[A] According to press reports, temporary water ballast will be taken on during the daytime, to offset the ascensional effect of the hot sun on the envelope. [B] The contestants for the Ryan prize of $10,000 were Moisant, Count de Lesseps, and Grahame-White. Owing to bad weather, there was no general participation in the preliminary qualifying events, and some question exists as to whether such qualification was not tacitly waived; particularly in view of the fact that the prize was awarded to the technically unqualified competitor, Mr. Moisant, who made the fastest time. This award was challenged by Mr. Grahame-White, and upon review by the International Aeronautic Federation the prize was given to de Lesseps, the slowest of the contestants, Grahame-White being disqualified for having fouled a pylon at the start. This gentleman has again appealed the case, and a final decision cannot be expected before the meeting of the Federation in October, 1911. [C] The high wind velocities of the southern circumpolar regions may be an insurmountable obstacle in the Antarctic. Yet Mawson expects to take with him a 2-passenger monoplane having a 180-mile radius of action on the expedition proposed for this year. [D] It seems that tomorrow has come; for an aeroplane is being regularly used (according to a reported interview with Dr. Alexander Graham Bell) for carrying mails in India. Books on Aeronautics =FLYING MACHINES TO-DAY.= By WILLIAM D. ENNIS, M. E., Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Polytechnic Institute, Brooklyn. 12mo., cloth, 218 pp., 123 illustrations =$1.50 net= =CONTENTS=: THE DELIGHTS AND DANGERS OF FLYING--Dangers of Aviation--What it is Like to Fly. SOARING FLIGHT BY MAN--What Holds it Up. Lifting Power. Why so Many Sails. Steering. TURNING CORNERS--What Happens When Making a Turn. Lateral Stability. Wing Warping. Automatic Control. The Gyroscope. Wind Gusts. AIR AND THE WIND--Sailing Balloons. Field and Speed. GAS AND BALLAST--Buoyancy in Air. Ascending and Descending. The Ballonet. The Equilibrator. DIRIGIBLE BALLOONS AND OTHER KINDS--Shapes. Dimensions. Fabrics. Framing. Keeping the Keel Horizontal. Stability. Rudders and Planes. Arrangement and Accessories. Amateur Dirigibles. Fort Omaha Plant. Balloon Progress. QUESTION OF POWER--Resistance of Aeroplanes. Resistance of Dirigibles. Independent Speed and Timetable. Cost of Speed. Propeller. GETTING UP AND DOWN; MODELS AND GLIDERS; AEROPLANE DETAILS--Launching. Descending. Gliders. Models. Balancing. Weights. Miscellaneous. Things to Look After. SOME AEROPLANES--SOME ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THE POSSIBILITIES IN AVIATION--Case of the Dirigible. The Orthopter. The Helicopter. Composite Types. What is Promised. AERIAL WARFARE.