CULTURAL VALUES OF PHTrSICS — DIETZ 141 



with the aid of the principles of physics. And this fact brings me 

 to another great cultural value of physics. 



Physics derives its second great cultural value from the fact that 

 it is the foundation of all the sciences. This has not always been 

 realized for many reasons. 



In the first place, a trick of language alienated physics from its 

 offspring and obscured the connection. Applied physics became 

 known as engineering and the applications of physics were dissemi- 

 nated under the names of mechanical engineering, civil engineering 

 metallurgy, electrical engineering, and so on. But let us not forget 

 that it was the physicist who launched each of these specialties. It 

 was Galileo who laid down the fundamental laws of the machine. 

 Newton's mathematical expression of Galileo's dictum, force equals 

 mass times acceleration, is the foundation of every machine in the 

 world. Similarly, electrical engineering grew from the experiments 

 of Oersted, Ampere, Faraday, and Ohm. The first principles of 

 every engineering science are the laws of physics and no real under- 

 standing of engineering advances is possible without a knowledge 

 of physics. 



The fundamental position of physics as the foundation stone of all 

 science was missed, in the second place, because in certain branches 

 of science this relationship was not at first clear. It took time 

 to bring the development of atomic theory to the point where it 

 was plain that chemical phenomena represented the operation of 

 physical laws. Today we see the relationship of chemistry to phys- 

 ics clearly expressed by the use of the term "physical chemistry" 

 which, perhaps, might just as well be written "chemical physics." 

 The chemist invokes the laws of physics to explain the behavior of 

 atoms and often we find both chemists and physicists working upon 

 identical problems. 



Biology, long regarded as a thing apart, has been brought into 

 the fold of the physical sciences. This recognition of relationship 

 was first celebrated with the creation of "biochemistry," a field of 

 research which has been unusually fruitful. More recently this 

 has been extended into "biophysics." Not long ago I was talking 

 to the director of an important medical laboratory in the Middle 

 West. "You will be surprised to know the latest addition to my 

 staff," he said. "It is a full-time physicist." 



This new demand for well-trained mathematical and experimental 

 physicists in many laboratories outside the realm of physics, is one 

 of the most interesting and important trends of our times. Not only 

 are chemical, biological, and medical laboratories seeking the aid 

 and services of physicists, but many industrial laboratories are dis- 

 covering that chemists and engineers are not sufficient to deal with 

 the intricate problems met today in mining, metallurgy, electrical 



