted of a lobulai mass projecting from the anterior nares of ■ mak perfect foetus. The mass is about as large a head of the other foetus, and ia divided Into I iai^e and six smalt cotyledons. In one of the li lobes there is an embryonal form of liver; In an a central irregular mass of bone, full of cysts. a study of this parasite. Dr. Hill concludes tbi foetus is a double monster, one part of whicb li been arrested in development by some mechj advantage which the more perfect foetus p over the other in the beginning; and ihattbepi did not begin to develop uniil after the perfect ttlj was rather far advanceil. The parasite Is well • plied with blood, and the skin is well developed; the larger part of its mass is made up of jollj'^ embryonic tissue.

— A German engineer Is reported to have luTcnd a method of ascending and deseundiug in a twlUl at pleasure until he Snds a current of air moviD: the horixonlal direction he wishes. The agent be ni Is compressed carbonic acid, with which he Isenat lo condense or expand the gas.

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