Conclusions. 125 



CONCLUSIONS. 



This independent repetition series of experiments, employing equiva- 

 lent dosage, the same apparatus and general conditions, and essentially 

 the same technique as those used by Dodge and Benedict, was under- 

 taken on one of their normal subjects (No. VI) for the purpose, among 

 other things, of verifying the somewhat irregular results obtained on 

 him in the first series. A summary of the findings in this repetition 

 series for the different experimental periods following the ingestion of 

 alcohol, together with the comparable averages found by Dodge and 

 Benedict for their normal group, 1 and also for Subject VI individually, 

 is presented in table 26. The values for the repetition series given in 

 this table appear in section in of the foregoing tables and are the 

 effects of alcohol stated in percentile differences for the various pro- 

 cesses in question. 2 A plus sign denotes an increase and a minus sign 

 a decrease (see p. 35), and these signs must be interpreted according 

 to the nature of the measurement. 



For simplicity the summary table has been divided into two parts. 

 In part i are grouped those measurements for which a plus sign sup- 

 posedly means inferior or less efficient performance, e. g., longer reflex 

 latency, slower movements or reactions, larger mean variation in 

 reactions, and the like. To state this still more concretely, it will be 

 observed that the first value in period 2 is +4.1. This is a numerical 

 expression of the contrast between the results of two groups of days, 

 taking into account the preliminary periods of the same. It shows that 

 the patellar-reflex latency with 30-gram stimuli was longer by 4.1 per 

 cent in the first measurements made after the taking of 30 c.c. of alcohol 

 as compared with the results found in the period immediately after the 

 control dose was taken. This lengthening of the reflex latency was also 

 present in the third and fourth periods, but the percentages +0.9 and 

 +2.9 show that the effect was not so great. In the fifth and sixth 

 periods the sign changes to minus ( — 7.3 and —1.5), indicating a 

 shortened reflex time. 



Part ii of table 26 includes those processes for which a plus sign sup- 

 posedly signifies superior or more efficient performance. In the cases of 

 pulse and respiration, minus denotes a decrease in length, that is to say, 

 a faster pulse rate or respiration rate per minute. It will be seen that 

 under period 2 and opposite " Number of finger movements in 8 sec- 

 onds" — 3.9 will be found, which means that the total number of free 

 finger movements performed in 8 seconds was 3.9 per cent less after 

 alcohol in contrast with the record after control doses. Similar decre- 

 ments were present, also, in periods 3, 4, and 5, in which the percentage 



1 For some measurements the normal group was composed of 7 and for others of 6 men. In every 

 case it included Subject VI. 



2 The method of computation has been fully discussed in connection with illustrative table 2, 

 p. 31. 



