INDUSTRIAL MATHEMATICS 263 



and get his feet firmly planted on the ground. In fact, even if he has highly 

 qualified experimental assistants, he should not feel averse to 'getting down in 

 the dirt.' Secondhand information is always of inferior quality. . . . 



The mathematician not only is useful as an auxiliary to whom the practical 

 man can turn with special problems. A properly trained mathematician, with a 

 sufficiently broad vision, can be very much more useful as an active participant 

 in the industrial problems. Due to his training in exact thinking he should be 

 better able to see through the maze of intricate details and discover the funda- 

 mental problems involved." 



Number Employed 



The number of mathematicians employed in communications, electrical 

 manufacturing, petroleum and aircraft is estimated at about 100. The 

 number employed in other places is no doubt somewhat less, but it is 

 probably not an insignificant part of the whole, since mathematicians are 

 found here and there in some very small industries. For example, the 

 Brush Development Company with a total engineering force of only 17, has 

 found it desirable to supplement this group with a man hired specifically 

 as a consultant in mathematics. 



It is perhaps not too wide of the mark to estimate the total number at 

 150, not including actuaries and statisticians. 



This number can be checked in another way. The membership list 

 of the American Mathematical Society lists 202 men with industrial ad- 

 dresses. Of these, 102 are in financial and insurance firms and are pre- 

 sumably statisticians. The remaining 100 names are those of industrial 

 employees with mathematical interests strong enough to belong to an 

 organization devoted exclusively to the promotion of mathematical research. 

 Some of these are not mathematicians by the definition adopted in this 

 report. On the other hand, there are also 158 names for which only street 

 addresses are given, some of whom are known to be industrial mathemati- 

 cians. Balancing these uncertainties against one another, and remembering 

 that many industrial mathematicians find little profit in belonging to an 

 association devoted primarily to pure mathematics, the estimate given 

 above does not appear unreasonable. 



Future Demand 



The appraisal of future demand is even more speculative than the estima- 

 tion of present personnel. Two statements, however, seem warranted: 

 (1) The demand for mathematicians will never be comparable to that for 

 physicists, chemists or engineers. (2) It will certainly increase beyond 

 the number at present employed. 



The first statement is justified by the fact that physicists, chemists, 



