NATURE [NOVEMBER I 8, 1922

the magnetic effect of each molecule due to the Letters to the Editor. revolving electrons vanishes on account of the rota• tional motion. In this case, therefore, Langevin's [The Editor does not hold himself responsible .for theory of paramagnetism is not applicable. Obvi• opinions expressed by his correspondents. Nezther ously his theory can be applied only when the gas can he undertake to return, or to correspond with molecules have no degree of rotational freedom, or the writers of, rejected manuscripts intended_ fo; when they revolve only about their magnetic axes. this or any other part of NATURE. No notzce zs If a strong field acts on a uniformly revolving taken of anonymous communicatz"ons.] magnet in its plane of revolution (Fig. I), the rotation begins to become slightly ac• The Isotopes of Selenium and some celerated in the half-revolution ,'-- -.. ' / other Elements. in the direction of the field 's and retarded in the other half, I THE first experiments with selenium some time this causing a diamagnetic \ ago were not successful. Very satisfactory mass• effect. 6 In the case of the ' ...... ' spectra have now been obtained by vapori.sing the _-"' molecules of hydrogen the FIG. I . element itself in the discharge tube. The mterpre• moment of inertia about the tation of these is quite simple and definite, so that axis of rotation is, however, very large on account of the results may be stated with every confidence. the positive nuclei being apart from each other; hence, Selenium consists of six isotopes, giving lines at during rotation, these two revolving nuclei behave like 74 (f), 76 (c), 77 (e), 78. (b), 8o (a) •. 82 .. The line a large flywheel, and before the revolution of th.e mole• at 74 is extremely famt. The mtens1tles of the cules is sensibly accelerated it is newly exc1ted by lines are in the order indicated by the letters, and thermal impacts. Hence we may assume that this rota• agree well enough with the chemical atomic weight tion is not sensibly affected by the action of a stro.ng 79·2. Measurement of the lines shows no detectable magnetic field, and therefore, in the mean, deviation from the whole number rule. uniform throughout. The hydrogen gas 1s then Application of the l!lethod to cil:dmium and diamagnetic, and its susceptibility can be calculated tellurium has failed to giVe the mass hnes of these by Langevin's theory of diamagnetism. 7 elements. The employment of the more volatile Assuming Bohr's new model of the hydrogen mole• TeCl3 was also unsuccessful, but incidentally gave cules (in which the electrons have elliptic orbits), evidence of great value, which practically we have for the major axis of the orbit two facts previously suspected, namely, .chlorme has no isotope of mass 39, and that alummmm IS a h2 ( ')2 simple element 27. a c= r 2 l n +n • During some work very prolonged 4.,..2me2·l(I+K2) t - tj exposures with a gas contammg. xenon, two new isotopes of that element were at I24, 126, making nine in all. The extreme. famtness of (n +n')2 both lines indicates that the proportion of these where h is Planck's universal constant, m the mass light isotopes in the element is minute. . . . of the electrons, and e their charge; ' is the eccen• It will be noticed that the first of these 1s 1sobanc tricity of the orbit, n and n' are the azimuth and with tin and that the seleniums 78, 8o, 82 are isobares radial quantum numbers. of krypton. All isobares so far disc

Bohr's model, this rotational motion must, from 6 the point of view of symmetry, t.ake J?lace about an The diamagnetic susceptibility x = 3 ·96 x ro- ob• axis perpendicular to the ma&netlc axis of. the. l!lGroup