OCTOBI R '27, 1905.] SCIENCE. 523 analysis appear to be no better than the one found the 'method suggested for the analysis first imientioned. of limestones, raw mixtures and Portland While in our judgment Mr. Richardson's cements, by the committee on uniformity in committee is all wrong, and will ultimately be technical analysis of the American Chemical admitted to be so, it is hardly to be expected Society, with the advice of W. F. Hillebrand.' that Mr. Eckel would do otherwise than he As a method of ultimate analysis of the sub- has; nevertheless the book, addressed as it is stances named the method proposed is well- mainly to those who use cements, limes and niigh perfect; but for any purpose associated plasters, while well-nigh complete in other with the technical composition of cements, respects, is deficient in respect to furnishing e-ement mortars and concretes, it has no value a niethod of chemical analysis that will give whatever. results that enable one to distinguish good 'rhe authors of this book are not chemists, cemertts from bad cements. hence they may be excused for any defects in We congratulate those seeking information the book involving a purely ehemical problem; upon this interesting subject that Air. Eckel nevertheless, with all the good qualities the has given them such a comprehensive and valu- book possesses it is a defect that the book does able vork. not contain a scheme of chemical analysis by means of which good cements can be distin- A Treatise on Concrete, plain and reinforced; guished from bad cements and also by means materials, constrauction and design of con- of which the analyses of cements and cement crete and reinforced concrete. With chap- mortars and concretes may be correlated with ters by R. FERET, WILLIAM B. FULLER, one another and with the physical tests of the on March 28, 2016 SPE NCER B. NEWBERRY. By FREDERICK W. cemnents used. We believe the time is not far TAYLOR, M.E., and SANFORD E. THOMPSON, distant when those who use cement will be S.P., Assoc. M. Am. Soc. C. E. New York, brought to realize the supreme importance of John Wiley & Sons. 1905. such a method. S. F. PECKI1A.M. The preface of this work states: " This treatise is designed for practising engineers Technique de psychologie expe'rimentale (Ex- and contractors, and also for a text and refer- amen des sujets). In Toulouse's 'Biblio- Downloaded from ence book oni concrete for engineering stu- theque internationale de psychologie experi- dents." mentale.' Toulouse, Vaschide et Pieron. As hydraulic cement is the basis of all con- Paris, 0. Doin. 1904. Pp. 335. crete structures, this announcement exhibits The scope of this work is much more lim- the book as designed to inform and instruct ited than the first title would indicate; the those who use cement. WVhile many of the subtitle indicates more exactly the ground technical and engineering problems involved in covered; yet the scope is still narrower than the use of cement in mortar and concrete are this at first suggests. The book does not, of of interest to us, we naturally turned to those course, attempt to condense into one small portions of the book devoted to the chemistry volume the whole subject of experimental of cements and cement mortars. A careful technique in psychology; it limits itself defi- examination of the book reveals an exceedingly nitely to the technique of 'tests,' by which the interesting chapter by Mr. Spencer B. New- mental traits of individuals are measured. berry (a very suceessful manufacturer of But, further, the book makes no attempt to Portland cement), on the 'Chemistry of cover the already rather extensive literature Hydraulic Cements.' We found nothing in of ment'al tests; it scarcely refers at all to this chapter especially designed to instruct the other authors. Its sole and consistent pur- users of cement. We looked in vain through pose a purpose which has guided the authors the body of the work for anything concerning in several years of experimentation, of which the analytical examination of cements, cement this book presents the outcome-is to formu- mortars and concretes. In an appendix we late a system of mental tests which shall take 524 A")CIENCE. [N:. S. VOL. XXII. No. 565.

rank as the standard tests, and so introduce the conformity of all workers in the field to order into the existing confusion, and make any one set of tests. the future results of different workers in this H. S. WOODWORTH. field comparable with one another. The prin- COLUMBIA UNIVNERSITY. cipal difficulty to which the authors address themuselves is the selection of materials and SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS AND ARTICLES. conditions which can be described wvith such THE first number of Economic Geology, a scientific precision as to be reproducible from semi-quarterly journal devoted to geology as the mnere description by any other worker. applied to mining and allied industries has For example, in a specially difficult test to been issued under the editorship of John Duer standardize, that for sensitiveness to faint Irving, of Lehigh University. The associate colors, the authors use aqueous solutions of editors are: , Washingtoln, analin dyes; light passes through the solu- D. C.; James Furman Kemp, Columbia Uni- tions, under definite conditions, to the sub- versity; Frederick Leslie Ransome, Washing- ject's eye, anid his sensitiveness is measured ton, D. C.; :, ; by the strength of the weakest solution in AMarius R. Campbell, Washington, D. C., and which he detects the color. This seems, on Charles Kenneth Leith, University of Wis- the whole, the most ingenious of the authors' consin. The contents of the first number are: innovations, of which there are many. In 'The Present Standing of Applied Geology,' addition to determinations of the least notice- Frederick Leslie Ransome; 'Secondary En- able sensations and differences in sensation, richment in Ore-Deposits of Copper,' James the authors suggest a system of tests on mem- Furman Kemp; 'Hypothesis to Account for ory, association, imagination, judgment, rea- the Transformation of Vegetable MNlatter into soning, attention, etc. They frankly point the Different Varieties of Coal,' Marius R. out the gaps in their system, which they are Campbell; 'Ore-Deposition and Deep Mining,' as yet unable to fill satisfactorily. A chapter Waldemar Lindgren; 'Genesis of the Lake is devoted to the general technique of experi- Superior Iron Ores,' Charles Kenneth Leith; mentation, the necessity of noting the condi- 'The Chemistry of Ore-Deposition Precipita- tion of the subject, and of excluding certain tion of Copper by Natural Silicates,' Eugene subjects as unsuited to psychological tests, C. Sullivan; Editorial; Discussion; Reviews; the proper attitude toward working hypotheses Recent Literature on Economic Geology; and toward the literature of a question, the Scientific Notes and News. necessity, in addition to quantitative tests, of less rigorous observation, which should, how- The American 111Itseum Journal for October ever, be brought up as nearly as possible to is termed the Batrachian Number, its major the exact standard of experimentation. An portion being devoted to an illustrated syn- appendix of sixty pages is devoted to the re- opsis of the salamanders, toads and frogs that printing of tests which can be fully presented have been found within a radius of fifty miles in alphabetical or musical notation. of Newv York City. The text is by R. L. Dit- In view of the slack attention to standard mars, illustrations from photographs by Her- conditions that characterizes much work in bert Lang, mainly of animals living in the psychology, this book should do considerable New York Zoological Park. W. M. Wheeler good. As the most serious attempt to present tells 'How the QuLeens of the Parasitic and a stan-dard series of tests, it is worthy of at- Slave-making Ants establish their Colonies,' tention and a large measure of acceptance. and announcements are made of three courses It can not hope, of course, to be definitive, of lectures, for members, pupils and teachers, and, indeed, the authors repudiate any such in October-December. There are, besides, claim. AMore is to be gained, pe;rhaps, by many notes concerning additions to the col- inisistence on the general principle of standard lections and other features of interest at the and exactly reproducible conditions, than by museumi. The figures of the batrachians are