1002 EXPERIMENT STATION KECORD. 



cosmopolitan relationship calls for Avidespread familiarity with the 

 Avhole field of natnral science. Its danger is too close specialization 

 and disregard of everything in the pure sciences which does not bear 

 directly and quite immediately on the field of agriculture. Such a 

 course tends to narrowness and to superficiality on the part of its 

 adherents. 



This is a real danger in the development of a corps of agricultural 

 Avorkers in this country. Too close and especially too early special- 

 ization in his studv and interests is a serious disadvantage to the 

 worker in agricultural science. It not only narroAvs down his vieAV 

 of the field of science as a Avhole. but it fails to bring him into sym- 

 pathetic relations Avith it. His principal interest in these sciences 

 is often restricted to Avhat he can get out of them. Although his 

 problems may lie in the field of agronomy, he should never forget 

 that such scientific Avork as he does Avill in reality be in such sciences 

 as botany and chemistry and Avill be measured by their standards, and 

 hence his preparatory equipment must almost of necessity include a 

 good grounding in these departments as Avell as in their special appli- 

 cations. And, similarl3^ preparation for research in animal nutri- 

 tion should include a quite thorough knoAvledge of animal physiology 

 and physiological chemistry, for ^\ ithout this it will lie almost impos- 

 sible to folloAv the progress of investigation and to take advantage of 

 it in conducting special researches. 



The preparation of the student for research in agriculture requires 

 a quite different course of training from that for farming occu- 

 pations. Our agricultui-al courses in themselves do not furnish it. 

 They not only do not take the student far enough but they are too 

 specialized, and the specialization in science and its applications 

 begins too early in the course. The objection to some of these courses 

 as a foundation for advanced study is that the student often acquires 

 a rather narroAv view of what Avill be helpful in his future study, 

 as a result of which he continues specializing in his graduate work, 

 selecting only such i)arts of the sciences he takes up as seem to have 

 a direct bearing on his field. Not having had a thorough training 

 in science in his regular course, he may fail to acquire it at all even 

 though he takes considerable graduate AVork. To this extent his 

 preparation is superficial and has developed a Avrong point of view. 

 He does not fully aj^preciate the needs of a broader outlook into 

 science, and the tedious and laborious methods of the older sciences 

 do not appeal to him. Instead, he looks to a short cut in solving 

 agricultural questions or in getting an answer Avhich Avill meet prac- 

 tical requirements, and his method put in practice usually invoh^es 

 borroAving rather than building. 



P'ortunately, it should be said, these conditions of environment 

 Avhich surround the embryo investigator are being steadily improv-ed 



