﻿FEB. 
  19, 
  1922 
  brooks: 
  the 
  scientist 
  in 
  the 
  federal 
  service 
  99 
  

  

  discovered 
  for 
  its 
  practical 
  application." 
  Yet 
  he 
  himself 
  was 
  one 
  

   of 
  the 
  great 
  users 
  of 
  science 
  in 
  practical 
  affairs. 
  Notwithstanding 
  

   opinions 
  to 
  the 
  contrary, 
  there 
  is 
  almost 
  overwhelming 
  evidence 
  that 
  

   science 
  has 
  gained 
  by 
  its 
  very 
  marked 
  drift 
  toward 
  material 
  problems. 
  

   It 
  is 
  certain 
  that 
  the 
  vast 
  sums 
  now 
  devoted 
  to 
  research 
  are 
  available 
  

   because 
  of 
  the 
  demands 
  of 
  industry. 
  If 
  investigations 
  made 
  for 
  

   material 
  ends 
  do 
  not 
  advance 
  science, 
  we 
  must 
  grant 
  that 
  its 
  progress 
  

   is 
  due 
  to 
  less 
  than 
  10 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  present-day 
  research. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  sometimes 
  intimated 
  that 
  the 
  investigator 
  working 
  in 
  economical 
  

   fields 
  has 
  lower 
  ideals 
  than 
  one 
  who 
  is 
  employed 
  in 
  pure 
  science. 
  There 
  

   is, 
  indeed, 
  no 
  definite 
  measure 
  of 
  man's 
  ideal, 
  but 
  perhaps 
  the 
  best 
  

   measure 
  can 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  unselfishness 
  of 
  his 
  purpose. 
  The 
  scien- 
  

   tist 
  who 
  is 
  employed 
  on 
  a 
  self-chosen 
  problem 
  and 
  who 
  is 
  perhaps 
  

   working 
  in 
  an 
  ideal 
  environment 
  and 
  with 
  adequate 
  financial 
  support 
  

   does 
  not 
  necessarily 
  have 
  higher 
  ideals 
  than 
  one 
  whose 
  path 
  lies 
  in 
  a 
  

   less 
  interesting 
  field 
  or 
  one 
  whose 
  ultimate 
  purpose 
  is 
  to 
  improve 
  the 
  

   conditions 
  of 
  human 
  life. 
  The 
  average 
  investigator 
  of 
  the 
  Federal 
  

   service 
  makes 
  little 
  parade 
  of 
  the 
  motive 
  of 
  science 
  for 
  science's 
  sake, 
  

   yet 
  his 
  love 
  of 
  truth 
  is 
  no 
  less 
  than 
  that 
  of 
  his 
  colleague 
  from 
  the 
  

   university 
  of 
  other 
  endowed 
  institution. 
  

  

  Another 
  fallacy 
  is 
  the 
  contention 
  that 
  pure 
  science 
  as 
  contrasted 
  

   with 
  applied 
  science 
  leads 
  to 
  more 
  thorough 
  investigations. 
  Yet 
  

   the 
  master 
  mind 
  will 
  ultimately 
  reach 
  the 
  basal 
  principles 
  of 
  his 
  

   problem, 
  whether 
  his 
  researches 
  are 
  made 
  in 
  pure 
  or 
  in 
  applied 
  science. 
  

   Any 
  difference 
  between 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  investigations 
  in 
  these 
  two 
  

   fields 
  is, 
  indeed, 
  solely 
  a 
  matter 
  of 
  mental 
  equipment 
  and 
  bears 
  no 
  

   fixed 
  relation 
  to 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  approach. 
  Many 
  scientists 
  have 
  not 
  the 
  

   brain 
  power 
  to 
  delve 
  far 
  below 
  the 
  surface 
  and 
  hence 
  must 
  remain 
  

   cataloguers 
  of 
  facts 
  who 
  here 
  and 
  there 
  reach 
  a 
  valuable 
  general 
  de- 
  

   duction. 
  Some 
  of 
  this 
  class, 
  indeed, 
  find 
  a 
  temporary 
  abode 
  in 
  the 
  

   realm 
  of 
  speculation, 
  and 
  the 
  more 
  academic 
  their 
  problem 
  the 
  longer 
  

   they 
  remain 
  in 
  that 
  realm. 
  If, 
  however, 
  their 
  speculations 
  relate 
  to 
  

   fields 
  that 
  touch 
  human 
  needs 
  their 
  sojourn 
  in 
  that 
  high 
  yet 
  misty 
  at- 
  

   mosphere 
  is 
  likely 
  to 
  be 
  quickly 
  terminated. 
  Some 
  materially 
  minded 
  

   man, 
  mistaking 
  their 
  chaff 
  for 
  wheat, 
  may 
  make 
  a 
  practical 
  applica- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  some 
  high-spun 
  theory, 
  with 
  resulting 
  disaster. 
  No 
  surer 
  test 
  

   of 
  the 
  validity 
  of 
  many 
  a 
  scientific 
  hypothesis 
  may 
  be 
  found 
  than 
  its 
  

   practical 
  application. 
  Therefore, 
  the 
  scientist 
  who 
  is 
  working 
  with 
  

   an 
  eye 
  to 
  practical 
  results 
  is 
  likely 
  to 
  weight 
  his 
  evidence 
  more 
  care- 
  

   fully 
  than 
  the 
  one 
  whose 
  pronouncements 
  are 
  of 
  purely 
  academic 
  

  

  