Societies and Academies

Abstract

LONDON. Royal Society, Feb. 13.G.—Slater: Studies on the Rhone Glacier, 1927. The structure of the ice in a compressed zone on the south-eastern part of the glacier. This zone is marked by a series of ridges dissected by three crevassed longitudinal basins. The structure of the easterly ridge, which was plotted to scale, showed a complete disarrangement of the normal ribbon-structure, the ice being, dissected into blocks by thrust-planes. The general strike of the thrust planes suggests a deviation of the ice southwards from the normal south-westerly movement of the glacier. Relief from pressure was obtained by upward movement along thrust-planes, and by lateral squeezing towards the tensional areas. The structure developed in the glacier is the same in principle as that of the disturbed Pleistocene drift deposits of Europe and America.T. Goodey: On a remarkable new nematode, Tylenchinema oscinell gen. et sp. n., parasitic in the frit-fly, OscZnella frit L., attacking oats. The parasite is widely distributed in England and Wales its life-history and the development of the gonad for both sexes are described. The general result for the host is sterilisation.D. E. Sladden: Distortion of development in amphibia caused by lack of oxygen in very early stages in development. Eggs of the common frog deprived of oxygen, either by sugar solution or by reduced air pressure, gave rise to tadpoles showing various types of abnormalities. The abnormalities present at the time of hatching died shortly after, leaving only apparently normal larv¦. From among these, however, after a period of about eight weeks, abnormalities showing flexure in tail, distortion of sacral region, and in one case suppression of hind limb, made their appearance. These latter were successfully reared through metamorphoses.Sir Frederick Keeble, M. G. Nelson, and R. Snow.The integration of plant behaviour. (Pt. 2) The influence of the shoot on the growth of roots in seedlings. By removing the shoot in young pea seedlings or the shoot and coleoptile in young maize seedlings, the growth of the main root is slightly increased for a few days, but the growth of secondary or adventitious roots is very greatly decreased. By removal of the coleoptile alone in young maize seedlings, the growth of adventitious roots is decreased, but to a much less extent.—A. W. Greenwood and J. S. S. Blyth: The results of testicular transplantation in brown Leghorn hens. Persistent grafts of testicular substance have been obtained in a series of normal hens. Modification in the functions of the ovary have been produced, both in regard to the production of eggs and to the development of the secondary sex characters.