Terrestrial Elements Research Articles

Elemental composition and sources of particulate matter in the ambient air of a Metropolitan City

The concentrations of particulate matter (PM) fractions (PM 2.5 and PM 10) were determined concurrently at suburban and urban sites in Izmir, Turkey. The sampling period was between June 2004 and May 2005. The mean concentrations of PM 2.5 and PM 10 were 24.1 ± 12.2 and 46.9 ± 20.1 μg m − 3 at the suburban site and 64.4 ± 38.5 and 80.0 ± 30.2 μg m − 3 at urban site, respectively. The PM concentrations showed significant temporal and spatial variations. The concentrations in winter were higher than in summer at urban site, whereas the summer concentrations of suburban site were higher than the winter values. The elemental composition of PM were determined measuring the concentrations of Al, Ba, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Sr, V, and Zn using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometer. The elemental concentrations also showed temporal and spatial variations. The elemental compositions were dominated by the terrestrial elements (i.e., Ca, Na, Al, Fe, K). In order to determine the sources of PM, correlation matrixes and factor analysis were used. The results indicated that the major sources that contributed to the PM concentrations were the traffic emissions, the fossil fuel burning emissions, and soil/soil related industries.

Dinoflagellates from the Miocene Rudeis and Kareem formations borehole GS-78-1, Gulf of Suez, Egypt

The Miocene Rudeis and the Kareem formations encountered in the Neogene part of the GS-78-1 borehole, Gulf of Suez produced diverse assemblages of dinoflagellate cysts, spores and pollen. The Early Miocene (Burdigalian) age assigned to the Rudeis Formation and the Early-?Middle Miocene (Langhian–Serravallian) age postulated for the Kareem formation is based on the presence of dinoflagellate cysts. These offer a good basis for biostratigraphic correlation of the Miocene deposits in the Gulf of Suez with those in the Nile Delta and Sinai in Egypt, and also with those present in key sections from the Mediterranean, the Canadian offshore sequences, Northwest Europe and from the North Atlantic. The terrestrial palynoflora (spores and pollen) affords no really precise, independent testimony as to the age of the samples, apart from being generally indicative of a Neogene age, in accord with the established gross age of the sediments, derived mainly from planktonic forams, calcareous nannoplankton and dinoflagellate cysts. The Rudeis Formation was deposited in a relatively deep water environment, based on the abundance fluctuations in miospores and dinoflagellates. However, the miospores recovered from the Rudeis Formation give an equivocal signal with respect to depositional environment. Such observed incursions of terrestrial elements in the Rudeis Formation could indicate that they might have been carried about within the basin of deposition by the waters of the Mediterranean Sea, or that they were displaced into a deep water setting. The overlying Kareem Formation was identified as an outer continental shelf deposit to upper bathyal (distal) environment because it contains a higher percentage of marine dinoflagellate cysts in most investigated samples, except in its uppermost part which shows the lowest percentage of marine forms. These include Spiniferites ramosus, S. pseudofurcatus, Operculodinium centrocarpum, Polysphaeridium zoharyi, Systematophora placacantha and Lingulodinium machaerophorum. The consistent presence of P. zoharyi in the Kareem Formation indicates that the Gulf of Suez was at times in the tropical to subtropical belt during the Early-?Middle Miocene age.

The Immutability of the Heavens11This Essay is one of a series of invited contributions which will appear in the PASP throughout the year 2000 to mark the upcoming millennium. (Eds.)

The Immutability of the Heavens11This Essay is one of a series of invited contributions which will appear in the PASP throughout the year 2000 to mark the upcoming millennium. (Eds.)

Terrestrial palynomorph biostratigraphy of the Cypress Hills, Wood Mountain, and Turtle Mountain areas (Upper Cretaceous - Paleocene) of western Canada

Three cored test holes were drilled to study the stratigraphic interval spanning the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary: one in the western Cypress Hills near Elkwater, Alberta; a second in the eastern portion of the Wood Mountain area near Killdeer, Saskatchewan; and a third on the western edge of Turtle Mountain near Goodlands, Manitoba. The terrestrial elements of the palynological assemblages are discussed. The Maastrichtian assemblages encompassed the Scollardia trapaformis Zone and two new subzones, Myrtipites scabratus - Aquilapollenites delicatus var. collaris and Porosipollis porosus - Aquilapollenites notabile within the Wodehouseia spinata Zone. The Paleocene zones encountered include the Aquilapollenites reticulatus Subzone of the W. spinata Zone, the previously described Wodehouseia fimbriata and Momipites wyomingensis zones, and the newly defined Tricolporopollenites kruschii Zone. These provide a biostratigraphy for the cored intervals which can be related to polarity chrons. The observations made demonstrate that existing zonations are not applicable basin wide, as there are chronologically distinct disconformity-bounded sequences in western and eastern basin sectors. Apparent diachronisms within the preserved assemblages were documented by earlier entry levels within the Momipites lineage and a significant upwards extention in the range of W. fimbriata in the eastern part of the basin.

Enhanced anticyclonic circulation in the Eastern North Atlantic during cold intervals of the last deglaciation inferred from deep-sea pollen records

Research Article| February 01, 1997 Enhanced anticyclonic circulation in the Eastern North Atlantic during cold intervals of the last deglaciation inferred from deep-sea pollen records Anne-Marie Lézine; Anne-Marie Lézine 1Unité de Recherche Associée 1761, Paléontologie et Stratigraphie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université Paris VI, Jussieu, Boîte 106, 75252 Paris cedex 5, France Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Michelle Denèfle Michelle Denèfle 2Unité de Recherche Associée 141, Géographie Physique, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1 place A. Briand, 92195 Meudon principal cedex, France Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Anne-Marie Lézine 1Unité de Recherche Associée 1761, Paléontologie et Stratigraphie, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université Paris VI, Jussieu, Boîte 106, 75252 Paris cedex 5, France Michelle Denèfle 2Unité de Recherche Associée 141, Géographie Physique, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1 place A. Briand, 92195 Meudon principal cedex, France Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1997) 25 (2): 119–122. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1997)025<0119:EACITE>2.3.CO;2 Article history First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Anne-Marie Lézine, Michelle Denèfle; Enhanced anticyclonic circulation in the Eastern North Atlantic during cold intervals of the last deglaciation inferred from deep-sea pollen records. Geology 1997;; 25 (2): 119–122. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1997)025<0119:EACITE>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Pollen analyses on two deep-sea records recovered in the eastern Atlantic between lat 37° and 4°N show two coeval peaks in wind-transported terrestrial elements (pollen and spores), mainly from dry, steppe-type formations, at 15 ka and at 10.3 ka. This may reflect the dominance of anticyclonic circulation during the cold phases of the last deglaciation, responsible for strong winds leading to the advection of polar air masses equatorward. At lat 37°N, the predominant influence of the westerlies was established after 9.3 ka. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.

Fossil vertebrate faunas of the British Rhaetian (latest Triassic)

Rhaetian fossil vertebrate faunas of Britain represent rich but biased samples of taxonomic diversity during uppermost Triassic time. Review of the Westbury Formation, Penarth Group, in particular, reveals a combination of marine, littoral, and terrestrial elements. Minimally, six species of shark are preserved along with a myriacanthid holocephalan, at least four actinopterygian taxa, a characteristic lungfish, ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, dinosaurs, and potentially the earliest representative of the Choristodera. Rare mammalian occurrences in the Westbury beds are also possible. Severnichthys gen. nov. is a large ostcichthyan, probably a palaeonisciform chondrostean, which historically has been mistaken for a labyrinthodont amphibian. At least two additional actinopterygian species and a holocephalan are known from the Lilstock Formation, and a mammal or mammal-like reptile is recorded from the uppermost Blue Anchor Formation. Analysis of element abundance in the disarticulated Westbury Formation assemblage indicates that many parts of some taxa are never preserved while other elements of the same form are common. Such preservational bias suggests that many species may be missing entirely from this long-studied but poorly understood taphocoenosis. Possibly contemporaneous cave faunas from nearby upland areas give a similarly biased picture of the terrestrial fauna during this time of widespread marine transgression.

Fossil vertebrate faunas of the British Rhaetian (latest Triassic)

Abstract Rhaetian fossil vertebrate faunas of Britain represent rich but biased samples of taxonomic diversity during uppermost Triassic time. Review of the Westbury Formation, Penarth Group, in particular, reveals a combination of marine, littoral, and terrestrial elements. Minimally, six species of shark are preserved along with a myriacanthid holocephalan, at least four actinopterygian taxa, a characteristic lungfish, ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, dinosaurs, and potentially the earliest representative of the Choristodera. Rare mammalian occurrences in the Westbury beds are also possible. Severnichthys gen. nov. is a large ostcichthyan, probably a palaeonisciform chondrostean, which historically has been mistaken for a labyrinthodont amphibian. At least two additional actinopterygian species and a holocephalan are known from the Lilstock Formation, and a mammal or mammal-like reptile is recorded from the uppermost Blue Anchor Formation. Analysis of element abundance in the disarticulated Westbury Formation assemblage indicates that many parts of some taxa are never preserved while other elements of the same form are common. Such preservational bias suggests that many species may be missing entirely from this long-studied but poorly understood taphocoenosis. Possibly contemporaneous cave faunas from nearby upland areas give a similarly biased picture of the terrestrial fauna during this time of widespread marine transgression.

Anthracobune aijiensis nov. sp.(Mammalia: Proboscidea) from the Subathu Formation, Eocene from NW Himalaya, India

A. aijiensis nov. sp., a new smaller species of Anthracobune Pilgrim, 1940 is reported from the Middle Eocenetransitional part of the Subathu Formation of Kalakot, Jammu & Kashmir, India. It is closely related to other Indo-Pakistan anthracobunids but differs in possessing certain derived characters like nonmolarised premolars, reduced first premolars and lower canines (? or absent) and strong diastema between first lower premolar and anterior teeth. The new material supports Wells & Gingerich's (1983) proposal of a separate Family Anthracobunidae for Anthracobune and its allies and suggests its close alliance with moeritheriids. Ishatherium subathuensis Sahni & Kumar, 1980 is very similar to anthracobunids but it is retained in Sirenia on the basis of morphology of its molars and incisor tusk and its occurrence in marine Ypresian sediments. Thus the Family Anthracobunidae now includes Anthracobune aijiensis nov. sp., A. pinfoldi Pilgrim, 1940 , Jozaria palustris Wells & Gingerich, 1983 , Lammidhania wardi Pilgrim, 1940 and Pilgrimella pilgrimi Dehm & Oettingen-Spielberg, 1958 . Pilgrimella is generically distinct and represents the most primitive anthracobunid. A. aijiensis nov. sp. appears to be the most advanced taxon among known anthracobunids. The amphibious nature and marshy habitat of anthracobunids as suggested by their dental morphology, host rock lithology, and the accompanying fauna indicate that the deposition of transitional part of the Subathu Formation may have taken place in coastal environment. This implies that the shoreline of rapidly contracting Tethys was close by, as is also evident from mixing of marine and terrestrial elements. The age of the land mammal yielding transitional part of Subathu sequence is considered as Lutetian on the basis of foraminiferal biostratigraphy and its correlationship with standard sections in Pakistan.

Photoluminescence of shaped silicon

Investigations of the photoluminescence of shaped silicon at the temperatures of liquid helium and nitrogen [i] have yielded information on the basic types of centers studied in this material. However, to obtain information on the parameters of recombination, which primarily govern the efficiency of finished production, remains an important practical problem, because it is advantageous.to use shaped silicon in the production of terrestrial solar elements.

Climatic changes in the Chalbi Desert, North Kenya

AbstractThe Chalbi flat, located 60 km outside the rift to the east, forms a moist, salt‐clay encrusted playa which also functions as an inland sink for alluvial fans. Residual lacustrine beds, including freshwater carbonates and travertines, crop out along its higher periphery. Mammalian bones of lacustrine and terrestrial elements, and K/Ar dating of the capping lava suggest a lake or a swamp environment 2–2.5 million years ago. Radiocarbon dating of Melanoides tuberculata and Planorbis and a sediment assemblage composed of clotted micrite, calcareous molds, root marks and stromatolites point to an additional early Holocene Chalbi lake or swamps 11000‐9500 yr BP. The data suggest wet environmental conditions outside the rift, which is consistent with the occurrence of a wet period in the early to middle Holocene in intertropical Africa, but out of phase with the climatic conditions in Sinai and Israel and with the high‐latitude maximum lake levels and glacier advance. These relations have probably been caused by migration of climatic belts.

Early permian depositional environments and pond bonebeds in central archer County, Texas

The Lower Permian redbeds of North Texas contain the oldest abundant non-aquatic vertebrate fauna. In the past, collecting of fossils and study of their paleozoology has been emphasized. With the exception of the pioneering work of Olson (1958, 1977) little attention was paid to sedimentological, paleoecological, and taphonomical aspects of the fauna. This study focuses on the sedimentary framework, paleoenvironment, fossil content, and taphonomy of the most common type of fossil occurrence — the pond bonebed. Five sedimentary facies are recognized: meanderbelt sandstones, large straigt channel fill sandstones, small straight channel fill sandstone, interbedded facies, and floodplain mudstone. These are the components of small meandering river systems with local tributaries and crevasse splays. Pond bonebeds occur as gray claystone lenses in red floodplain mudstones, deposited in oxbow lakes or swamps. The fauna is largely aquatic ( Orthacanthus, Ectosteorhachis, paleoniscoids, Sagenodus) or semiaquatic ( Eryops, Trimerorachis, Archeria, Edaphosaurus) with subordinate terrestrial elements ( Diadectes, Dimetrodon). Fossil plants, found as impressions, petrifactions, and charcoal, are indicative of swamps ( Psaronius) and well drained soils (conifers). All of the organic debris accumulated gradually by biological and physical processes. Occasional isolated but complete vertebrate skeletons are found in the floodplain mudstones.

Permian - Triassic boundary in the Peninsula

The boundary between the Permian and Triassic systems is still a matter of controversy. The traditional view is that the base of the Otoceras beds marks the base of the Triassic and hence the top of the Permian. Though the basal Triassic is known, the topmost marine Permian is still to be recorded; this gap is not even represented by the non-marine sequence of rocks either in extra-peninsular India or in Salt Range, Pakistan.&#x0D; In peninsular India, there is an undoubted non-marine (continuous) succession of Upper Permian and Lower Triassic age and no marine beds or intercalations are known. Similarly, from the extra-peninsular India, no terrestrial elements are known from the Upper Permian and Lower Triassic. Hence, the equivalence of the non-marine biozone to that of the marine is not known; only broad generalizations can be made.&#x0D; The biota known from the non-marine Gondwana Sequence of Upper Permian and Lower Triassic are plants (mega as well microfloral elements), vertebrates and invertebrates are known from the Upper Permian but are so few in number, that these cannot be taken for discussion on Permian-Triassic boundary problems.&#x0D; On reviewing the biota in the various peninsular basins, the Damodar Basin is considered significant for the problem of Permian and Triassic boundary. In the Raniganj Coalfield five sections, namely, Tatulakh, MAchkunda Jhor, Banspatelli, Nunia Nala and Nunia Khal have been studied extensively.&#x0D; Summarizing, the following points are worth notice:&#x0D; &#x0D; There was a peak development of the Glossopteris Flora in the upper part the Raniganj Formation. Normally, the peak development takes place just before the extinction. The complete extinction does not rule out the lingering of older forms.&#x0D; The appearance of Lepidopteris and the small forms of Dicroidium is noted in the basal Panchet.&#x0D; Glossopteris though became extinct at the lower altitudes has probably withdrawn to the higher altitudes, the climatic conditions of which were more akin the lower level. Dicroidium also was thriving simultaneously at higher altitudes at that time.&#x0D; Higher up in the sequence but in the lower altitudes, Lystrosaurus and Estheriella&#x0D; The miofloral zonations with respect to Raniganj and Panchet formations particularly with respect to Lystrosaurus zone, Estheriella Zone, Lepidopteris Zone are to be noted.&#x0D; &#x0D; In the light of all the above considerations, the problem of the Permian and Triassic boundary is being reviewed.

The higher elements and prime matter in Renaissance naturalism in Paracelsus.

(1974). The Higher Elements and Prime Matter in Renaissance Naturalism and in Paracelsus. Ambix: Vol. 21, No. 2-3, pp. 93-127.

Etude de l'aerosol atmospherique en cote d'ivoire et dans le golfe de guinee

Atmospheric aerosols have been sampled on filters in the air near ground level over the Ivory Coast and the Gulf of Guinea. Several elements are measured of the filters by neutron activation and γ ray spectrometry. Correlation tests applied to these elements allow us to classify them in groups of common origin. The study of the sampling collected over the Ivory Coast, along a “North-South” axis, shows an increase of the concentrations of the terrestrial elements, as one passes from the coast to the north of the country. However, no particular increase of the concentrations have been observed, in ground level air. when passing from one side of the F.I.T. to the other. In the air above the land, concentrations of marine aerosols, decrease from the coast forth, especially near it. Daily variations may be noticed for all the elements. The experiments performed in marine atmosphere, over the Gulf of Guinea, show that a high number of the elements measured are of terrestrial origin.

STRATIGRAPHIC AND PALEOGEOGRAPHIC SIGNIFICANCE OF THE HOLLAND QUARRY SHALE (LOWER DEVONIAN), NORTHWESTERN OHIO

The Holland Quarry is a black shale formerly exposed at a single outcrop located near Toledo, Ohio. Local stratigraphic relations and the carbonaceous nature of the shale suggest that it was deposited in a small, stagnant embayment occupying a previously eroded channel. Regional stratigraphic relations indicate that at the time of deposition (Gedinnian or Early Siegenian) of the shale the Michigan Basin and adjacent areas of the craton were emergent; the nearest contemporaneous marine rocks are located in southeastern Ohio. The Holland Quarry fossil assemblage is a mixture of marine, brackish, and terrestrial elements suggestive of deposition in an estuarine environment. The dominant endemic forms consist of nektonic and vagrant benthonic fishes and eurypterids, indicating that the oxygen-deficient environment was largely confined to the substrate. Neither the length nor the location of the mouth of the estuary can be determined from presently available information.

The Determination of the Age of Iron and Stony Meteorites from their Radioactivity*

AbstractObserved meteor and meteorite velocities (Öpik, Boothroyd) indicate that a small fraction, perhaps in the neighborhood of 15 percent, of all meteorites striking the earth are of extra‐solar origin. Helium‐radium age measurements (Paneth, Urry, &amp; Koeck) on 23 iron meteorites, none of which was of known heliocentric velocity, disclose a uniform distribution of last‐solidification ages with no ages clearly greater than the age of the earth. Thus, either the specimens are all from the solar system, as Paneth proposed, or the galactic system is of the same age as the earth. Two critical experiments are in progress, based on the following evidence. The abundance‐ratio of the C, O, Si, Cl, Fe, Co, and Ni isotopes in meteorites has been studied by various workers, and is found to be the same as in the terrestrial elements. Moreover, the ratio of the two independent isotopes of uranium, 92U235 and 92U238, is the same in all terrestrial specimens, regardless of the geologic age of the mineral in which they are found. It is therefore taken as a reasonable premise, but regarded as a working assumption only, that the original isotopic ratio of any element is a constant of nature and is independent of its place of origin in the galactic system. Measurements of the actinouranium vs. uranium I activity‐ratio, and of the specific activity of potassium, are in progress on stony meteorites selected for their known heliocentric velocities. Some of these are of extra‐solar origin while others are solar‐system meteorites. The final results of the analyses give the difference between the age of the atoms in the meteorites and the same type of atoms in the earth. The method is independent of all influence from varying chemical and physical conditions during the history of the meteorite, as it deals entirely with isotopic ratios. The study of both the AcU, UI ratio and the K40, K41 ratio provides an independent check on the basic assumption of the method. The apparatus, technique, and mathematical background for these experiments are fully described. The announcement of the numerical results of these analyses is deferred until all the observations and control runs have been repeated many times, in order to assure their complete reliability.

The Average Life Period of an Atom

I QUITE agree with Dr. Poole. I had previously discussed the question he raises in a lecture, “Recent Developments of Cosmical Physics”, published as a supplement to NATURE of Dec. 4, 1926; there is a similar discussion on p. 131 of my “Astronomy and Cosmogony”: “Our terrestrial atoms have so little capacity for spontaneous transformation that they may properly be described as ‘permanent.’ … If the terrestrial elements underwent any appreciable transformation in periods comparable with 1017 years, the resulting generation of heat by the earth's mass would make the earth too hot for human habitation”.

Discussion on Long Distance Radio Receiving Measurements at the Bureau of Standards in 1925 (L.W. Austin)

In previous discussions of the above named work (ibid., vol 14, pp 663, 1926) the observations on Madras (Fort) Radio were found to be too brief for a good comparison with terrestrial and cosmic elements. The present discussor's observations taken in the Far East on Rugby's transmissions cover rather longer periods than those given by K. Sreenivasan (ibid., vol 15, pp 155, 1927) and may perhaps be useful to other investigators. A curve (see Fig. 1) is given for moving weekly averages of observations of Rugby's midnight (GMT) transmission on 18,750 metres. It is noted that the curve for October and November shows intensity changes similar to K. Sreenivasan's observations of Madras. The various curves given in a second figure were taken during three voyages from Liverpool to Japan and back (via Suez) and cover a period of fifteen months, the time and wavelength of the transmission being the same as in Fig. 1. Many of the sudden and rapid changes in the curves were obviously due to screening by nearby land.

THE PROPERTIES OF MATTER AS ILLUSTRATED BY THE STARS

When Professor Aitken and Dr. Evermann did me the honor to ask me to speak before you today, I chose a large subject. I hope that you will not conclude that my motive was that of the inexperienced preacher who always took a whole chapter for his text, so that he was persecuted in one city, he might flee to another/' But let me proceed to my topic, saying only that most of what I will say deals with other men's work, and but little with my own. Among the many properties of matter which are illustrated by the stars, I shall confine myself to those which are primarily properties of atoms, for there has been an amazing development in the last decade or two, both in our knowledge of the stars and in that of atoms, and the two are becoming more and more intimately associated, as I hope to show you this afternoon. Let us begin with a bit of history. Rather more than fifty years ago, we first found ourselves in possession of a means of investigating the properties of matter in distant regions of the universe, by means of the spectroscope. We all know how the absorption in the atmosphere of the stars of the light which comes from deeper down, produces the dark in the spectra, and that each individual constituent of the atmosphere, whether element or compound, absorbs its own distinctive the same which it would emit if its vapor were raised to a high enough temperature. The pioneer work of the sixties showed at once that many of the familiar terrestrial elements hydrogen, iron, sodium, calcium, and so on were present in the atmospheres of the Sun and the stars. Later investigations have revealed the presence of about fifty of the terrestrial elements in the Sun, and of many in the stars, and practically all the in these spectra (except the faintest, which have not yet been fully studied) are now identified with known lines which can be produced in the laboratory.

Science in the Magazines

FOUR short papers on Huxley appear in the Fortnightly Review. The Hon. G. C. Brodrick, Warden of Merton College, Oxford, records some personal reminiscences of the man whose loss is so keenly felt. It appears that about thirty-seven years ago, when a Linacre Professorship of Physiology, coupled with Human and Comparative Anatomy, was founded, Huxley meditated becoming a candidate for the chair. Before the election took place, however he made up his mind not to seek the office, which was awarded to the late Prof. Rolleston. The reason he assigned was that his opinions were too little in harmony with those prevalent at Oxford. This opinion he again gave, but with diminished emphasis, when he was asked, twenty years later, to accept the chair, upon the death of Prof. Rolleston. His work for the advancement of anthropology forms the subject of a note by Prof. E. B. Tylor. “Close upon the end of his life,” says Prof. Tylor, “Huxley did his best to promote the scheme to make anthropology at Oxford an examination subject for an Honours degree in Natural Science. Writing to me, he said, “If I know anything about the matter, anthropology is good as knowledge, and good as discipline.’ But Convocation thought he did not, ‘know any thing about the matter,’ and threw out the proposed statute.” Huxley's career as biologist is sketched by “A Student of Science.” The following is worth quoting from that contribution. “It was characteristic of the Professor's general mental attitude that mere novelty never affrighted him. When Ramsay propounded his theory of the excavation of lake basins by glacial action, Huxley supported it, even against the opposition of Lyell and Falconer. Suppose St. Paul's Cathedral removed from its present site to any part of the North Sea, the English Channel, or the Irish Sea, and the whole dome would be clear out of water. Place it, on the other hand, on the flow of Loch Lomond, and the largest ship in the British Navy might float safely over the golden ball, for the Loch has a maximum depth of 630 feet. Sir Andrew Ramsay's theory explains a striking fact like this, and affords undoubtedly a rational explanation of many similar phenomena.” The fourth of the papers treats of Huxley as philosopher, and is by Mr. W. L. Courtney, the editor of the Fortnightly. Under the title “The Spectroscope in Recent Chemistry,” Mr. R. A. Gregory contributes to the same review a brief history of the discovery of argon and helium, and discusses the many interesting points raised by the advent of those two new terrestrial elements, especially with reference to their spectra. It is worthy of contemplation that, so far as instrumental possibilities go, both argon and helium could have been discovered spectroscopically many years ago, and Lord Rayleigh would have been saved his years of tantalising experimentation. And yet there are some who think that the spectroscope will not help much more in the extension of natural knowledge !