?

NORTHERNRESEARCH REPORTS

MedicalInvestigation at were 6 cases of tuberculous disease of SouthamptonIsland bone. Intradermaltuberculin tests gave Duringthe summer months of1948 positive results in 81% of the population. thesecond Queen’s UniversityArctic During 1947 workdone on intestinal Expeditioncontinued the study of the pamsitism showeda high incidence of morbidity ratesand nutritional status infectionwith the thread worm (E. among the Eskimo population of South- vemicularis) and also showedthe pre- ampton Island, N.W.T., which wasbe- sence of Endamoeba coli and of Diphyl- gun in 1947. A party of five under the lobothrium inthe feces of a limited direction of Dr. Malcolm Brown, Asso- number of subjects3. ciateProfessor of Medicine, Queen’s In 1947 the possibility of trichinosis University, remained ,on the island from was suggested by the marked incidence late June to mid-September using an air- of eosinophilia and by certain stories of strip at Coral Harbour as their base of illnesses whichwere obtained, and this operations. pastyear this possibility was explored With the assistance of anexcellent fairlythoroughly. Two-thirds of the nativeinterpreter, complete clinical population was skin tested with Trichi- assessment of over 200 Eskimoswas nella antigenand 51% of themreacted possible, andthe information so gained positively.Specimens of serumwere whentaken with the information col- collected for testing and these also show lectedin 1947,is sufficient to permit a highincidence of positivereaction. certain general conclusions. Clinical evi- The source of the infection was sought dence of ascorbic acid deficiency was bygathering samples of muscle from seen in almost one-third of the popula- thepolar bear, walrus, seal and the tion, and corroborative biochemical evi- whitewhale, and examination of these dence was providedby assay of levels by Dr. E. Kuitunen, School of Hygiene, of ascorbic acid inboth blood and Toronto, has showninfestation in the, plasma, and by saturation excretion ex- two polar bears fromwhich specimens periments. Signs of riboflavin deficiency were obtained. were also widespread1+?.The sources An interestingfinding has beenthe of vitaminC forthe Eskimo are of presence of clinicalhepatomegaly in someinterest and a collection of17 approximatelyone-third of those ex- species of plants, whichare eaten in amined. In certain cases thehepato- part by the Eskimos during the spring megaly is gross but it has been seen in andsummer, was made andtheir otherwise apparently healthy individuals ascorbic acid content identified. and no example of hepaticfailure has The problem of respiratory tract dis- been seen. easesis animportant one and radio- Numerousbiochemical tests of hep- graphswere made of the chests of all atic function have given normal results. natives examined, andserial specimens Needle biopsies were performed in three of sputa were collected from those com- cases and histologicalstudies show a plaining of cough. The sputa were dessi- fine, granular, fatty infiltration of paren- cated with preservative to suspend bac- chymal cells withoutany distortion of terialactivity and laterreactivated in thearchitecture of thehepatic lobules. the Department of Bacteriology, Queen’s The cause of theliver enlargement re- University, for determination of the . typeand relative proportions of the mains obscure. The size of the liver has bacterialflora. At present only the re- been seen to vary over periods as short sults of the radiological survey are avail- as a fortnight. It is not related to changes able and these indicate active pulmonary in plasma lipids.Attempts were made tuberculosisin 9.4%, probabletuber- GO influencethe liver size by means of culouspathology in 9.4% and possible diet and these experiments have shown tuberculouspathology in 4% of 222 that supplementing the natural diet with cases. Evidence of pulmonary lesions large doses of ascorbic acid and of the probably non-tuberculous was found in Vitamin B complex has no effect. How- 5.8% of the subjects. In addition, there ever, carbohydrate and proteinsupple- RESEARCH REPORTS7' ments to theirnatural diet caused a References of theliver to a normal size 1. Brown, Malcolm Sinclair, R. G., Cronk, L. B.. deSinner, F.; lb48 Proc. Can. Physiol.SOC. during a four weekperiod in an experi- P: 6. 2. Slnclair,R. G., Brown, Malcolm, Cronk, L. ,B., mental group. The only biochemical cre;lnne,', F.; 19~8r','o;. Can. I'hyalot. boc. change noted in this group during this 3. %r&n Malcolm Sinclair, R. G., Crank, L. B., period was an elevation of thetotal Clark 'G. C Khtnnen-Ekbaum,E.; Can. J. Publi; Health, November 1948. serum protein level4. 4. Brown, Malcolm Sinclair 'R. G., Cronk, L. B., deSlnner, F.; is48 Prd. Can. Pllysiot. Sec. M~~~~~~ B~~~~,M.D. p. 5.

ARCTlC INSTITUTE RESEARCHPROGRAM The following research projectsin Cooperativestudy to determinethe de- progress at the end of 1948 are financed velopmental sequences in human culture, in whole or in part by the Arctic Insti- vegetation, etc., in YukonTerritory. tute through its grant-in-aid programme. Dr. H. M. Raup, Director of the Harvard Many of the projects arebeing supported Forest, Harvard University, Cambridge, in cooperation withthe United States Mass. and Canadian governments. Field work was carried out during the summer of 1948 in cooperation with Dr. Anthropology Frederick Johnson of the Peabody Foun- The extension of thetree-ring chrono- dation for Archaeology. The results are logy in Alaska by further excavation so reported to be excellent. as to datethe early phases ofEskimo Biology culture in the Bering Strlrit region. Professor J. L. Giddings, Jr., Department Botanical investigation of portions of the of Anthropology, University of Alaska, Brooks Rangemd Arctic Slopeof Alaska. College, Alaska. Professor William S. Cooper and Lloyd A. Spetzman, Department of Botany, Field work during the summer of 1948 University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, was carriedout in the Norton Sound Minnesota. area. Tree-ring collections exceeded ex- pectations. Systematic large-scaleexca- Field work was carried out during the vation of archaeological sites revealed summer of 1948 in the vicinity of Lake notonly stratified culture sequences of Schrader,Lake Peters, Umiat, Ikiapuk the Eskimo which parallel those in other Pass, Sadlerochit River, BarterIsland, and areas, from earliest to recent,but also Point Barrow. Much of this work was in evidence of a new form of culture which cooperation with Dr. P. F. Scholander of appears to be the mostancient yet re- the Arctic Research Laboratory at Point corded for the Eskimo area. Barrow. A study of the ecology of Rana sylvatica A study of theethnologic and physical in relation to permafrost, season, foods, anthropology of Eskimos in theregion and adaptations. between Norton Sound and theAlaska R. D.Hamilton, Museum of Zoology, Peninsula. University of Michigan, AnnArbor, Helge E. Larsen, Department of Ethno- Michigan. graphy, National Museum, Copenhagen, Field work during the summer of 1948 Denmark. was carried out in selected places along Field work carried out along the Be- the major river systems from Kotzebue, ring Sea coast during the summer of 1948 Alaska, to Coppermine, Northwest Terri- resulted in the discovery of Ipiutak-like tories. cultures at various places around Good- news Bay. Wood from oneof the houses Study of the microfauna of Arctic shore provided samples for tree-ring dating and areas, (Coppermine and HudsonBay). also parts of charred grassbaskets-the Dr. Marie Hammer, Holte, Denmark. earliest knownoccurrence of basketry Field work in northern Canada in the in the Eskimo cultures. vicinity of Aklavik, Coppermine, and ~ -. ".- I "

VOL. 2, NO. I 72 ARCTIC

Churchill was carriedout during 1948. A forest-botanicalstudy of portions of 591soil samples, includingin many in- UngavaPeninsula. stances associated plant specimens, were Dr.Ilmari Hustich,University of Hel- collected. Dr. Hammer is making a de- sinki, Helsinki,Finland. tailed study of the microfauna contained Field work along the east coast of in the soilsamples, atthe Museum of Hudson Bay as far north as Port Harri- Comparative Zoology, Harvard Univer- son was completed duringthe summer sity. of1947. Special attention waspaid to A study of thebreeding habits of the forest conditions. Field workby Dr. Canada Goose on the westcoast of James Hustich was continued in the summer of 1948. Areas visited were the vicinity of Bay. Lake Ducharmeand Lac Alex inthe Harold C. Hanson, Illinois Natural His- Lake St. John region and Knob Lake in tory Survey, Urbana, Illinois. central Ungava. A preliminary report of Field work was initiated in 1946 and the field investigations has been com- continued duringthe summer of 1947. pleted. ! An illustrated preliminary report on the work in 1946 has been completed as A study of certainornithological prob- well as a boundcollection of photo- lemsin the Norton Sound region of graphs taken in 1947. Work is proceed- Alaska. ing on the plants andmammals that were Henry C. Kyllingstad, Mountain Village, collected. Alaska. The investigation resulted inthe dis- A biological investigation of the Nueltin covery of the nesting grounds of the Lake area in Keewntin and Manitoba, bristle-thighed curlew,the last North with special emphasis on the life histories Americanbird whose breeding grounds and ecology of mammals, birds and fishes, and fledglings had not been previously and on the distribution of plants. found. The field work was carriedout Dr. Francis Harper, Mount Holly, New in thevicinity of Mountain Village in Jersey. cooperation with Dr. Arthur A. Allen of Field work was completed in 1947 and Cornel1 University who was supported the past year has been devoted to sub- bythe National Geographic Society. mitting some of the material collected to differentauthorities forstudy and to An ecologicalstudy of thetransition preparing reportson the remainder. A zone between tundra and forest in Un- reporton the fishes'has already been gava. published (Fowler,Henry W. and Profeszor J. W. Marr,Department of Harper, Francis. Fishes of theNueltin Biology, University of Colorado, Boul- LakeExpedition, Keewatin, 1947, Proc. der, Colorado. Acad.Nit. Sci.Phil., 1948, vol.C, pp. Field work during the summer of 1948 141-184). was carriedout in northern Ungava. The lower eighty miles of the Leaf River An analysis of population structure, gene was examined as well as the full length frequencies and hybridization of Arctic of the Koksoak for purposes of com- md Subarctic species of Colias. parison. Dr.William Hovanitz, Department of Biology, Wayne University,Detroit, A comparativestudy of mitefauna of Michigan. the North American Arctic (Barrowand Arrangements are being made for re- southward). production and distribution of the final Dr.Irwin M. Newell,University of report which is based on two seasons of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii. field work in northwestern Canada and Field work was carried out during the on museum work.It outlines in detail summer of 1948 at a number of locations the known distribution of Colias species inthe Aleutian Islands from Attu east- in North Americaand the frequencies ward and along the Alaskan coast from of the color phases. PointBarrow southward. The cooper- RESEARCH REPORTS 73 ation of the U.S. Coast Guardin pro- A study of bloodand tissue lipids of viding transportation on the ice-breaker Arctic animals in relation to post-hiber- Northwind and the help received from nation fat depletion. service groups made it possible to cover Professor Charles G. Wilber, Biological - twice the area originally planned. Laboratories, Fordham University, New York, N.Y. A study of theflora and vegetation of Field work was carried out during the the Canadian EasternArctic and Sub- summer of 1948 in cooperation with the arctic. Arctic Research Laboratoryat Point Professor Nicholas Polunin, Department Barrow, Alaska. Professor Wilber was of Botany, McGill University, Montreal, assisted by X. J. Musacchia. Places visited Quebec. in northern Alaska in addition to Point Field work during thesummers of 1946 Barrow included Aluktuk River,Teshek- and 1947 provided enough additional in- puk (Big Lake), and Meade River. Since formation on certain critical areas to per- no information wasavailable as to lipid mit completion of volumes 3 and 4 of values for the tissues of any arctic mam- Professor Polunin's Botany of the Cana- mals, a primary task was to ascertain the dian Eastern Arctic. Field work also in- normal range for these values. cluded theinitiation of aerobiological Some phases of therelation of selected studies over the Canadian Arctic. faunaepopulation (avian and mamma- lian) to weather at Kluane Lake, Yukon A study of the habits and economics of Territory. fur animals as factors of management and Dr. L. W. Wing,Agricultural and conservation. Mechanical College of Texas, College Professor H. F. Quick, Yardley, Pa. Station, Texas. Field work was carried out in north- Field work during the summerof 1948 western Canada, principally in the vicin- was carried out principally in the vicin- ity of Fort Nelson, B.C., duringthe ity of Johnson's Crossing on the Alaska winter of1947-48 and was continued Highway. A number of recordswere during the winter of 1948-49. obtained of bird activities in relation to weather and a study was madeof the A study of themammal population of ecological distribution of birdsand the Canadian Arcticnorth of Latitude mammals. 60' and its value for survival. Dr. A. L. Rand, Chicago Natural History Geographyand Geophysics Museum, Chicago, Illinois. A study of theterrain of theUngava Almost all the data on the various Peninsula. species have been collected and the final Professor G. Vibert Douglas, Depart- report is in course of preparation. ment of Geology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia. A botanical survey of Ungava Peninsula Field work along the Labrador coast between the head of the Romaine River was carriedout during the summer of and Ungava Bay. 1947 and a flightmade across Ungava Dr. Jacques Rousseau, Montreal Botan- Peninsula in April 1948. These and earlier ical Garden, Montreal, Quebec. field investigations by Dr. Douglas have been accompanied by an intensive study Field work was carried out during the of the literature. summer of1947 andadditional work bearing on theproject was completed A geographicalstudy of the coasts of during the summer of 1948 in the course Hudson Bay and Strait. of a traverse of the northern part of Un- T. H. Manning, 37 Linden Terrace, Ot- gava Peninsula incompany with Dr. tawa, Ontario. Aubert de La Rue and representatives of Previous field work by Mr. Manning the Geographical Bureau andNational eliminated the need for additional field Museum, Ottawa. observations. A detailed examination of 74 ARCTIC VOL. 2, NO. 1 theliterature and aerial photographs is Walter A. Wood established the research being madeand the final report is in station duringthe summer of 1948. Dr. course of preparation. Robert P. Sharp of the California Insti- tute of Technology directed the glacio- A study of theterrain of the Canadian logical and geological work, and groups Eastern Arctic (exclusive of the Ungava representingtheNational Research Peninsula). Council of Canada cooperated closely in Dr. T. T. Paterson,Swanley House, carryingout geophysical investigations Buckhaven, Fife, Scotland. on theSeward Glacier. The research Field work on Southampton Island station was closed inthe autumn but and along the west coast of Hudson Bay plans are bein made for its reestablish- and Melville Peninsula was carriedout ment during t ae summer of 1949. A full during the summer of 1947 to supplement account of thework has already been Dr. Paterson’s previous field experience published, (Wood,Walter A. Project inthe EasternArctic. “Snow Cornice”, Arctic, 1948, vol. I, pp. 107-112). The use of aerial photographs for pre- determining ground conditions influenc- A study of theoceanography of the ing engineering structures and construc- Canadian Emtern Arctic. tion practices in the arctic and subarctic Profesror M. J. Dunbar, Department of regions of North America. Zoology, McGillUniversity, Montreal, Professor Donald J. Belcher, School of Quebec. Civil Engineering, Cornel1 University, Field work initiated during the summer Ithaca, N.Y. of 1917 produced valuable information Following field work at a number of concerningtemperatures, salinities, and places in Alaska and the Canadian Arctic oxygen tensions in the waters of Ungava and Subarcticduring the summers of Bay. An intensive study of the literature 1947 and 1948, the final report has been has been pursued and preparation of the outlined and partially assembled. final report started. I I To gather and compile all available data on permafrost in the Norman Wellsarea Geology and tocontinue a study of permafrost Geologicalstudy of the East Coast of and related soil and snow mechanics with Hudson Bay. a view to improving the present methods Dr. E. H. Kranck, Department of Geo- of road building,communications and logy, McGill University, Montreal, Que. general construction in theArctic and Field work was completed in 1947 and Subarctic regions. the past year has been devoted to a petro- R. A. Hemstock, Devon,Alberta. logical examination of the rocks collected Following two seasons of field work in and rhe preparation of the final report. 1947 and 1948, the final report is now in course of preparation. Emphasis is being A study of the geology of Ungava Pen- insula between Ungava Bay and Hudson laid on derailed investigations of soil temperatures under different conditions. cay. A thoroughstudy of the roads in the Dr. Edgar Aubert de La Rue, Office de area has been made to checkthe suit- la Recherche Scientifique Coloniale, ability of various methods of construc- Cayenne, French Guiana. tion. A traverse of the area between Povun- gnituk on the east coast of Hudson Bay Project Snow Cornice-the establishment acd Payne Bay on Ungava Bay was made of a glacial research station on the Seward during the summer of 1948 in company Glacier in the creg of the Alaska-Yukon withDr. Jacques Rousseau and repre- boundary. sentatives of the Geographical Bureau Walter A. Wood,Arctic Institute of and National Museum in Ottawa. A de- North America,Broadway at 156th tailed preliminary report of the field Street, New York 32, N.Y. work has been completedand work is A field party under the leadership of progressing on the final report.