Alaska sentinel., 1908-07-30
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 Owing to the great amount of decom. posed vegetable matter contained In Brazilian waters, which causes rapid deterioration of thin steel, the hull of the new dispatch boat Guanabara, built for the Brazilian Government, Is constructed entirely of bronze. Against this metal, says Popular Mechanics, the corrosive action of the Brazilian waters has no effect, and, although more cost 1 ly, both In material and construction, the vessel Is much lighter than If built of steel or wood. The propeller shaft i ing and propeller are also of bronze.
 The brownish spots which appear In old books are really due to the ravages of bacteria. says Popular Mechanics, The tiny destroyer Is especially fond of starchy material and Its propagation Is promoted by damp. It has been well understood that damp produced discol- oratfon and decay, but the share of the microbe In the operation has not hith- erto been suspected Tiny fungus or mold is responsible for gray and black marks upon old papers. In spotting the surface the fungus helps to break down the fabric and hasten the process of its destruction.
 R. Lydekker, the English naturalist, calls attention to the observations of R. l. Pocock on the significance of the spots on lion cubs as indicating the close relationship of lions, tigers and leopards. On lion cubs the pattern of the markings Is intermediate In char acter between the stripes of the tiger and the rosettes of the leopard, but in- cllnes more toward the former. East African Hons retain more or less dis tinct traces of these early markings even when they reach maturity. A dis tinct tlger-like feature of the lion cub Is a white patch over the eye, which disappears In the adult. Puma cubs show pattern quite unlike that of the lion, tiger, leopard and jaguar.
 At the recent meeting of the Amerl- can Association for the Advancement Of Science, in Chicago, attention was called to the interesting fact that the work on the Panama Canal Is changing that Its completion will enable the fresh-water fauna of the Atlantic and Pacific slopes to intermlnge. Undoubt- edly many marine animals will pass from one ocean to the other. Thus q permanent change of conditions will be brought about, which may or may not possess much practical importance, but Its scientific interest Is very great In view of these facts, the association re- solved to urge upon Congrcss the neces- sity of an immediate biological survey of the Panama Canal zone.
 The report that the Gulf Stream now runs with greater speed than formerly, and its influence on the time required for the crossing of the Atlantic, fur nishes the theme for an article by Dr. Brennecke in the German magazine, Umshau. Dr. Brennecke analyses the climatic and geographical reasons for the existence and continuance of the Gulf Stream, and points out how the change in the wind currents and the density of the atmosphere all affect the life and power of the famous current. This is chiefly dependent, he points out, on the location and areas of high and low pressure over the sea. A series of carefully made reports over a long period of time by the German Marine Observatorium seems to Indicate that the Gulf Stream now moves more rap- Idly than formerly.